About this policy
The websites referred to in this policy are:
- docsociety.org
- docacademy.org
- goodpitch.org
- safeandsecure.film
This policy explains what cookies are, consenting to cookies, the types of cookies we use and why, how you can control cookies from our website, and how to contact us. We use a number of cookies across our websites to improve user experience. This page explains:
- Who we are
- What cookies are
- Types of cookies we use
- How you can control the use of cookies from our website
- Further information and contacting us
- How to make a complaint
Who we are
If you are resident in the UK, or any other country other than the US or the Netherlands, or if you are applying to the BFI Doc Society Fund, we are Doc Society, a not-for-profit company limited by guarantee and registered in the United Kingdom with company registration number 05278207.
Doc Society (ICO registration Z9359129) is the Data Controller for any personal information we process.
If you are resident in the US, we are Doc Society Inc, a not-for-profit company registered with the IRS as a 501(c)(3).
If you are resident in the Netherlands, we are Stichting Doc Society, a not-for-profit company registered with the Dutch Chamber of Commerce with registration number 858556364.
For this policy “we“, “us,” and “our” refer to Doc Society.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files of letters and numbers with an expiry date which are stored in your browser on your computer or mobile device. A cookie is created when the browser you use to look at web pages loads a particular website. The website sends information to the browser which then creates a text file (cookie). Every time you return to the same website, your browser retrieves and sends this file to the website's server. When the cookie reaches its expiry date, your browser discards it.
A cookie records information relating to your internet activity such as whether you have visited our website before. It stores the information on your device (your computer/tablet/phone). The cookies we use on our website don't collect personally identifiable information about you and we only disclose anonymised aggregated usage data to third parties.
A persistent cookie stays on your device even after you close your browser, remembering your settings and preferences for future visits. You can clear them by going into your browser settings and deleting your cookies.
The cookies we send to your device only relate to your use of our website; they don't have any other effect on your device.
The types of cookies we use
We collect two types of cookies. Below, we explain what these are and why we use them. We also explain how long we store them for. This can vary from a session to a set of minutes, hours, or days. A session starts when you launch a website and ends when you leave it or close your browser window.
Necessary cookies
These cookies are necessary for our website to work properly, which is why they can’t be switched off. They are essential in helping you to move around our websites and using their features, such as accessing secure (password-protected) areas, for example, your user account.
We use:
Cookie
Purpose
Security Function
Retained
csrftoken
It helps secure the website by preventing Cross-Site Request Forgery (CSRF) attacks.
Each time you submit a form or perform an action that changes data (e.g., update your online account), the website checks that the token in your browser matches the one it expects. This ensures the request is coming from a legitimate source – your own browser – and not a malicious one.
This cookie lasts for a year, providing ongoing protection without you needing to re-authenticate constantly.
cookiehub
Manages user consent preferences for cookies on the website, ensuring compliance with privacy regulations.
Stores the choices you’ve made regarding which cookies to allow, so the site can respect those preferences during your visit and on future visits.
This cookie lasts for one year, so your preferences are remembered without needing to be reset frequently.
sessionid
Used to identify a user's session on the website, allowing the site to maintain the state of the user’s interactions as they navigate through different pages.
Stores a unique session identifier that helps the website keep track of user activity during a single visit. It does not store personal information.
Retained for 14 days, enabling the site to remember user sessions over a short period, so users can return without needing to re-authenticate.
Analytics cookies
These cookies specifically focus on collecting data for analysis. They provide insights into your behaviour on our website and what actions you take. They help us understand our website users’ patterns and preferences, allowing for data-driven decisions to enhance our website's effectiveness.
We use:
We use Google Analytics (GA) to collect information about how visitors use our website. We use this information to report to our funders and to analyse website usage so that we can improve user experience. Google Analytics collects information such as the number of site visitors, which pages they visited, how they came to the site and their location. This information is anonymous and cannot be used to identify you personally. You can find out more about privacy at Google and opt out of being tracked by Google Analytics across all websites.
Cookie
Purpose
Description
Retained
_gid
Used by GA to track user behaviour on the website, helping site owners understand how visitors navigate and interact with the site.
Assigns a unique ID to each user to distinguish between visitors. It doesn’t store personal information but allows for anonymous tracking of user activities across pages.
Retained for 24 hours, so it only tracks user activity within a short timeframe, resetting each day.
_gat_*
Used by GA to manage and throttle the rate of requests, ensuring that data collection is efficient and doesn’t overload the site with analytics requests.
Helps maintain site performance by limiting the number of data requests sent to GA servers. It doesn’t store personal information.
Retained for only one minute, allowing it to quickly manage request rates without lasting effects on the user’s device.
_ga_*
Used by GA to distinguish unique users and track their interactions across multiple sessions on the website, providing insights into user behaviour and engagement.
Assigns a unique identifier to each user, allowing GA to aggregate data about repeat visits. It does not store personal information.
Retained for one year, allowing long-term tracking to help website owners analyse trends over time.
_ga
Used by GA to identify unique users and track their interactions across the website, giving insights into how visitors navigate and engage with content.
Creates a unique ID for each user, enabling GA to collect data on user activity across sessions. It does not hold personal information.
Retained for one year to support longer-term analysis of visitor behaviour.
__utma
Used by GA to track the number of visits and the timing of a user’s first, previous, and current visit to the website, enabling insights into user engagement over time.
Assigns a unique identifier to each user, allowing GA to differentiate between new and returning visitors and track their visit history. It does not store personal information.
Retained for one year from the last update, which supports long-term analysis of user interactions with the site.
__utmc
Used by GA to determine when a user's session ends by working with the __utmb cookie. It helps identify when a user leaves the site or closes the browser.
Temporarily stores session information to help GA calculate session duration. It does not store personal information.
This is a session-based cookie, so it expires when the user closes their browser.
__utmz
Used by GA to track the source of traffic to the website, such as search engines, direct links, or referral sites. This helps site owners understand how users are reaching their site.
Stores information about the user’s referral source, including any keywords they used in search engines. It does not contain personal information.
Retained for 6 months, allowing for ongoing analysis of how users arrive at the site over time.
__utmt
Used by GA to throttle the request rate, particularly during high-traffic periods. It helps manage the amount of data sent to GA servers.
Limits the number of requests made to GA, ensuring that the tracking process remains efficient without overloading the system. It does not store personal information.
This cookie is retained for 10 minutes and typically expires when the user closes their browser.
__tmb
Used by GA to determine new sessions and visits, helping to track the duration of a user's visit to the website.
Works alongside the __utmc cookie to establish a timestamp for when a user enters the site, enabling the calculation of session duration. It does not store personal information.
Retained for 30 minutes, after which a new session is created if the user returns to the site.
Third party cookies
Our website includes links to other sites (such as X, Facebook, Vimeo, and YouTube). These third-party sites may set cookies on your device when you interact with their content on our site. We do not control these cookies and recommend you review the cookie policies of each third-party site for details on how they use cookies.
When you visit our website
If you don't want to opt-in to certain types of cookies when you use our website, you can adjust the selections you choose through our cookie consent mechanism when you first land on our website. Once selected, we keep a record of your cookie consent preferences for up to one year.
When you first visit our website, you are presented with a pop-up, which gives you the following options:
- Allow all cookies
- Cookie settings
If you click on the cross, cookies will not be opted into, except for those that are strictly necessary.
If you click on ‘Cookie settings’ you will be presented with a second menu allowing you to choose which types of cookies we can collect. Once you have set your preferences click on ‘Save settings.’
Using browser settings
You can block cookies by changing settings in your browser. Bear in mind that if you block cookies then our sites, and other sites you visit, may no longer work for you as intended.
Changes that you make to browser settings will only apply to that browser; if you use multiple browsers (e.g., Chrome, Firefox, Safari) and wish to opt out of cookies then you will need to change settings in each browser that you use.
Changes to browser settings will only take effect on the device on which you make those changes unless your browsers are set up to share your settings across different devices. If your browsers are not set up in this way and you want to opt out of cookies then you will need to change the settings of each browser on each device that you use.
If you delete all cookies, then all site preferences stored on your device will be deleted. This means that if you opt out from cookies for a given site and then delete all cookies, your opt-out will not be saved and you will need to opt out again (which will store a strictly necessary cookie so that your device can remember that you have opted out).
Below are links to instructions for opting out of cookies for some of the most popular browsers:
Unfortunately, we can't help with issues caused by changes to your device settings. If you have problems, try resetting your browser settings and clearing your cache for our site.
You can find out more about cookies at allaboutcookies.org and individual cookies on www.cookiepedia.co.uk
The ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) provides more information on cookies, including how to see what cookies have been stored and how to manage and delete them.
To request information about yourself or to find out more about our privacy, data protection and records retention measures, please write to:
Data Controller
Level 5a Maple House,
149 Tottenham Court Road,
London,
United Kingdom, W1T 7NF
Email: datacontroller@docsociety.org. Specify in your communication the exact nature of the information you wish to request.
How to make a complaint
If you are unhappy with how we are processing your personal data and take the view that we are not complying with UK GDPR, you have the right to complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).
Visit: https://ico.org.uk/concerns/
Write to: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
Phone: 0303 123 1113
We may change or update this Cookie Policy from time to time. Any changes will be immediately posted on the website, and you are deemed to have accepted the terms of the Cookie Policy on your first use of the website following the alterations.
Last updated March 2025
