Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

Area Leaders is a trading name of Qwualiti Ltd. For the personal information described in this policy, Qwualiti Ltd is the data controller.

Our website is arealeaders.co.uk. You can contact us about this policy or your personal information at hello@arealeaders.co.uk.

2. Information we collect

The information we handle depends on how you interact with us. It may include:

• Contact details, such as your name, work email address, telephone number and communication preferences.
• Business and enquiry details, such as your business name, website, service area, services, message and the challenge you would like help with.
• Audit and public business information, including information visible on your website, Google Business Profile, public directories and review platforms.
• Appointment information, including the time you book and the information you provide in our booking form.
• Client and service information, such as proposals, instructions, approvals, account-access details, customer lists you lawfully provide, campaign records, deliverables, invoices and payment status.
• Communications, including emails, form submissions, call notes, feedback and records of the support we provide.
• Technical information, such as IP address, browser and device type, referring page, timestamps, security logs and information created when an embedded form or calendar loads.

We usually collect information directly from you. We may also receive it from your employer or colleagues, from service providers acting on our behalf, or from public sources when preparing an audit or delivering agreed work.

Please do not send us special-category information, such as health information, unless we have specifically agreed that it is necessary and appropriate.

3. How and why we use your information

UK data-protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for each use of personal information. The table below summarises our main uses and bases.

Our legitimate interests include running and improving our business, responding to prospective clients, providing useful information, keeping our systems secure and protecting our legal rights. We balance those interests against your rights and expectations.

You can opt out of marketing at any time by using the unsubscribe option in a message or emailing hello@arealeaders.co.uk. Service messages needed to manage an enquiry, booking or client relationship are not marketing.

We do not use solely automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects on you.

4. Who we share your information with

We do not sell your personal information. We share it only where necessary with:

• providers that host, secure and maintain our website, email and other IT systems;
• HighLevel, which provides the embedded forms, appointment calendar, CRM and communication tools used on this website;
• payment, accounting and professional-adviser providers used to administer our business;
• platforms and suppliers needed to deliver client work, where the client has instructed us to use them;
• regulators, courts, law-enforcement bodies or other parties where disclosure is required by law or necessary to establish, exercise or defend legal rights; and
• a buyer, investor or successor if our business or assets are reorganised, sold or transferred, subject to appropriate confidentiality protections.

Providers acting for us may use personal information only to provide the relevant service and must protect it appropriately. When you follow a link to another website, that organisation's own privacy policy applies.

5. International transfers

Some suppliers, including HighLevel and its sub-processors, may process information outside the UK. Where personal information is transferred internationally, we use a lawful transfer mechanism where required, such as UK adequacy regulations, the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or the UK Addendum to approved standard contractual clauses, together with appropriate safeguards.

You can ask us for more information about the safeguards relevant to your information by contacting hello@arealeaders.co.uk.

6. How long we keep your information

Our usual retention periods are:

• enquiries, free-resource requests and audit records: up to 24 months after our last meaningful contact;
• appointment and prospect records: up to 24 months after the last appointment or contact;
• client project and contract records: for the relationship and normally six years afterwards;
• invoices, payment and tax records: for the period required by applicable tax and accounting law; and
• marketing records: until you opt out, your details are no longer accurate, or we decide they are no longer needed. We retain a minimal suppression record after an opt-out so we can honour it.

We may keep information for longer where reasonably necessary for a legal claim, regulatory enquiry, fraud prevention or another legal obligation. We may delete or anonymise it sooner where it is no longer needed.

7. Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to ask us to:

• give you access to your personal information;
• correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete;
• delete your information;
• restrict or object to how we use it;
• provide certain information in a portable format; or
• withdraw consent where we rely on consent.

You have the right to object at any time to our use of your personal information for direct marketing.

These rights are not absolute and exemptions may apply. To make a request, email hello@arealeaders.co.uk. We may need to verify your identity before acting on it.

If you are unhappy with how we handle your information, please contact us first so we can try to resolve it. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office, the UK data-protection regulator.

8. Cookies and similar technologies

Our site and embedded services may use cookies, local storage and similar technologies. Our Cookie Policy explains what they are, how they are used and the choices available to you.

9. Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration and disclosure. Access is limited to people and providers who need it for the purposes described in this policy.

No internet transmission or storage system can be guaranteed completely secure. Please use care when deciding what information to send online and contact us if you believe your information may be at risk.

10. Children

Our website and services are intended for businesses and are not directed at children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18 through this website. If you believe a child has provided information to us, please contact us so we can investigate and delete it where appropriate.

11. Changes to this policy

We may update this policy when our services, suppliers or legal obligations change. We will publish the revised version here and update the date at the top. If a change materially affects how we use information already collected, we will take reasonable steps to bring it to the attention of affected people.

12. Contact us

For questions, requests or concerns about this policy or your information, contact: