Privacy Policy - Family Horizons Course

Last updated: 19.09.2025

Quick Summary - What Parents Need to Know

Your privacy matters to us. Here's what you need to know:

✓ We only collect your name, email, and postcode area - nothing about your child

✓ Schools and services only see a total number (when it's 5+) - they cannot identify individual families

✓ Your course activity and feedback remain private and anonymous

✓ You can delete all your information at any time by emailing us

✓ We never use your information for marketing or share it commercially

✓ All data is securely encrypted and professionally protected

Click here to view our Terms of Use

Introduction

We understand that privacy is especially important when you're seeking support for your child. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you access the Family Horizons course, which supports parents and carers of children experiencing emotionally-based school avoidance (EBSA) or school-related anxiety.

We are committed to protecting your privacy and using your information responsibly to provide you with the best possible support.

Who We Are

Data Controller: EdPsychEd Ltd

Company Number: 12925284

Registered Address: 81-83A Allerton Road, Mossley Hill, Liverpool, L18 2DA

Data Protection Officer: Jenny Dutton

Contact for privacy matters: [email protected]

What information we collect and why we need it

We only collect the minimum information necessary to provide you with the Family Horizons course:

Registration Information

Your name (first and last name) - We need this to personalise your course experience and communicate with you appropriately

Email address - Essential for sending you secure course access details, progress updates, and support materials. This is your main communication channel with us

First part of your postcode (e.g., "M1", "B15") - This helps us confirm you're associated with the correct Local Authority area. We never collect or store your full address

Confirmation checkbox - A simple tick to confirm you're a parent/carer in the Local Authority area

What happens if you don't provide this information?

We can only provide course access with a name and email address. The postcode confirmation helps ensure the course content is relevant to your area, but isn't technically required for course access.

Absolutely crucial: What we don't collect

Nothing about your child - we never ask for or collect any personal details about your child, including their name, age, school, specific circumstances, or any information that could identify them

No sensitive personal information about you beyond what's listed above

No financial information - the course is provided free of charge

No detailed personal circumstances - we don't ask about your family situation, employment, or other personal matters

Course Usage Information (Automatically Collected)

When you use the course, we automatically collect anonymous data to help improve the experience:

Pages you visit and time spent on each section (helps us understand which resources are most valuable)

Course progress and completion status (allows us to see if the course structure works well)

Which resources you access most frequently (shows us what parents find most helpful)

Technical information such as your device type and browser (ensures the course works properly for all users)

This usage data is anonymised and cannot be traced back to you individually.

Feedback (Always Optional)

• Any written feedback you choose to provide through course forms or surveys

This is entirely voluntary - you can benefit fully from the course without providing any feedback

All feedback is treated as anonymous unless you specifically ask us to follow up with you

How we use your information

We use your information solely to:

1. Provide you with secure course access and send important course-related communications (such as password resets or course updates)

2. Track your individual progress through the course materials so you can pick up where you left off

3. Improve the course for all families by understanding which resources are most helpful (using anonymous, aggregated data)

4. Share minimal, anonymous statistics with schools and Local Authority services to demonstrate the course is being used (see detailed explanation in "Information sharing" section below)

5. Respond to any support requests you may have about accessing or using the course

We never use your information for marketing purposes, commercial activities, or share it with companies trying to sell you products or services.

Legal basis for processing your information

Why we're allowed to process your data: Under UK GDPR, we process your personal data based on legitimate interests. This means we have a genuine, justified reason for using your information that doesn't override your privacy rights.

Our legitimate interests are:

• Providing educational support resources for families experiencing EBSA

• Helping the Local Authority understand how well the course is supporting families in their area

• Improving the quality and effectiveness of EBSA support resources

Your Local Authority's legitimate interests are:

• Supporting families within their area who are experiencing Anxiety related to school

• Understanding whether the resources they're providing are effective and being used

Important: You can object to this processing at any time. If you object, we will stop processing your data unless we can show compelling reasons why the processing should continue that override your privacy rights. In practice, this would likely mean we'd need to delete your data and you'd no longer be able to access the course.

Joint responsibility: EdPsychEd and your Local Authority are "joint controllers" for some purposes - this means we share responsibility for ensuring your data is handled properly. However, EdPsychEd takes the lead on all privacy matters, so you should contact us with any concerns.

Information sharing - Complete transparency about what others can see

We believe parents deserve complete honesty about data sharing. Here's exactly what different people and organisations can see:

Schools and Local Authority Services - What They Can See

The only information shared is:

A single number - the total count of parents/carers who have registered (e.g., "23 families have accessed Family Horizons")

This number is only displayed when it reaches 5 or higher - below this threshold, it shows "<5" to prevent any possibility of identifying individual families

Anonymous, aggregated usage statistics such as:

- "The most accessed resources were the anxiety management techniques"

- "On average, families spend 45 minutes per session"

- "85% of users complete the first three modules"

What schools and services absolutely cannot see:

• Your name, email address, or any way to identify you

• Whether your family specifically has or hasn't accessed the course

• Your individual progress through the course or course completion status

• How much time you've spent on specific topics

• Any feedback or comments you provide

• Your postcode information

• When you last accessed the course

Family Horizons keeps all parent/carer details completely private from schools and Local Authority services.

Real example: If you're worried that your child's school might know you've accessed the course - they cannot know this. They only see something like "18 families in our area have accessed Family Horizons" with no way to identify which families these are.

Technical Service Providers

We work with carefully selected, professional companies that help us deliver the course securely:

HighLevel (our course platform) - Stores your course data securely in the US with full data protection agreements

Google Analytics (anonymised website usage statistics) - Helps us understand how to improve the course experience

Email services (for sending you course communications) - Only used to deliver messages you've requested

These companies:

• Are bound by strict legal contracts to protect your data

• Can only use your information to provide their specific service to us

• Cannot use your data for their own purposes or share it with others

• Are regularly audited to ensure they meet security standards

Data We Never Share

• Individual personal details - your name, email, or personal circumstances

• Information about your child - we don't collect this, so we can't share it

• Your specific course activity - what you've looked at, when, or for how long

• Commercial sharing - we never sell or share data with marketing companies

• Unrelated purposes - your data stays within the support context only

International data transfers

Some of your data is processed in the United States through our course platform (HighLevel). We ensure this is done safely through UK-US Data Bridge certification and Standard Contractual Clauses, which provide equivalent protection to UK GDPR.

If you have concerns about international transfers, contact us at [email protected] before registering.

Your privacy rights - You're in control

You have complete control over your personal information:

Your key rights

Access your data - Request a copy of all information we hold about you

Correct your data - Ask us to fix any inaccurate information

Delete your data - Request immediate removal of all your information (you'll lose course access)

Restrict processing - Ask us to stop using your data temporarily

Data portability - Get your data in a format you can use elsewhere

Object to processing - Ask us to stop using your data entirely

Withdraw consent - Opt out of optional features like feedback surveys

How to use these rights

Email us at [email protected] with:

• Your name and email address

• What you'd like us to do

• Any questions you have

Our promise: We'll respond within one month (usually much faster), never charge you, and explain everything clearly. We'll never make you feel difficult for asking.

Data security - How we protect your information

Your personal information is protected using the same level of security as online banking:

Encryption - All data is encrypted when sent and stored, making it unreadable if intercepted

Secure hosting - Your data is stored on professional, monitored servers (AWS/Google Cloud)

Access controls - Only essential staff can access personal data, with two-factor authentication required

Regular updates - All security systems receive updates within 7 days of release

Staff training - All team members complete annual security and data protection training

What this means for you: Your information is as safe as we can make it using professional-grade security measures.

Data retention - How long we keep your information

We keep your personal information for 5 years after you last access the course. This allows us to provide ongoing support if you return to the course and conduct research to improve support (using anonymised data).

You can request deletion at any time - we'll usually complete this within 48 hours and you can register again in future if you change your mind.

After 5 years (or when you request deletion), we securely delete all your personal information. Only anonymised statistics may remain (e.g., "X families completed the course" with no way to identify who).

Cookies and similar technologies

We use a few essential cookies to make the course work and help us improve it:

Login and progress cookies - Keep you logged in and track where you are in the course

Security cookies - Protect your account from unauthorised access

Google Analytics - Anonymous data about how the course is used (helps us improve it)

You can control cookies through your browser settings, but disabling them may prevent the course from working properly. We don't use marketing cookies or track you for advertising.

Children's privacy

The Family Horizons course is designed for adults (parents and carers) only. We do not collect any information from or about children under 16. Registration requires access to an adult email account and the course content is written specifically for adult understanding.

If you have concerns about your child accessing course materials, how you share course information with your child is entirely your decision as their parent/carer.

Changes to this privacy policy

We may occasionally update this privacy policy to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. If we make significant changes, we will notify you by email and update the "last updated" date at the top of this policy.

Questions and concerns

If you have any questions about how we handle your personal information, please contact us:

Email: [email protected]

Subject line: Privacy Query - Family Horizons

We aim to respond to all privacy queries within 48 hours during working days.

Complaints

If you're not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the UK's data protection authority:

Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)

Website: ico.org.uk

Telephone: 0303 123 1113

Our commitment to you

We understand that seeking support for anxiety related to school can be challenging.

We are committed to:

Using your information only to provide support - never for marketing or commercial purposes

Protecting your privacy - schools and services cannot identify individual families

Complete transparency - we explain what we do with your information in plain English

Respecting your choices - you can delete your data or object to processing at any time

Professional security - your data is protected using banking-level security measures

Thank you for trusting us with your information. We're here to support you and your family.

EdPsychEd Ltd

Company Number: 12925284

Registered in England and Wales

Registered Address: 81-83A Allerton Road, Mossley Hill, Liverpool, L18 2DA