On 26 May 2011 an EU directive was passed that required us to inform visitors about cookies on our website. We are now required to give you the chance to opt out of cookie use, except in certain instances where it would negatively affect the functionality or security of our site.
What are cookies?
Cookies are pieces of data that allow a website to store information within your web browser. They are sometimes called web cookies, browser cookies or HTTP cookies.
There are many types of cookies but the two most common used by websites are persistent cookies and session cookies.
- Session cookies only last as long as you are using a website and your web browser will normally delete this cookie when you close it.
- Persistent cookies have an expiry date set by the website and these are stored on your computer by your web browser. These cookies outlast session cookies and are available to the website each time you visit.
Why would we use cookies?
A common use of cookies on our site includes session management; these cookies have names like ASP.NET_SessionId and ASPSESSIONID. Our website will send a unique session key to your web browser; your web browser will then return a unique key whenever you request a page.
This allows our website to tell the difference between users, for example, when logging in. These session keys do not store any personal or identifiable information and are normally deleted when you close your web browser or after a period of inactivity.
We occasionally also use persistent cookies for personalisation features, like remembering your postcode or that you have logged in. We recognise that sometimes these cookies will store information you consider personal and we will always ask for your permission before setting one.
More information
The following tables contain detailed information on the cookies you can expect to see on our site.
Summary of cookies used on this site
| Cookie | Name | Type | Purpose |
|---|
| Google Analytics |
_utma
_utmb
_utmc
_utmz |
Persistent
Persistent
Session
Persistent |
These cookies are used to collect information about how visitors use our site. We use the information to compile reports and to help us improve the site. The cookies collect information in an anonymous form, including the number of visitors to the site, where visitors have come to the site from and the pages they visited. |
| Essential site cookies |
ASP.NET_SessionId
ASPSESSIOID* |
Session
Session |
These cookies are essential for the website to operate and are set upon your arrival to our web site. These cookies are deleted when you close your browser. |
| Security cookie |
.AspNetForms |
Session |
This cookie is used for authentication when signing in to your customer account. This cookie is deleted when you close your browser. |
| Site preferences |
Preferences |
Persistent |
This cookie is set when you choose to allow cookies. It can contain preferences like your address and whether you want to our site to remember your login details. |
Summary of cookies used on subdomains of this site
| Commonly used cookies |
|---|
| Cookie | Name | Type | Purpose |
|---|
| Google Analytics |
_utma
_utmb
_utmc
_utmz |
Persistent
Persistent
Session
Persistent |
These cookies are used to collect information about how visitors use our site. We use the information to compile reports and to help us improve the site. The cookies collect information in an anonymous form, including the number of visitors to the site, where visitors have come to the site from and the pages they visited. |
| Planning application search |
|---|
| Cookie | Name | Type | Purpose |
|---|
| Essential site cookies |
JSESSIONID
ASP.NET_SessionId |
Session
Session |
These cookies are essential for the planning application search website to operate and are set upon your arrival to the site. These cookies are deleted when you close your browser. |
| Online mapping system (WebGIS) |
|---|
| Cookie | Name | Type | Purpose |
|---|
| Essential site cookie |
ASP.NET_SessionId |
Session |
This cookie is essential for the mapping website to operate and is set upon your arrival to the site. This cookie is deleted when you close your browser. |
| Libraries booking system (Netloan) |
|---|
| Cookie | Name | Type | Purpose |
|---|
| Essential site cookie |
ASP.NET_SessionId |
Session |
This cookie is essential for the netloan website to operate and is set upon your arrival to the site. This cookie is deleted when you close your browser. |
Please note that if you have visited our site prior to 26th May 2012 then you may still have some cookies from that time.
To find out more about managing cookies on your device, please refer to http://www.allaboutcookies.org.