Cookies and consent

"Cookies" are small files a website can store in a visitor's browser. Some are necessary for the site to work; others are used to track behaviour. The rules apply to the latter type.

Two kinds of cookies

• Necessary cookies keep basic functions running – for example remembering your choices in a form. These don't require consent.
• Analytics and marketing cookies track how people use the site, or follow them across websites. These require active consent before they're used.

When do I need a consent banner?

You need a consent banner if the site uses analytics or marketing cookies – for example visitor statistics that identify users, or advertising tools from Facebook or Google.

If the site only uses the bare essentials, in many cases you can get by without a banner at all. That's actually the best user experience: no annoying pop-up, and nothing to consent to.

Our approach: as little tracking as possible

We build sites "light" and try to avoid unnecessary tracking. That has several benefits:

• Better privacy for visitors.
• A faster site – tracking scripts make pages slower.
• Less to deal with for you, both technically and legally.

If you do need analytics to understand your traffic, there are privacy-friendly tools that give you insight without tracking individuals – often with no consent requirement at all.

If you do need a banner

If the site is going to use tools that require consent, we set up a consent banner that lets visitors choose, and that ensures nothing is tracked before they've said yes. It ties in with your privacy policy – see Privacy and GDPR.

Not sure what your site needs? Get in touch and we'll find the simplest solution that stays on the right side of the rules.