Privacy policy
What's this about?
Ethical Schoolwear is a small business committed to doing things right. That means supplying affordable school uniform that has the lowest impact while treating our customers as well as we expect to be treated by the companies we shop with.
Like any online business, we do need to collect some information about you in order to process orders, keep our website running well and to share relevant news and updates with our email subscribers.
The privacy policy below goes into detail but we just want to make a few simple points clear from the start.
1. We don’t want to annoy anyone.
We're not here to spam people and we only want to send relevant messages to people who we think want to receive them. If you signed up but no longer want to hear from us, all our marketing emails contain an unsubscribe link.
2. We don't want to know any more than we need to know.
For example, we need your name and address to send an order to you, and sometimes it helps to know which of our products you like or don't like but we don't store any payment data and we will never ask you for your mother's maiden name or the colour of your first car.
3. We don't share what you tell us with anyone we don't have to.
For example, we have to tell Royal Mail your address to get your orders to you, and we use tools like Shopify to deliver emails but we will never share your data with anyone for any reason other than to process your orders or complete marketing tasks (unless we specifically ask you if it's ok and you agree). We will always delete, correct or document everything we know about you on request.
4. Sometimes things do go wrong.
We'll be the first to admit that we don't always get everything right. Sometimes people make mistakes and sometimes computer systems don't behave as intended. If you’re unhappy with something we’ve done, please drop us an email to hello@ethicalschoolwear.com
5. We’d love to hear from you.
If there’s anything that you’d like to hear more about, or anything you think we need to improve on, please do let us know. We want to get better and really value all the feedback we get. Drop us an email to hello@ethicalschoolwear.com
So, with that said, here's our full Privacy Policy:
Ethical Schoolwear (“we”, “us, and “our”) provide you with access to our site: ethicalschoolwear.com. This Privacy Policy explains to you how certain information about you may be processed. By using this site and placing orders, you expressly consent to the use of your data in accordance with this Privacy Policy, the Terms of Use and the Terms of Trade.
We may revise this Privacy Policy and post any changes to the site so that you are always informed about what information we collect, how we use it and under what circumstance we may disclose it. By continuing to use the site after any posted revisions, you have accepted these terms and consented to our collection, use and sharing of information as we describe in this Privacy Policy. If you do not agree with this Privacy Policy, please do not use the site.
1. YOUR DATA
"your data" means any information about you which is personally identifiable, including, without limitation, your name, address, telephone number, email address, Registration Name, Password, where applicable, and other information from which you can be identified and which you may disclose to us or otherwise via the site at any time. This information is known as “personal information” because it is capable of identifying you as a living individual. Personal information is afforded certain protections under data privacy and other laws and you can be assured that your personal information will be handled at all times by us in compliance with such laws.
We may also collect information from you at the site that does not personally identify you, though it may be unique or consist of or contain information that you consider personal. For example, we automatically collect the following information: clickstream information such as the address of the web site that you came from before visiting our site, which pages you visit on the site, what country you are browsing from and what default language your internet browser is set to, which browser you used to view the site and any search terms you have entered on our site. This information is anonymous meaning we cannot identify you personally.
2. COLLECTION OF YOUR DATA
We collect your data when:
• you create an on-line account;
• you place an order;
• you make a complaint or enquiry or provide other feedback to us;
• you place a comment on the site;
• you submit an entry to a competition or prize draw; or
• you disclose your data to us through the site at any other point.
3. USE OF YOUR DATA
3.1 In certain situations we use your data in order to meet contractual obligations, such as to:
• process the registration of your on-line account and maintain your on-line account;
• process and complete orders you place via the site;
• process and deal with any complaints or enquiries made by you;
• make your comments and/or reviews available on the site.
3.2 In certain situations, we collect and process your data with your consent.
• send you and keep you updated with information by email/post/telephone about existing and new services and special offers from us.
• send you information by email/post/telephone about products or services of selected third parties; and
• publish or otherwise make available a list of prize winners (in such case as you are a prize winner).
3.3 To opt-out of receiving any information relating to paragraph 3.2:
i. amend your preferences accordingly in your on-line account;
ii. use the one-click facility contained in any such communication; or
iii. email us at hello@ethicalschoolwear.com stating your name and the address you wish to unsubscribe.
Your request to be removed from our email list may take up to five (5) business days to become effective. Please note that you may receive emails that were already in process even though we have removed you from our list. Even if you are removed from our list, please know that if you place an order on our site we will send you an email confirmation.
3.4 In certain situations we may use your data to pursue our legitimate interests in a way which might reasonably be expected as part of running our business and which does not materially impact your rights, freedoms or interests, such as to:
• use your purchase history to make or send personalised offers to you.
• combine the shopping histories of many customers to identify trends and ensure we are properly planning to meet demand and to develop new products.
• monitor, develop and improve the site and your experience based on our customer and visitor shopping and browsing habits;
• send you direct marketing information by post to inform you of products and services which we think may interest you.
3.5 If the law requires us to, we may need to collect and process your data. Such as:
• to pass on details of people involved in fraud or other criminal activity affecting us to law enforcement agencies.
3.6 your data will be held by us for so long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, for the settlement of any potential disputes which may be raised or otherwise in accordance with legal requirements.
3.7 Please be aware that when you choose to post a comment review to the site, this and any personal data that you choose to include in it may be made available on the site and therefore be accessible to any visitor to the site. Please therefore think carefully about the content of your comment and only make available what you are happy for others to read.
4. SHARING YOUR DATA WITH THIRD PARTIES
4.1 We may sometimes pass on your data to trusted third parties in order to operate our business. For example:
• to our employees, couriers agents and sub-contractors in order to administer your account, process orders and other parts of the services;
• to third party service providers and social media platforms in order to operate our marketing campaigns.
• to contractors and IT support teams tasked with maintaining our computer systems or otherwise maintaining our operations.
• we may disclose your data to the police, regulatory bodies or legal advisers in connection with any alleged criminal offence or where required by law.
4.2 When passing your data to any third party, we follow the following policy to safeguard your privacy:
• We provide only the information the third party needs to perform the task or service.
• The third party may only use your data for the exact purpose we have agreed in our contract with them.
• We monitor their work closely to ensure your privacy in maintained throughout.
• When we stop using their services, we ensure your data is deleted from their systems or rendered anonymous.
4.3 We will never pass your data to a third party for their own use unless you have specifically consented. For example:
• if we run a competition or other joint-promotion with a third party and you tick a box allowing them to email you independently of us.
5. DATA SECURITY
5.1 We endeavour to take all reasonable steps to protect your data. All the data collected by us is stored on secure servers. The secure server software encrypts all personally identifiable information you input when you place an order before it is sent to us.
6. COOKIES
6.1 Cookies are small pieces of information stored by your browser on your computer's hard drive. We use cookies to allow us to understand who has seen which pages and advertisements, to determine how frequently particular pages are visited, to determine the most popular areas of the site and generally in order to monitor usage of the site. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, though you do not have to. If you wish to disable cookies then you can do so by readjusting your browser settings although please note that by disabling cookies you may not be able to register with or use all features of the site. Our trusted third-party providers may also use cookies or similar devices to monitor and maintain information about your use of the site and understand your preferences based on previous or current site visits so that we can offer better experiences for you in the future. Wherever possible, the cookies we use will not contain any data which can personally identify you, although this can not always be the case, such as when enabling you to log in to your account or to facilitate your ability to place orders through the site.
6.2 As of October 2022, the third party services which may place cookies in your browser are:
• Google & Shopify (In order to monitor the site and to support marketing campaigns)
• Facebook, Twitter and Instagram (In order to support marketing campaigns and enable social media sharing functionality)
6.3 For more information on cookies and how to disable them, you can consult the information provided by the Interactive Advertising Bureau at www.allaboutcookies.org.
7. ACCESS TO AND UPDATING YOUR DATA
7.1 Where you are a registered on-line account holder, you may access and update your data contained in your on-line account. You must make sure that you update your data as soon as possible with any and all relevant changes.
7.2 If you would like to receive a copy of your data held by us, please email hello@ethicalschoolwear.com
8. LOCATION OF AND TRANSFERS OF YOUR DATA
Your data may be held or accessed by Ethical Schoolwear's entities or its affiliates in Europe and the US in the course of providing the site and services to you. We also use third party providers in order to fulfil the purposes set out in paragraph 3 above who may be located in countries in Europe or in the US. In terms of any such transfers, we ensure that your data is transferred with relevant and appropriate contractual and other safeguards in place to ensure that it is kept secure and handled in accordance with relevant privacy laws. When you access or use this site, you consent to this transfer of your data on these terms. Please also note that if you choose to post a comment on the site then this and any personal data you choose to include in it may potentially be available to site users worldwide.
9. OTHER LINKS
Please be aware that the site may link to other web sites that may be accessed by you through our site. We are not responsible for the data policies, content or security of these linked web sites and encourage you to review the policies on these other sites.
10. CONTACTING US
If you have any questions about our Privacy Policy or how we use your data please contact us by email at hello@ethicalschoolwear.com
11. CONTACTING THE REGULATOR
If you feel that your data has not been handled correctly, or you are unhappy with our response to any requests you have made to us regarding the use of your personal data, you have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office. You can contact them by calling 0303 123 1113. Or go online to www.ico.org.uk/concerns (opens in a new window; please note we can't be responsible for the content of external websites) If you are based outside the UK, you have the right to lodge your complaint with the relevant data protection regulator in your country of residence. Details can be found in Section 16.
Thank you,
Ethical Schoolwear