Privacy Policy
Last Updated: August 2026
At Chosen and Cherished Celebrant, I am committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information with care, dignity, and respect. This Privacy Policy explains how I collect, use, store, and protect your personal data when you visit my website chosenandcherishedcelebrant.co.uk (hosted on Squarespace) or engage my celebrant services.
If you have any questions about this policy or how your data is handled, please contact me at denise@chosenandcherishedcelebrant.co.uk
1. The Personal Data I Collect
Depending on how you interact with me, I may collect and process the following personal information:
Contact Information: Your name, email address, phone number, and physical address when you fill out an inquiry form, book a consultation, or contact me directly.
Ceremony Details: Information related to your ceremony (e.g., event date, venue address, names of partners, children, or family members, guide parents, and personal love/life stories).
Sensitive Data: In crafting bespoke ceremony scripts (particularly for renaming’s, commitments, or celebrations of life), you may voluntarily share sensitive personal details regarding your background, family history, gender identity, health, or religious/spiritual beliefs. This information is given with your explicit consent solely for writing your script.
Payment & Financial Data: Invoicing details and payment records. (Online payments made via my website are processed securely by third-party payment gateways; I do not store your credit/debit card numbers directly).
Technical Data: IP address, browser type, device information, and website usage data collected automatically via cookies when you browse my Squarespace site.
2. How I Collect Your Data
I collect information directly from you when you:
Fill out an inquiry or contact form on my website.
Book a consultation or hire my services.
Communicate with me via email, phone, or video call during our consultations.
Interact with my website through cookies (see Section 7 below).
3. How I Use Your Information & Legal Basis
I use your personal data for the following purposes:
To Provide Celebrant Services (Contractual Necessity): To respond to your inquiries, consult with you, write custom scripts, coordinate with your venue or funeral director, and lead your ceremony.
To Handle Sensitive Information (Explicit Consent): To weave your personal stories, family details, or gender identity into your ceremony script, which you provide voluntarily.
Administrative & Legal Obligations (Legal Obligation): To maintain accurate business accounting, issue invoices, and fulfil UK tax reporting duties.
Legitimate Interests: To improve my website, respond to customer service requests, and protect my business from security risks.
4. How I Share Your Data
I value your privacy and never sell, rent, or trade your personal data to third parties. I only share information when strictly necessary with the following trusted service providers:
Squarespace: Hosts my website and forms (data is processed securely in compliance with UK/EU GDPR standards).
Email & Communication Providers: Such as Google Workspace or Microsoft Outlook, used to store emails and schedule appointments.
Venues & Co-Suppliers: With your prior agreement, I may share ceremony timings or logistics with your chosen venue staff, photographer, or funeral director.
Legal & Tax Authorities: If required by law (e.g., HMRC for accounting purposes).
5. How Long I Keep Your Data
I retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes outlined in this policy:
Client Files & Ceremony Scripts: Kept for up to 1 year after your ceremony date (unless you request a copy to be removed sooner, or ask me to retain it as a keepsake record for you).
Financial & Invoice Records: Retained for 6 years following the end of the relevant UK tax year to satisfy legal HMRC requirements.
General Inquiries (that do not book): Deleted after 12 months.
6. Data Security & Storage
I take appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure your data is stored securely. Digital files are password-protected and encrypted where possible. Printed copies of ceremony scripts used on the day of your event are safely stored or responsibly destroyed after the service.
7. Cookies (Squarespace)
My website is hosted on Squarespace. Squarespace uses cookies (small text files placed on your device) to help the website run effectively and provide a good experience for visitors.
Functional & Required Cookies: These allow Squarespace to securely serve this website to you.
Analytics Cookies: (If enabled) These help me understand how visitors interact with my website so I can improve it.
You can choose to accept or decline analytics cookies via the cookie banner on my website or disable them through your internet browser settings.
8. Your Legal Rights (UK GDPR)
Under UK data protection laws, you have the following rights regarding your personal information:
Right of Access: You can request a copy of the personal data I hold about you.
Right to Rectification: You can ask me to correct any inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to Erasure ("Right to be Forgotten"): You can request that I delete your personal data (where I do not have a legal duty to retain it).
Right to Restrict or Object to Processing: You can object to how I process your data or ask to limit its use.
Right to Withdraw Consent: Where processing is based on your consent, you may withdraw it at any time.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact me at denise@chosenandcherished.co.uk
If you have concerns about how I handle your data, you also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK's independent data authority, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at www.ico.org.uk.
9. Changes to This Policy
I may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in legal requirements or operational practices. The latest version will always be posted on this page with the updated date at the top.