Privacy
Policy

Who we are

ACT for Trades is a design studio based in the United Kingdom. We provide brand identity, website design and build, magazine and print production, and online presence services to trade and construction businesses.

For the purposes of UK data protection law we are the data controller for the personal information described in this policy. That means we decide what is collected and why.

Information we collect

We only ask for what we actually need. In practice that is:

• Information you give us directly. When you complete the enquiry form on this website, or email or call us, we collect your name, your company name, your email address, your telephone number where you provide it, the trade you work in, the services you are interested in, and whatever you tell us about your situation.
• Information we need to do the work. If you become a client, we hold the contact details, project material, files, photographs, and correspondence needed to deliver and support the work, together with the records required for invoicing and accounting.
• Technical information from our host. Like almost every website, the server that delivers these pages keeps standard access logs, which include IP addresses. We do not use these to identify individuals.

We do not ask you to create an account, we do not set a password, and we do not take payment through this website. We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18.

Why we collect it, and our lawful basis

UK GDPR requires us to have a specific lawful basis for using your information. Ours are:

• To respond to your enquiry and discuss whether we are the right studio for the job — our legitimate interests in replying to people who contact us, and steps taken at your request before entering a contract.
• To carry out work you have engaged us to do, including quoting, delivering, invoicing and supporting it — performance of a contract.
• To keep proper business records, including tax and accounting records — a legal obligation.

We do not send marketing emails, and we do not add enquirers to a mailing list. If that ever changes we will ask for your consent first, and you will be able to withdraw it at any time.

How we store, share and disclose it

Your information is held on services we use to run the studio — email, file storage, accounting, and the hosting for this website. Those providers process data on our instructions as data processors.

We do not sell your personal information. We do not trade or rent it. We share it only where it is necessary:

• with suppliers who need it to complete your work — for example a printer producing a magazine, or a signwriter applying vehicle livery;
• with our accountant, and with HMRC where the law requires;
• where we are required to disclose it by law, or to establish or defend a legal claim.

Where a provider stores data outside the UK, we rely on the safeguards permitted under UK data protection law, such as adequacy regulations or standard contractual clauses.

We will not use your project, your name or your logo as a case study or portfolio piece without asking you first.

How we communicate with you

We will contact you to reply to your enquiry, to discuss and deliver work, to raise invoices and chase payment where necessary, and to resolve any problem with work we have done. We may do that by email, telephone, text message or post.

Cookies and tracking

This website does not set cookies, and does not use analytics or advertising trackers. There is no tracking pixel, no advertising network, and no third-party script embedded in these pages. Fonts and code libraries are served from our own domain rather than from a third party, so loading a page here does not report your visit to anyone else.

A cookie is a small file a website asks to place on your device, usually to remember a preference or to measure traffic. Most browsers accept them automatically and allow you to refuse or delete them in settings. If we add anything that sets a non-essential cookie in future, we will ask for your consent before it runs, and update this policy.

How long we keep it

• Enquiries that do not become projects — up to 12 months, then deleted.
• Client project records and correspondence — for the duration of the engagement and up to 6 years afterwards, so we can support the work and deal with any dispute.
• Invoices and accounting records — 6 years after the end of the accounting period, as UK tax law requires.
• Server access logs — kept only for the short period our host retains them.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to:

• ask what personal information we hold about you, and get a copy;
• have inaccurate information corrected;
• ask us to delete information, where there is no overriding reason for us to keep it;
• ask us to restrict how we use it, or object to our using it;
• ask for information you gave us to be provided in a portable format;
• withdraw consent, where we relied on consent.

Ask us and we will respond within one month. There is no charge. We may need to confirm your identity first.

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113. We would rather you raised it with us first so we can put it right.

Security

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect your information, including encrypted connections to this website, access controls on the accounts we use, and keeping software up to date. No website or system can be guaranteed completely secure, and we cannot promise absolute security of information sent to us over the internet.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy. The date at the top of this page shows when it last changed. Where a change materially affects how we use your information, we will make that clear here.

Contact us