Our site puts small files (known as ‘cookies’) onto your computer to collect information about how you browse the site. Cookies are used to:
- Remember that you're logged in to the website.
- Measure how you use the website so it can be updated and improved based on your needs.
- Remember the notifications you’ve seen so that we don’t show them to you again.
- Remember some settings and preferences for presentation.
Find out more about how to manage cookies.
How we use cookies on this site
Measuring website usage (Google Analytics)
We use Google Analytics software to collect information about how you use our site. We do this to help make sure the site is meeting the needs of its users and to help us make improvements.
Google Analytics stores information about:
- The pages you visit
- How long you spend on each page
- How you got to the site
- What you click on while you’re visiting the site
We do not collect or store your personal information (for example your name or address) so this information can’t be used to identify who you are.
We do not allow Google to use or share our analytics data.
Google Analytics sets the following cookies:
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| _ga | This helps us count how many people visit by tracking if you’ve visited before | 2 years |
| _gid | This helps us count how many people visit by tracking if you’ve visited before | 24 hours |
| _gat | Used to manage the rate at which page view requests are made | 1 minute |
Measuring website usage (Hotjar)
We use Hotjar to collect information about how you use our site. We do this to help make sure the site is meeting the needs of its users and to help us make improvements.
For more information on Hotjar and the cookies it may set, along with information on how to opt-out, see their website.
Our introductory message
You may see a pop-up welcome message when you first visit the site. We’ll store a cookie so that your computer knows you’ve seen it and knows not to show it again.
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| cookieconsent_status | Saves a message to let us know that you’ve seen our cookie message | 1 year |
Presentational Preferences
We also use some simple cookies to remember some preferences and provide a better experience. These cookies do not contain any personal information.
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| has_js | This checks whether javascript is enabled on your browser, to help with some functionality. | 1 year |
| __cfduid | Use as part of the CDN security by our search providers. | 1 year |
| ss360LastQuery | Stores the last-entered query so that when the user navigates back to the search result page, the correct results are shown. | 1 day |
Measuring conversion tracking (Facebook)
Facebook uses a web beacon to tell when a user is redirected to our website by clicking or otherwise interacting with a Concept2 advertisement that we ran on their site. This is known as “click tracking” or “conversion tracking.” A web beacon is a see-through graphic image (usually 1 pixel x 1 pixel) that's placed on a web page and, in combination with a cookie, allows us to collect information regarding the use of the web page that contains the web beacon.
Facebook Ads conversion tracking (Facebook pixel) is an analytics service provided by Meta Platforms, Inc. (or by Facebook Ireland Ltd, depending on the location this website is accessed from) that connects data from the Meta advertising network with actions performed on this website.