Cookie policy
Last updated 15 October 2026
What this covers
This policy explains what we store on your device when you use the EduShare.uk platform, why we store it, and how long it stays there. It sits alongside our privacy notice, which explains what we do with personal information more generally.
The rules here come from the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). They cover any storage of, or access to, information on your device — not only cookies. That is why the tables below also list browser storage such as localStorage and IndexedDB.
The short version
We use very few. There is no advertising and no cross-site tracking on this platform, and analytics (Google Analytics) runs only on our public website and only if you allow it - never inside the members’ portal. Most of what we store exists to keep you signed in or to remember a setting you chose yourself.
If you are just reading our public pages and have not accepted anything, we store nothing at all on your device beyond your cookie choice itself. The Google sign-in library loads only when you sign in, and Google reCAPTCHA loads only when you start filling in our enquiry form and only if you allowed it.
What we store
Strictly necessary
Always on. The platform cannot work without these, so they do not require consent - but we still tell you about them.
| Name | Type | Provider | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
tb_session | Cookie | EduShare.uk (first party) | Keeps you signed in. Holds a signed token identifying your account. Marked httpOnly, so scripts on the page cannot read it. | 14 days |
tb-cookie-consent | localStorage | EduShare.uk (first party) | Records the cookie choice you made and when you made it, so we do not ask again on every page. | Until you clear it |
firebaseLocalStorageDb | IndexedDB | Google Firebase | Holds your signed-in state so you are not signed out on every page load. Created only when you choose to sign in - never on the public pages. | Until you sign out |
firebase-heartbeat-database | IndexedDB | Google Firebase | Created automatically by the Google sign-in library, at the same moment as the entry above. It records the dates the library was used and reports them to Google as usage statistics for the library itself. It holds no information about you and we cannot see it. | Rolling 30 days |
Functional
Optional. Remembers choices you made. First party, and never leaves your device.
| Name | Type | Provider | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
tb-theme | localStorage | EduShare.uk (first party) | Remembers whether you chose the light or dark theme, and applies it before the page paints. | Until you clear it |
Anti-spam
Optional. Loaded only on our enquiry form, once you start filling it in.
| Name | Type | Provider | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
_GRECAPTCHA | Cookie | Set by Google reCAPTCHA to tell humans from bots on our enquiry form. Loaded only once you start filling the form in, and only if you allowed anti-spam cookies. Your browser may block it, in which case reCAPTCHA still works without it. | Set by Google, typically up to 6 months | |
Your existing Google cookies | Cookie | If you are signed in to Google, loading reCAPTCHA sends the Google account cookies already in your browser (such as SID, HSID, NID) to Google, as it would on any site using reCAPTCHA. We do not set, read or receive these - but this is why the check is optional rather than always on. | Controlled by Google, not by us |
Analytics
Optional. Google Analytics on our public website only - never inside the members' portal - to understand how many people visit and which parts they use. Google signals and ad personalisation are switched off. Refusing or withdrawing consent deletes these cookies.
| Name | Type | Provider | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
_ga | Cookie | Google Analytics | Distinguishes one visitor from another so Google Analytics can count visits to our public website. Set only if you allowed analytics cookies, and never used inside the members' portal. | 2 years |
_ga_<ID> | Cookie | Google Analytics | Keeps track of the current visit (the session) for the same purpose. | 2 years |
Advertising
We do not use any. There is nothing to list.
Strictly necessary vs optional
Strictly necessary items are exempt from the consent requirement because the service cannot work without them — you cannot sign in without a session, and we cannot remember your cookie choice without storing it. Everything else is off unless you turn it on, and you can change your mind at any time.
Refusing functional storage does not break anything. Your theme and training progress will simply reset when you close the tab, rather than being remembered.
Changing your choice
Use the Cookie settings link in the footer of any page. It reopens the banner so you can change or withdraw consent, which is as easy as giving it. Withdrawing functional consent also deletes what was already stored under that category.
You can also block or delete cookies in your browser settings. If you block the strictly necessary ones you will not be able to sign in.
Third parties
Signing in uses Google Identity Platform, our enquiry form uses Google reCAPTCHA, and - if you allow it - our public website uses Google Analytics. In each case Google may set its own cookies under its own privacy policy, which we do not control. We do not share your information with any advertising provider, because we do not use any.
Review
We review this policy, and the storage it describes, on the same cycle as Getech Ltd’s group data protection policies, and whenever we add a service that stores anything on your device.
Contact
Getech Limited, Solutions Centre, Knightsdale Road, Ipswich, Suffolk, IP1 4JQ. Data Protection Officer: DPO@getech.co.uk · 01473 243 470. ICO registration Z7161654.
If you are unhappy with how we handle your information you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office on 0303 123 1113 or at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.