01What cookies are
Cookies are small text files that a website can place on your device when you visit. They are widely used to make websites work, to remember preferences, and to collect information about how a site is used.
Similar technologies — such as local storage, pixels and web beacons — work in comparable ways. Where we refer to "cookies" in this notice, we mean both cookies and these similar technologies.
02Our use of cookies
Short version: we only set analytics cookies if you actively accept them. Nothing tracking-related runs until you've made a choice through our cookie banner — and you can change your mind at any time using the "Cookie settings" button at the bottom-left of any page.
When you first visit the site, a small banner appears at the bottom of the screen asking whether you're happy for us to set analytics cookies. Until you make a choice, no analytics or marketing cookies are set.
Your choice is stored in your browser for six months, after which we'll ask again. We don't run advertising trackers, A/B testing tools, session-recording tools, or social pixels at this time.
03Categories of cookies
We group cookies into three categories so you can decide what you're comfortable with.
Necessary
Required for the site to function or to remember your cookie preferences. These are always set — without them the site can't work properly. We keep our consent choice in your browser's local storage under the name hfat_consent; it isn't a tracking cookie and isn't shared with anyone.
Analytics
Help us understand how visitors use the site so we can improve it. We use Google Analytics 4. These cookies are only set if you opt in.
Marketing
Used for advertising or social tracking. We don't currently use any marketing cookies — this category is reserved in case we add tools like Meta Pixel or LinkedIn Insight in the future. If we ever do, they will only fire after you've opted in to this category.
04Third-party services on this site
The table below lists every third-party service that runs on the site, what it does, where it appears, and whether it sets cookies.
| Service | What it does | Where | Sets cookies? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Tag Manager | Manages the small number of scripts running on the site. Doesn't track you on its own — it's just a container. | All pages | No cookies on its own. |
| Google Analytics 4 | Aggregated analytics — pageviews, traffic sources, rough location, device type. Helps us understand what's useful. | All pages, only if you accept analytics | Yes — _ga (2 years) and _ga_GXQQ1JHC2G (2 years). Only set after consent. |
| Google Fonts | Loads the "Anton" and "Inter" typefaces used across the site. | All pages | No. Your IP address is briefly logged by Google when the fonts are requested. |
| Google Forms | Hosts the embedded retreat application form. | Retreat page only | Yes. Loading the form causes Google to set cookies associated with your Google account or session. These are controlled by Google. |
| Unsplash | Hosts one decorative background image on the homepage. | Homepage | No cookies. Unsplash may briefly log your IP address when the image is requested. |
For details of what Google collects, see Google's privacy policy.
05Managing cookies
On this site
The easiest way to change what we set is the "Cookie settings" button at the bottom-left of every page. It re-opens the consent banner so you can switch analytics on or off, then save. Your choice takes effect immediately.
In your browser
You can also control and delete cookies through your browser settings. Most browsers let you:
- See what cookies are stored and delete them individually
- Block third-party cookies
- Block cookies from particular sites
- Block all cookies (this may stop some sites from working properly)
- Delete all cookies when you close your browser
Guidance for the most common browsers:
For more general information about cookies and how to manage them, see the ICO's guidance on cookies.
06Changes to this notice
If we add new features to the site that use cookies — for example, analytics or a chat widget — we will update this notice and, where required, ask for your consent before those cookies are set. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page shows when it was last changed.
07Contact
If you have a question about how we use cookies, or about this notice, please email contact@humanfirst-at.com.
See also our privacy notice for more on how we handle your personal data.