Privacy & GDPR Policy

1. Who Hearthlight is

Hearthlight Creative Studios is an independent studio creating practical creator technology and original media. Contact: studio@hearthlight.uk.

2. Scope

This policy covers the Hearthlight website, contact and support correspondence, and studio mailing-list communications.

3. Information provided directly

Hearthlight may receive your name, email address, enquiry type, message, mailing-list subscription details and information you include in support or account-related correspondence.

4. Technical information

The site contains no visitor analytics. Website hosting may create basic server logs needed to deliver and secure the service.

5. How information is used

• Responding to enquiries and support requests
• Delivering updates a person requested
• Operating and protecting the website
• Meeting applicable legal obligations

6. Lawful basis

Consent supports requested mailing-list communications. Enquiries are handled to respond to your request and for the studio’s legitimate interest in operating and protecting its services. Contract-related communications may be necessary to support a SoundSmith account.

7. Third-party services

The current site uses Buttondown for studio mailing-list subscriptions, LaunchList for the existing SoundSmith updates widget, YouTube for public media links and feed data, Ko-fi for creator support, and hosting and email services needed to operate the site. External services have their own privacy notices.

8. Cookies and local storage

Hearthlight does not run visitor analytics or advertising trackers and does not set tracking cookies directly. External sites may use cookies when you follow a link to them. The private journal editor uses a strictly necessary login session cookie.

9. Retention and transfers

Information is retained only as long as needed for its purpose, legal obligations, dispute handling or security. Some service providers may process information outside the UK under their own safeguards; no unsupported transfer guarantee is made here.

10. Your UK GDPR rights

Depending on the circumstances, rights include access, correction, deletion, restriction, objection, portability, withdrawal of consent and complaint to the Information Commissioner’s Office.

11. Security and children

Hearthlight uses proportionate technical and organisational measures but no online system can be guaranteed completely secure. The public studio site is intended for a general audience; unnecessary information about children should not be submitted.

12. Updates and contact

This policy describes current practices and will be updated as services change. Questions and rights requests can be sent to studio@hearthlight.uk.