1. The basics
London Trade School ("we", "us", "LTS") collects personal data when you book a course, join a waitlist, contact us, or visit our website. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data in compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
This policy explains what we collect, why we collect it, and what rights you have.
2. What we collect
Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect the following:
- Identity and contact information: Your name, email address, and phone number.
- Payment information: Payments are processed securely through Stripe. We do not store your card details on our servers — Stripe handles this in accordance with PCI-DSS standards.
- Course preferences: Which course you are interested in, preferred dates, and experience level.
- Health and accessibility needs: Any dietary requirements, medical conditions, or accessibility needs you choose to share with us so we can keep you safe and comfortable.
- Analytics data: Information about how you use our website, including pages visited, time on site, and device information, collected through Google Analytics.
- Marketing pixels: We use Meta (Facebook) Pixel and TikTok Pixel to measure the effectiveness of our advertising. These only operate with your cookie consent.
3. Why we collect it
We use your personal data for the following purposes:
- To deliver your course: Processing your booking, sending confirmation and joining instructions, and managing your attendance.
- To process payment: Collecting deposits and balances securely via Stripe.
- To keep you safe: Understanding any medical or accessibility needs so our instructors can accommodate you.
- Marketing emails: Sending you updates about new courses, offers, and trade tips — only if you have opted in. You can unsubscribe at any time.
- To improve our website: Using analytics data to understand how people use our site so we can make it better.
- To advertise effectively: Using Meta and TikTok pixels (with your cookie consent) to reach people who may be interested in our courses.
4. Who we share it with
We only share your data with trusted third parties who help us run our business:
- Stripe — payment processing.
- Google Analytics / Google Workspace — website analytics and email/calendar.
- Meta / TikTok — advertising pixels (only with your cookie consent).
- Mailchimp / ConvertKit — email marketing (only if you have opted in).
- HMRC — we are legally required to share certain financial records with HM Revenue & Customs.
We will never sell your data to anyone. Ever.
5. How long we keep it
- Booking and payment records: 6 years, as required by HMRC for tax purposes.
- Marketing contacts: Until you unsubscribe. Once you do, we remove you from our mailing list promptly.
- Analytics data: 26 months (Google Analytics default retention period).
- Waitlist data: 12 months from the date you joined. After that, we delete your information unless you have booked a course or opted into marketing.
6. Your rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:
- Access the personal data we hold about you.
- Correct any inaccurate or incomplete data.
- Delete your data (the "right to be forgotten"), subject to any legal obligations we have to retain it.
- Restrict how we process your data in certain circumstances.
- Withdraw consent for marketing at any time by clicking the unsubscribe link in any email or contacting us directly.
- Complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you believe your data rights have been violated. You can contact the ICO at ico.org.uk.
To exercise any of these rights, email us at hello@londontradeschool.com.
7. Cookies
Our website uses the following types of cookies:
- Essential cookies: Required for the website to function properly (e.g., session management). These cannot be disabled.
- Analytics cookies: Used by Google Analytics to help us understand how visitors use our site. These are set only with your consent.
- Marketing cookies: Used by Meta (Facebook) Pixel and TikTok Pixel to measure advertising performance and build audiences. These are set only with your consent.
You can manage your cookie preferences at any time through your browser settings or our cookie consent banner.
8. Children
Our courses are designed for individuals aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under the age of 18 without verified parental or guardian consent. If you believe we have inadvertently collected data from a minor, please contact us immediately and we will delete it.
9. Contact us
If you have any questions about this privacy policy or how we handle your data, please get in touch:
Email: hello@londontradeschool.com
We aim to respond to all privacy-related enquiries within 5 working days.