How we will use your data: We will use your data to contact you about network events and to understand the roles and interests of our members. Your personal information will not be shared outwith the network, but you can choose to make your profile on this website viewable by other MAIN members for the purposes of collaboration. This will be in a password restricted area of the site, only visible to people who have signed up to MAIN. Your data will be securely stored in a password protected database on a secure server. Your data will only be accessed by the leads and administrator for MAIN and their delegates, for the purposes outlined above.

1. Introduction

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and protect your personal information when you use this website (“the Site”). We comply with UK data protection law, including the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

By using the Site, you agree to the practices described in this policy.

2. Data We Collect

2.1 Data you provide

We may collect information that you voluntarily provide, such as when you fill in a form or contact us directly.

2.2 Automatically collected data

When you visit the Site, we may automatically collect technical information including:

• IP address
• Browser type and version
• Pages visited and time spent on the Site
• Device and operating system details

This helps us understand how the Site is used and improve our services.

3. Use of Google Analytics (Optional Tracking)

We use Google Analytics, a service provided by Google LLC, to help analyse website traffic and usage patterns.

Google Analytics may set cookies on your device and collect information such as how you found the Site, which pages you visit, and time spent on each page.

This tracking is optional and you may reject analytics cookies through our cookie banner or your browser settings.

Google processes data according to their own policies:

• Google Privacy Policy
• How Google uses information from sites using their services

4. How We Use Your Information

We use your information to:

• operate and maintain the Site;
• improve our content and user experience;
• understand how visitors use the Site;
• respond to enquiries you send us.

We do not sell or share your data with third parties for marketing purposes.

5. Legal Bases for Processing

Under UK GDPR, we rely on the following legal bases:

• Consent – for optional analytics cookies.
• Legitimate interests – for security, site performance, and essential functionality.
• Contract – when information is required to respond to enquiries.

6. Data Sharing

We may share data with:

• Google Analytics, as described above;
• Service providers who help operate the Site, such as hosting providers.

All third parties are required to handle your data securely and in accordance with UK law.

7. Data Storage and Retention

We retain personal data only for as long as necessary for the purposes stated in this policy. Google Analytics data is stored according to Google’s own retention settings, which we configure to minimise retention where possible.

8. Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

• access your personal data;
• request correction or deletion;
• object to processing;
• withdraw consent (such as for analytics cookies);
• lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): https://ico.org.uk

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the details below.

9. Cookies

We use essential cookies for basic Site functionality and optional analytics cookies for Google Analytics.

You can control or delete cookies via your browser settings or our cookie banner.

10. Contact Us

If you have questions or want to exercise your data protection rights, please contact:

Email: MAINevent@ed.ac.uk