Legal
Privacy policy
01Who we are
This website is operated by Above The Standard Co. ("ATS", "we", "us" or "our"), a business technology and digital solutions company based in the United Kingdom.
We are the controller of the personal information described in this policy. This means we decide how and why it is used. If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your information, contact us at info@abovethestandard.co.uk.
This policy explains what personal information we collect when you visit our website or contact us, how we use it, and the rights you have under UK data protection law, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
02What information we collect
Information you give us
Our website does not have forms or accounts. We only receive personal information from you if you choose to contact us, for example by email or through Instagram. This may include:
- your name and email address;
- your job title, business name and other business contact details;
- the content of your message, including any details about your business, its needs or the project you are considering;
- any other information you decide to share with us.
Please don't send us sensitive personal information (such as health information) unless we have specifically asked for it.
Information collected automatically
We do not use analytics, advertising or tracking tools on this website. However, as with almost every website:
- Our hosting provider may automatically record technical information when you visit, such as your IP address, browser type, device information, the pages you request and the date and time of your visit. This is used to deliver the website, keep it secure and diagnose problems.
- Fonts on this website are provided by Google Fonts. To display them, your browser connects to Google's servers, which means Google receives your IP address. Google's use of this information is described in Google's privacy policy.
Our website links to our Instagram profile, @atscollective. If you follow the link or message us on Instagram, Meta will process your information under its own privacy policy. We will see the messages and profile information you share with us there.
03How we use your information
UK data protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for each way we use your personal information. We use it as follows:
| What we use it for | Lawful basis |
|---|---|
| Responding to your enquiry and communicating with you | Our legitimate interests in responding to people who contact us and running our business. Where you are asking about our services, taking steps at your request before entering into a contract. |
| Preparing proposals and providing services if you become a client | Performance of a contract with you, or steps taken at your request before entering into one. |
| Keeping business, financial and tax records | Compliance with our legal obligations. |
| Operating the website and keeping it secure | Our legitimate interests in providing a secure, working website. |
| Establishing, exercising or defending legal claims | Our legitimate interests in protecting our business. |
We will not send you marketing emails unless you have agreed to receive them, and you can opt out at any time. We do not sell your personal information, and we do not use it for automated decision-making that has legal or similarly significant effects on you.
04Cookies
This website does not set cookies and does not use tracking technologies. That is why you won't see a cookie banner. If we introduce cookies in the future, for example for analytics, we will update this policy and, where required, ask for your consent first.
05Who we share your information with
We only share personal information where necessary, with:
- service providers who support our business, such as our email provider, website hosting provider and IT services. They may only use your information on our instructions;
- professional advisers, such as accountants, lawyers and insurers, where reasonably necessary;
- authorities, such as HM Revenue & Customs, regulators, courts or law enforcement, where we are legally required to or it is necessary to protect our rights;
- a buyer or successor, if our business or part of it is ever sold, merged or restructured. Your information would stay protected under this policy.
06International transfers
Some of our service providers, such as Google, Meta and email or hosting providers, may process personal information outside the United Kingdom. Where this happens, we make sure appropriate safeguards are in place as required by UK law. This may include transfers to countries covered by UK adequacy regulations, or the use of the International Data Transfer Agreement or the UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses.
07How long we keep your information
We keep personal information only for as long as we need it for the purposes described above:
- Enquiries that don't lead to a project: up to 24 months after our last contact with you, in case you get back in touch.
- Client records, including contracts and invoices: for six years after the end of the relevant financial year or engagement, to meet tax and legal requirements.
- Hosting logs: for the limited period set by our hosting provider, usually no more than a few months.
After this, we securely delete or anonymise the information.
08Security
We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against loss, misuse and unauthorised access. These include encrypted connections to this website (HTTPS), secure accounts and restricting access to people who need it. No method of transmitting information over the internet is completely secure, but we take reasonable care to protect what you share with us.
09Your rights
Under UK data protection law, you have the right to:
- access the personal information we hold about you and get a copy of it;
- ask us to correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete;
- ask us to delete your information;
- ask us to restrict how we use your information;
- object to us using your information where we rely on legitimate interests, and to any direct marketing;
- ask us to transfer information you have given us to you or another organisation (data portability);
- withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on your consent.
Some of these rights only apply in certain circumstances. To make a request, email info@abovethestandard.co.uk. We will respond within one month. This is usually free of charge. We may need to confirm your identity before acting on your request.
10Complaints
If you have concerns about how we handle your personal information, please contact us first at info@abovethestandard.co.uk and we will do our best to resolve them.
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator, at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint or on 0303 123 1113.
11Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time, for example if we change how we operate or begin using new services. The latest version will always be on this page, with the date it was last updated shown at the top.