Privacy Policy
Effective date: 1 July 2026
1. Who we are
This Privacy Policy explains how Alexander Bennett, trading as Valid Volition, collects, uses, stores, and protects personal information relating to visitors to this website and people who submit enquiries.
Alexander Bennett, trading as Valid Volition, is the data controller responsible for the personal information described in this policy.
For privacy questions, requests, or concerns, contact:
Alexander Bennett
Trading as Valid Volition
Email: alexander@validvolition.com
2. Scope of this policy
This policy applies to personal information collected through:
- the Valid Volition website;
- the website enquiry form;
- cookies and similar technologies;
- website analytics and advertising tools;
- website security and anti-spam systems; and
- subsequent correspondence relating to an initial website enquiry.
It does not cover personal information processed after an enquirer becomes a client. Information relating to signed contracts, invoices, payments, and client projects is managed separately as part of the client relationship.
3. Information collected
Information you provide
When you submit an enquiry through the website, Valid Volition may collect:
- your name;
- the name of your organisation;
- your email address;
- information about your proposed project;
- your anticipated budget; and
- any other information you choose to include in your message.
You should provide only the information reasonably necessary for Valid Volition to understand and respond to your enquiry.
Technical and usage information
When you visit the website, certain technical and usage information may be collected automatically, including:
- your Internet Protocol address;
- your approximate location based on your Internet Protocol address;
- your browser, device type, and operating system;
- the pages you visit;
- the date and time of your visit;
- the website or source that referred you;
- your interactions with pages, links, buttons, and forms;
- session, cookie, or advertising identifiers;
- website-performance information;
- cookie-consent choices; and
- website security events, including suspected automated activity or unsuccessful login attempts.
Where Microsoft Clarity is enabled with your consent, information may also include anonymised or pseudonymised session recordings, heatmaps, scrolling behaviour, and interactions with the website.
4. How your information is used
Personal information may be used to:
- receive, review, and respond to enquiries;
- assess whether Valid Volition can assist with a proposed project;
- provide information about relevant services;
- prepare quotations;
- arrange initial consultations;
- communicate about a potential engagement;
- operate and maintain the website;
- protect the website and its users;
- detect and prevent spam, fraud, unauthorised access, and misuse;
- understand how visitors use the website;
- identify technical problems;
- improve the website, its structure, and its content;
- measure the effectiveness of advertising and professional outreach;
- maintain records of cookie-consent choices;
- establish, exercise, or defend legal rights; and
- comply with legal and regulatory obligations.
Valid Volition does not add enquirers to mailing lists and does not use enquiry details to send newsletters or unsolicited promotional emails.
5. Lawful bases for processing
The lawful basis used depends on the purpose for which the information is processed.
Steps before entering into a contract
Information may be processed where this is necessary to take steps at your request before entering into a contract.
This may include:
- reviewing your proposed project;
- discussing your requirements;
- arranging an initial consultation; and
- preparing a quotation.
Legitimate interests
Information may be processed where necessary for the legitimate interests of operating and protecting Valid Volition.
These interests may include:
- responding to general business enquiries;
- maintaining appropriate correspondence records;
- managing potential client relationships;
- operating and improving the website;
- preventing spam, fraud, and misuse;
- protecting website and account security;
- investigating technical or security incidents; and
- establishing or defending legal claims.
These interests are considered alongside your rights, interests, and reasonable expectations.
Consent
Consent is used for non-essential cookies and similar technologies, including analytics, advertising pixels, session measurement, and behavioural analysis.
You may reject, withdraw, or change your consent through the website’s CookieYes settings.
Withdrawing consent will not affect processing that took place lawfully before consent was withdrawn.
Legal obligations
Information may be processed where this is necessary to comply with a legal, regulatory, court, or law-enforcement requirement.
6. Website enquiries
The website enquiry form is provided through Elementor.
When you submit the form:
- the submission is stored within the website’s WordPress administration area;
- the website is hosted on a United Kingdom server provided through IONOS;
- a copy is sent to Valid Volition through Google Workspace and Gmail; and
- the information is reviewed by Alexander Bennett.
Submitting an enquiry does not create a client relationship, guarantee that Valid Volition will accept the proposed work, or create any obligation to provide services.
7. Cookies and similar technologies
Valid Volition uses CookieYes to manage cookie choices.
The website may use cookies, pixels, scripts, local storage, and similar technologies for:
- essential website operation;
- security and spam prevention;
- recording cookie preferences;
- analytics;
- website-performance measurement;
- session analysis;
- advertising measurement; and
- understanding how visitors interact with the website.
Subject to your consent choices, the website may use:
- Google Analytics;
- Google Site Kit;
- Meta Pixel;
- LinkedIn Insight Tag;
- Microsoft Clarity; and
- related measurement and analytics services.
Google Search Console may also be used to review aggregated information about how the website appears and performs in Google search results.
Non-essential analytics, advertising, and behavioural-measurement technologies will not be activated until the relevant consent has been provided through CookieYes.
You can withdraw or change your consent through the cookie settings available on the website.
Further information about individual cookies, their purposes, and their duration is provided in the separate Cookie Policy and through the CookieYes consent panel.
8. Spam prevention and website security
Google reCAPTCHA may be used to protect website forms against spam, automated submissions, and abuse.
It may process technical information such as:
- your Internet Protocol address;
- browser and device information;
- website interactions; and
- information used to distinguish genuine users from automated activity.
The website also uses the All-In-One Security plugin to assist with:
- login security;
- firewall protection;
- detecting suspicious activity;
- preventing automated attacks;
- recording security events; and
- protecting the WordPress administration area.
Security information may include Internet Protocol addresses, timestamps, attempted login details, and records of suspected malicious activity.
Necessary security technologies may operate without optional cookie consent where their use is required to provide or protect the website.
9. Sensitive personal information
Please do not submit sensitive or highly confidential personal information through the general website enquiry form.
This includes information concerning:
- health or medical circumstances;
- racial or ethnic origin;
- religious or philosophical beliefs;
- political opinions;
- trade-union membership;
- sexual orientation or sex life;
- genetic or biometric information;
- criminal allegations;
- criminal investigations; or
- criminal convictions.
Where a potential project may involve sensitive information, appropriate arrangements should be discussed and agreed before that information is provided.
Where sensitive information is submitted without being requested, Valid Volition may delete it, restrict access to it, or contact you to arrange a more appropriate method of communication.
10. Sharing personal information
Personal information may be processed by service providers whose systems support the website and the handling of enquiries.
These may include:
- IONOS, which provides hosting and server infrastructure;
- WordPress;
- Elementor;
- Google Workspace and Gmail;
- Google Drive;
- Google Analytics;
- Google Search Console;
- Google Site Kit;
- Google reCAPTCHA;
- CookieYes;
- Meta;
- LinkedIn;
- Microsoft Clarity; and
- providers assisting with website administration, maintenance, security, or technical support.
Personal information may also be shared:
- with professional advisers where reasonably necessary;
- with a contractor or specialist engaged to assist Valid Volition;
- where required by law, regulation, court order, or a public authority;
- where necessary to establish or defend a legal claim;
- to investigate fraud, abuse, or security incidents; or
- in connection with the sale, transfer, or reorganisation of the business.
Contractors and specialists will receive only the information reasonably necessary for their work and will be expected to protect its confidentiality.
Valid Volition does not sell personal information.
11. International processing
The Valid Volition website is hosted on a server located in the United Kingdom.
Some third-party providers used by Valid Volition operate internationally and may process personal information in countries outside the United Kingdom.
Where personal information is transferred internationally, Valid Volition will rely on an appropriate safeguard recognised under United Kingdom data-protection law.
This may include:
- a United Kingdom adequacy regulation;
- contractual safeguards approved for international transfers;
- the United Kingdom International Data Transfer Agreement;
- the United Kingdom Addendum to approved standard contractual clauses; or
- another lawful international-transfer mechanism.
Information about individual providers’ international processing arrangements is available through their respective privacy policies.
12. How long information is kept
Personal information will be retained only for as long as it is reasonably needed for the purpose for which it was collected.
The following periods will normally apply.
Enquiries that do not become client projects
Contact-form submissions and related enquiry correspondence will normally be retained for up to 24 months after the most recent meaningful communication.
This allows Valid Volition to:
- respond to follow-up questions;
- maintain an accurate record of previous discussions;
- manage delayed or recurring project enquiries; and
- address complaints or disputes.
After that period, the information will normally be deleted unless there is a legal, security, or dispute-related reason to retain it.
WordPress and Elementor submissions
Copies of enquiry-form submissions stored within WordPress and Elementor will normally be retained for up to 24 months after the most recent meaningful communication.
Cookie-consent records
Records of cookie choices will normally be retained for up to 12 months, after which visitors may be asked to provide their preferences again.
Analytics and behavioural information
Analytics information will normally be retained for up to 14 months where Valid Volition controls the relevant retention setting.
Some third-party providers may apply their own retention periods to information held within their systems.
Website security records
Website security logs, firewall records, spam-prevention information, and server logs will normally be retained for up to 90 days.
They may be retained for longer where they are required to investigate:
- a security incident;
- attempted fraud;
- unauthorised access;
- abuse of the website;
- a complaint; or
- a legal claim.
Enquiries that become client relationships
Where an enquiry becomes a client engagement, relevant information may be transferred into separate client, contractual, project, accounting, or payment records.
Those records are not governed by the website-enquiry retention periods set out above.
13. Information security
Valid Volition uses reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:
- unauthorised access;
- accidental loss;
- inappropriate disclosure;
- alteration;
- misuse;
- destruction; and
- unlawful processing.
Measures may include:
- encrypted website connections;
- password protection;
- restricted administrative access;
- multi-factor authentication where available;
- software and security updates;
- firewall and login protection;
- spam prevention;
- website backups;
- server access controls; and
- monitoring for suspicious activity.
No website, email service, or internet-based system can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
You should therefore avoid including unnecessary confidential or sensitive information in the general enquiry form.
14. Your data-protection rights
Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to:
- request access to personal information held about you;
- request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information;
- request deletion of your personal information;
- request restriction of processing;
- object to processing based on legitimate interests;
- receive certain information in a portable format;
- withdraw consent at any time; and
- complain about the way your personal information has been handled.
These rights are not absolute and may be subject to legal exemptions.
To exercise a right or ask a privacy question, contact:
Valid Volition may need to request information to confirm your identity before responding.
15. Automated decision-making
Valid Volition does not use information submitted through the website to make decisions based solely on automated processing that produce legal or similarly significant effects.
Enquiries are reviewed by a person.
Form answers, including anticipated budget, will not result in an automatic acceptance or rejection.
16. Children
Valid Volition’s services are intended for adults, businesses, charities, independent professionals, and other organisations.
The website is not intended to collect personal information from anyone under the age of 18, and Valid Volition does not knowingly offer services directly to children.
Anyone under the age of 18 should not submit an enquiry through the website.
17. Complaints
Please contact Valid Volition first if you have concerns about how your personal information has been collected or used.
Email: alexander@validvolition.com
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the United Kingdom’s data-protection regulator.
Information Commissioner’s Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
18. Changes to this policy
This Privacy Policy may be updated where:
- the website changes;
- new tools or service providers are introduced;
- the way personal information is processed changes;
- legal or regulatory requirements change; or
- existing practices are reviewed.
The effective date at the beginning of the policy will be amended whenever a revised version is published.