Privacy Notice

Who is responsible for your information?

For the purposes of UK data-protection law, Jim Gallagher is the data controller for personal information collected through this website.

What information do we collect?

When you register your interest in Valence, we collect:

• your first name;
• your email address;
• your age;
• the first part of your postcode;
• your university or college; and
• whether you have chosen to receive occasional Valence launch, early-access and development emails.

We do not ask for your full postcode, date of birth, dating preferences or information for a future dating profile at this pre-launch stage.

Website and technical information

Like most websites, our hosting provider may generate routine technical logs when the website is accessed. These may include information such as an IP address, browser or device information, requested pages and timestamps.

This information may be used where necessary for website operation, security, fault investigation and protection against misuse. We do not use these technical logs to create dating profiles or for advertising.

Why do we use your information?

We use registration information to:

• record your interest in Valence;
• understand where potential demand for Valence exists;
• assess interest across universities, colleges and geographic areas;
• plan and evaluate our initial launch;
• develop and improve the Valence proposition; and
• respond to your request to register your interest.

If you separately choose to receive launch, early-access and development emails, we will also use your email address for that purpose.

Our lawful basis

For collecting, recording and analysing expressions of interest, we rely on our legitimate interests in researching demand for Valence, planning its development and assessing where and how the service should initially launch.

We consider this use proportionate because we collect only a limited amount of information and use it for purposes closely connected with your decision to register an interest in Valence.

For optional promotional, launch and early-access emails, we rely on your consent. You can withdraw that consent at any time.

Your right to object

Where we rely on legitimate interests, you have the right to object to our processing of your personal information in certain circumstances.

You can also object to direct marketing at any time. If you ask us to stop sending marketing emails, we will stop using your information for that purpose.

Do you have to provide this information?

Registering your interest in Valence is entirely voluntary.

However, the fields marked as required on the registration form are needed for us to accept and record your expression of interest.

Receiving promotional or launch emails is optional and is controlled by a separate consent choice.

Age

You must be 18 or over to register your interest in Valence.

We do not carry out identity or age verification at this early-interest stage. Age verification will be required before a person can use the Valence service when it launches.

Who do we share information with?

We do not sell your personal information.

Personal information may be processed by service providers that help us operate Valence, including providers of website hosting, databases, email, security and communications services.

Where another organisation processes personal information on our behalf, we take appropriate steps to ensure that the information is handled securely and in accordance with applicable data-protection law.

International transfers

Some of the service providers we use may process personal information outside the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred outside the UK, we will take appropriate steps to ensure that the transfer is lawful and that suitable safeguards are in place where required.

How long do we keep your information?

We keep pre-launch registration information only for as long as it is reasonably needed to research, develop, assess and launch Valence.

We will review pre-launch registration information at least every 12 months and delete information that is no longer required, unless there is a lawful reason to retain it.

If you ask us to delete your information, we will do so where the law gives you that right.

In some circumstances we may retain a minimal record of a request not to receive marketing so that we can make sure we respect that request in future.

Your data-protection rights

Depending on the circumstances, UK data-protection law may give you the right to:

• ask for access to your personal information;
• ask us to correct inaccurate information;
• ask us to delete your information;
• ask us to restrict how your information is used;
• object to certain processing;
• withdraw consent where we rely on consent; and
• receive certain information you provided to us in a portable format where the relevant legal conditions apply.

Automated decisions

We do not use the information collected through this pre-launch registration form to make automated decisions about you or to carry out automated dating matching.

Complaints

If you have concerns about how we use your personal information, please contact us first so that we have an opportunity to resolve them.

You also have the right to make a complaint to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

Further information is available at ico.org.uk .

Cookies and analytics

The Valence registration page uses a strictly necessary session cookie to help protect the registration form and maintain basic security functions during your visit.

This cookie is not used for advertising, behavioural profiling or cross-site tracking.

This initial version of the Valence website does not use advertising cookies, tracking pixels or third-party analytics.

If we introduce analytics, advertising technology or other non-essential cookies in future, we will update this notice and introduce consent controls where required.

When Valence launches

This privacy notice applies only to the pre-launch Valence website and expressions of interest.

Before the full Valence dating service launches, this privacy notice will be reviewed and updated to explain how information relating to user accounts, verification, matching, communications and other service features will be processed.

Changes to this notice

We may update this privacy notice as Valence develops.

If our use of personal information changes materially, we will update this notice before beginning the new processing and take any additional steps required by law.