What are cookies

Cookies are small files that are placed on your computer by websites that you visit. They are widely used in order to make websites work, or work more efficiently to improve the user experience, as well as to provide certain information to the owners of the site.

You are seeing this page because EU and UK law require websites to inform users how the site uses cookies. It's not something you need to be alarmed about. You are welcome to read on if you want the full details.

How this site uses cookies

Cookies are everywhere in modern websites. This site is very modest in how it uses cookies. The cookies used are standard ones, common with many other sites, and are used to make certain services work.

Platform cookies

This website is running Drupal which is a standard platform for hosting websites. Drupal stores some cookies to make the website work efficiently.

• There is a cookie stored to record that you have accepted cookies.  When you first visit the site, you will see a banner message indicating that by continuing to use the site you are accepting the use of cookies.  If you don't use the site further, this cookie isn't stored.
• For efficiency, Drupal stores whether your browser allows javascript to run.  This cookie has already been stored.
• If you log in to this site, Drupal stores a cookie to keep you logged in.
• In certain less common scenarios there could be other cookies, for example, to store your preferred layout on a particular page.

Google Analytics

This site uses a tool called Google Analytics.  It's a very popular tool, reported to run on over 15 million sites including 60 percent of the top 10,000 sites (link).  In summary, Analytics helps us understand how visitors use the site, and so improve the site.  You can read more about the cookies Google store and how you can manage them.

Your choices for controlling cookies

This site relies on cookies to function.  Without the cookies described above, the website won't work fully.  For example, you will not be able to stay logged in.  Therefore there is no option in this site to prevent cookies.

However, it is likely that your web browser (the program or app you are using right now to view this page) has an option to completely or partially disable cookies within the privacy or security settings.  Each browser has a slightly different method for controlling cookies.  To get the most recent instructions for your browser, search for 'disable cookies' and the name of your web browser.