What is a cookie?
When you visit a website, a tiny text file is downloaded and written to your computer, or whichever device you are using. This small file contains information connected with the site you are visiting. This file is called a cookie.
Some sites use cookies to maintain viewing preferences, like larger text sizes, some use it to store your login details so they know who you are (e.g. shopping sites and banks) during your visit.
There are several different types of cookie and it is important you understand them and how they work and which type this site uses.
Session Cookies
Session cookies hold no personal or private data and are used to maintain connection to the website for the duration of your stay. These types of cookies are deleted when you close your browser.
This site uses two session cookies.
Persistent cookies
Persistent cookies are held on your device for the period defined in the cookie itself and can be stored for years.
The data in these cookies vary but can contain personal and private data such as login details and website account information. They may also be used to hold your site preferences so that when you return the site, your settings are set to how you like them. (language for example).
Some types of persistent cookie can share your data with other sites to provide targeted advertising for example.
This website does NOT use persistent cookies.
Analytical/Tracking cookies
These types of cookies are used by analytical services (such as Google analytics) to help websites measure the usage of the site, tailor site content and provide valuable feedback to the site owners (which pages are more popular, hit counts etc.). These types of cookies help the site owner provide a better service for users.
These types of cookies hold no private or personal data.
These types of cookies can remain on your device for varied amounts of time from 1 minute to several years.
This site uses Google Analytic cookies.
How to stop cookies
If you do not wish to use cookies set by this site, you can choose to stop them in your browser. For more details please see the links below. Please remember that some cookies are useful for site owners and help provide a better experience for user.
Internet Explorer:http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows7/How-to-manage-cookies-in-Internet-Explorer-9
Firefox: http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/cookies-information-websites-store-on-your-computer?redirectlocale=en-US&redirectslug=Cookies
Google Chrome: https://support.google.com/chrome/bin/answer.py?hl=en-GB&answer=95647&p=cpn_cookies
Safari: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Safari/3.0/en/9277.html
More about Google Analytic cookies
For full details about the cookies used by Google Analytics, visit the following website:
https://developers.google.com/analytics/resources/concepts/gaConceptsCookies