Protecting Your Data
Privacy Policy
At the Cheltenham Equine Vets, we care about your privacy. Learn how we protect your data in accordance with GDPR guidelines, and the choices you have available to you.
Last updated 29 December 2023.
What is this policy for?
At Cheltenham Equine Vets, we’re committed to protecting and respecting your privacy.
This Policy explains when and why we collect personal data (in this document the words ‘personal data’ and ‘data’ are used to describe information that can identify an individual) about people who visit our website and/or are clients of the practice. We will describe how we use that data, the conditions under which we may disclose it to others, how we keep it secure, and how you can access it and make changes if you choose to do so.
We may change this policy from time to time. Please check this page occasionally to ensure you’re happy with any changes. By using our website / registering as a client, you’re agreeing to be bound by this policy.
Any questions regarding this policy and our privacy practices should be sent by email or by writing to Cheltenham Equine Vets, Unit 14 Twigworth Court Business Centre, Twigworth, GL2 9PG. Alternatively, you can telephone 01242 806772.
Who are we?
Our legal entity name is Cheltenham Equine Vets LLP trading as Cheltenham Equine Vets. We are a registered data controller with the ICO.
Data Controller Name: Cheltenham Equine Vets LLP
Registration Number: ZA339935
Date Registered: April 2018
We obtain information about you when you register with the practice, purchase products or services from the practice or use our website (for example, when you complete a contact form). The types of data we collect and process might include:
- Identity Data which may include your first name, maiden name, last name, marital status and title
- Contact Data may include your billing address, email address and telephone numbers
- Financial Data may include your payment card details which are used a single time and not stored.
- Transaction Data may include details about payments between us and other details of purchases made by you although your bank details are not stored by us.
- Technical Data may include your internet protocol (IP) addresses, browser type and version, browser plug-in types and versions, time zone setting and location, operating system and platform and other technology on the devices you use to access this site
- Profile Data may include purchases, booked appointments, contact requests, your interests, preferences, feedback and survey responses. If you choose to connect with us via social media, eg Facebook or Twitter, we may collect your username, your name (including surname), email address, your gender and your location
- Usage Data may include information about how you use our website, products and services
- Sensitive Data We may need to process sensitive data about you in order tooffer you the best service. An example of this might be a note about hearing loss or other accessibility information that might help us help you. We require your explicit consent for processing sensitive data, so when we collect and record this information we will ask you to confirm your consent to this processing
- Marketing and Communications Data may include your preferences in receiving marketing communications and reminder messages from us, and your communication preferences
- Aggregated Data may also be collected, such as the way you view our website, which pages are of interest etc. Some of this just lets us know how to make sure what we offer online is useful and suits our clients. This information does not reveal your identity and as such is not personal data. It only becomes personal data if we were ever to link this information with your personal data so that you can be identified from it, and then it is treated as personal data.
Where we are required to collect personal data by law or under the terms of the contract between us, and if you do not provide us with that data when requested, we may not be able to perform the contract (for example, see your pet in a consultation, carry out a procedure or dispense drugs to you). If you don’t provide us with the requested data, we may have to cancel our contract with you but if we do, we will notify you at the time.
If you provide us with any personal data relating to any third party (eg information about your spouse or other family members) for particular purposes, by submitting such data to us, you warrant that you have obtained their consent to provide us with their personal data for those purposes.
Website recording and use of 'cookies'
Like many other websites, the cheltenhamequinevets.co.uk website uses cookies. ‘Cookies’ are small pieces of information sent by an organisation to your computer and stored on your hard drive to allow that website to recognise you when you visit. They collect statistical data about your browsing actions and patterns and do not identify you as an individual. For example, cookies help us to track which pages you visit on our website. This helps us to improve our website and deliver a better, more personalised service.
It is possible to switch off cookies by setting your browser preferences. For more information on how to switch off cookies on your computer, visit your settings. Turning cookies off may result in a loss of functionality when using our website.
The main cookies on our site
Google Analytics: These cookies are used to collect information about how visitors use our site. We use the information to compile reports and to help us improve the site. The cookies collect information in an anonymous form, including the number of visitors to the site, where visitors have come to the site from and the pages they visited. For more information on Google Analytics’ privacy policy visit here – https://policies.google.com/privacy?hl=en
Google Maps: These are Google Maps third party cookies, which are unique identifiers to allow traffic analysis to Google Maps.
How is your information used?
We may use your information to:
- Carry out our obligations arising from any contracts entered into by you and us;
- Seek your views or comments on the services we provide;
- Notify you of changes to our services;
- Send you communications which you have requested and that may be of interest to you.
- Process a job application.
In order to meet our responsibilities under our contract with you, we will contact you when required to remind you when essential healthcare is due. This might include vaccination and worm count reminders. Communication about these is essential to the long-term health of your horse. We will also let you know about products and services (provided by us) which we believe can help your horse to live a long, happy and active life.
We may use your information collected from our website, via cookies or direct input, to personalise future visits to our website and/or to send triggered automated emails to you.
We may use your information to meet and comply with any applicable rules, laws or regulations issued by any legal or regulatory body which are binding on us.
We review our retention periods for personal information on a regular basis. We are legally required to hold some types of information to fulfil our statutory obligations. We will hold your personal information on our systems for as long as is necessary for the relevant activity, or as long as is set out in any relevant contract you hold with us.
Who has access to your information?
We will never sell your personal data to anyone.
Neither will we share your information with other companies for marketing purposes without your prior consent.
We may pass your information to carefully selected partners (eg service providers or sub-contractors) for the purposes completing tasks and/or providing services to you on our behalf. An example of this is to process subscriptions to our Horse Health Plan, to referral centres, for storage of blood samples and paperwork relating to Prior to purchase examinations
However, when we use third-party service providers, we disclose only the personal information that is necessary to deliver the service and we have terms in place that require them to keep your information secure. Third-parties are subject to strict confidentiality obligations and may only use your personal data to perform the necessary functions and not for other purposes.
We may also disclose personal data as permitted or required by law. For example, if asked by the police or HMRC, we may share your personal data for the purposes of prevention or detection of crime. Information is not shared with them outside of this purpose.
In some instances, it may be necessary to transfer your personal data overseas. Any transfers will be made in full compliance with UK data protection laws.
In the event that our business is transferred, sold or integrated with another business, your details may be disclosed to our advisers or any prospective purchaser’s advisers and may be passed on to the new owners of the business.
Your choices
Responsible horse ownership includes a wide range of care, some of which will be administered by you; some by our vets and nurses.
Our responsibilities under our contract with you might include:
- contacting you from time to time to remind you, for example, when vaccinations are due or when you should use parasite protection. Communication about these is essential to the long-term health of your horse. For that reason, we do not ask for your consent to send these messages. However, if you have a preference as to how you would prefer to receive reminders (eg by SMS, email or post) please let us know by calling 01242 806772 or by emailing and we will update our records.
- letting you know about products and services (provided by us) which we believe can help your horse to live a long, happy and active life – for example, advice on diet and nutrition, exercise or preventative healthcare. Again, we believe this advice and guidance to form the foundation of responsible horse husbandry. However, each message we send will include instructions on how you can choose to opt-out of receiving future similar messages, if you prefer. Alternatively, you can contact us at any time and we will update our records.
In the course of providing care for your horse, we may sometimes be required to share your details with third parties – eg your insurance company, or external laboratories for processing blood, urine or fecal samples. We only share the information that is necessary at the time, and those third parties do not have permission to use your data for anything else.
Other than as required to provide care to your horse, or as may be required by law, we will never share your data with anyone else.
We may occasionally hear of products and services, provided by others and not by us here at the practice, which may be of interest to you. You can update your preferences at any point by contacting us by phone, email or post (see below).
How you can access and update your information
The accuracy of your information is important to us. You have the right to request a copy of the information we hold about you so that you can ensure its accuracy. You can do this by the following methods:
Email:
Telephone: 01242 806772
Or write to us at: Cheltenham Equine Vets, Unit 14 Twigworth Court Business Centre, Twigworth, GL2 9PG
Retention of information
Your personal data will be retained for as long as it is necessary to fulfil the purpose for which it is collected or for business or legal purposes, or in accordance with applicable laws.
Should you choose to withdraw consent for marketing contact, please note that your personal data may still be retained on our database to the extent permitted by law.
Security precautions in place to protect the loss, misuse or alteration of your information
When you give us personal information, we take steps to ensure that it is treated securely. All information transmitted via our websites (we have several practices within the group) such as payment card details or bank account information is encrypted using industry-standard 256 Bit SSL. You can confirm this by looking for a padlock symbol in the address bar of any modern browser, such as Microsoft Internet Explorer, Apple Safari, Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox.
Please note: emails are never guaranteed to be 100% secure. For this reason, we ask that you never send us any sensitive information (eg bank account details, payment card number etc) by email. Instead, please either call the practice and provide this information over the telephone or visit the practice in person.
If you send non-sensitive information (eg your email address, contact details etc) by email, you do so at your own risk. We’ll do everything we can to ensure its security.
On occasion it is also necessary for us to hold certain personal information about you on mobile electronic devices used by practitioners in the field. This information will sometimes include your name, email address, appointment address, and any related medical records. This is required in order for us to fulfil our contractual obligations with you. Devices are electronically secured and can only accessed by our staff.
Profiling
We may analyse your personal information to create a profile of your interests and preferences so that we can contact you with information relevant to you. We may make use of additional information about you when it is available from external sources to help us do this effectively. We may also use your personal information to detect and reduce fraud and credit risk.
Links to other websites
Our website may contain links to other websites run by other organisations. This privacy policy applies only to our website‚ so we encourage you to read the privacy statements on the other websites you visit. We cannot be responsible for the privacy policies and practices of other sites even if you access them using links from our website.
In addition, if you linked to our website from a third party site, we cannot be responsible for the privacy policies and practices of the owners and operators of that third party site and recommend that you check the policy of that third party site.
16 or under
We are concerned to protect the privacy of children aged 16 or under. If you are aged 16 or under‚ please get your parent/guardian’s permission beforehand whenever you provide us with personal information.
Transferring your information outside of Europe
As part of the services offered to you through this website, the information which you provide to us may be transferred to countries outside the European Union (“EU”). By way of example, this may happen if any of our servers are from time to time located in a country outside of the EU. These countries may not have similar data protection laws to the UK. By submitting your personal data, you’re agreeing to this transfer, storing or processing. If we transfer your information outside of the EU in this way, we will take steps to ensure that appropriate security measures are taken with the aim of ensuring that your privacy rights continue to be protected as outlined in this Policy.
If you use our services while you are outside the EU, your information may be transferred outside the EU in order to provide you with those services.
Leah joined the team as a part time Vet Tech in 2024. When she isn’t in work, she is studying to be an Equine Vet Nurse at Hartpury University. Fortunately for us, she has decided to stay in Gloucestershire for the long term.
Frew had a long and successful career as a dentist, firstly within the military and then the NHS. After taking some time out, she joined Cheltenham Equine as part of our office team. She quickly learnt that she was unable to reduce the high levels of sugary foods we consume and is taking the lead with making our business more sustainable.
Millie completed EMS placement with us whilst at Nottingham Vet School. When she had completed her exams she contacted us to ask if she could join us! She started helping the vets on the road and supporting the office, but swiftly moved on to clinical work once she graduated. Her initial role helping with administration gave her a great start in getting to know our clients.
Alice is on sabbatical until April 2025. Alice helped us out on a locum basis in the Autumn of 2022 and we all got on with her so well that she joined us full time in January 2023. Following an internship at Towcester, where she gained valuable first opinion and referral skills, she relocated to Gloucestershire in order to work at Cheltenham Equine. Alice has quickly become an integral and forward thinking part of our team, she particularly enjoys poor performance work and diagnostic imaging.
Anna graduated in 2013 from the University of Liverpool, she spent a couple of years in mixed practice before undertaking an equine internship at Three Counties Equine Hospital. Anna joined the practice in 2016, she loves all aspects of equine veterinary medicine, but what drives her most is getting to know the individual horse/pony and owner and working with them to do the best thing for the horse.
Nicola joined the office team in April 2019 having worked in a variety of human healthcare settings. She is our Practice Manager and embraces all the challenges of life at Cheltenham Equine. She enjoys meals out with her family and walks with her Spaniel (who joins her in the office a couple of days a week where she enjoys meeting clients) Nicola has also recently joined the training section of Cheltenham Silver Band.
Lindsay graduated from Edinburgh in 1998 and has mainly spent her career as an equine vet working in first and second opinion equine practices. In the last 10 years she has become increasingly interested in subtle poor performance in the athletic horse. “I consider every ridden or driven horse to be an athlete on some level, even the happy hacker needs to be thought of as having an important job to do” Lindsay regularly incorporates acupuncture into her treatment regime and enjoys working along side experienced physiotherapists to get the best treatment for the horse. In her spare time Lindsay juggles a menagerie of animals and children.
Becky graduated from Nottingham Vet School in 2023, she visited us as a student twice and we were so impressed with her that we offered her a position after she graduated. Becky has a keen interest in dentistry and since graduating has completed an advanced dentistry course.
Paola is our Business and Finance Manager. She sheds light on those sums which some of us struggle to understand. Out of work, she is discovering the joys of not cleaning up after her boys who are now both at University. Of course, this also gives her much more time to spend with her horse Joey.
Kay joined our administration team in September 2021. After many years of working in small animal practice, she is very happy to be part of our equine world now. Joining Cheltenham Equine has given her an insight into the world of horse medicine which is great for Mosco her beloved cob.
Jess qualified from Edinburgh University in 2003, and began her career working at Three Counties Equine Hospital, initially as a house surgeon then an assistant. A job in equine practice in Yorkshire followed, then she joined us in 2008. Jess enjoys all aspects of equine work, seeing clients and building relationships with them and their horses. Out of work she enjoys riding her own horse Charlie, and has a busy family life on the farm with 2 young sons and a collection of ponies, horses, dogs, chickens & sheep!