What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files placed on your device by a website. They are widely used to make websites work, to keep you signed in, and to provide information to site operators. Similar technologies (such as local storage) work in comparable ways, and this policy covers those too.
This Cookies Policy should be read together with our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle personal data more generally.
Your choices
When you first visit the Site we ask for your consent before placing any non-essential cookies. Essential and functional cookies (below) are always active because the Site cannot work without them. Analytics and marketing cookies are only set if you allow them. You can change or withdraw your choice at any time using the link in the footer, or the controls below.
Cookies we use
Strictly necessary and functional
These are essential for the Site to function or to remember choices you have made. They cannot be switched off in our systems and do not require consent. They store only what is needed to operate your session and preferences.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| sb-* (authentication) | Keeps you signed in to your Need It Made account and secures your session | Session / up to 12 months |
| nim_consent | Remembers your cookie choices so we can honour them and avoid asking again | Up to 6 months |
| nim_mode | Remembers whether you are viewing the Site as a customer or a maker | Up to 12 months |
| nim_ft | Records how you first reached the Site (for example the site or campaign that referred you) so we can understand which channels bring new sign-ups. First-party only and never shared with third parties | Up to 6 months |
Analytics (only with your consent)
We use PostHog (hosted in the EU) to understand how visitors use the Site so we can improve it. These cookies are off by default and are only set if you turn Analytics on. With your consent they let us recognise returning visitors and understand journeys across visits, so we can see what is and is not working. If you decline, PostHog does not run at all.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| ph_* / posthog (and related local storage) | Measures Site usage so we can improve it; recognises returning visitors across sessions | Up to 12 months |
Diagnostics
We use Sentry (hosted in the EU) to capture errors so we can keep the Site secure and reliable. Sentry does not set cookies. Error reporting runs at all times on the basis of our legitimate interest in a working, secure service. Additional performance monitoring and error-session replay only run if you have allowed Analytics, and are switched off otherwise.
Marketing (only with your consent)
We use the Meta Pixel to measure our advertising and to reach people similar to our visitors. These cookies are off by default and are only set if you turn Marketing on. With your consent, the pixel records that you visited and, when you create an account, that a sign-up completed, so we can see which campaigns work. This involves sharing data with Meta Platforms Ireland Limited, which may transfer it to the United States. We do not send Meta your email address, verification codes, or other personal details. If you decline, the pixel does not load at all. You can withdraw consent any time from Cookie settings in the footer.
| Cookie | Purpose | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| _fbp | Set by the Meta Pixel to measure advertising and recognise your browser across visits | Up to 3 months |
| _fbc | Set when you arrive from a Meta ad, to attribute the visit to that ad | Up to 3 months |
Payments
When you make a payment, our payment processor Stripe may set cookies that are necessary for secure payment processing and fraud prevention. These are governed by Stripe's privacy policy.
Bot protection
Our sign-in, registration, and password-reset forms are protected by Cloudflare Turnstile, which checks that requests come from genuine users rather than automated bots. To do this it may set strictly necessary cookies and read basic technical signals from your browser. These are essential security measures, so they do not require consent and cannot be switched off while you use those forms. Turnstile does not track you across sites or use your data for advertising. See Cloudflare's Turnstile Privacy Policy for details.
Live chat
Our live chat is provided by tawk.to. Nothing from tawk.to loads, and no tawk.to cookies are set, unless and until you choose to open the chat by clicking the chat button. Once you open it, the chat widget sets cookies and uses similar technologies that are strictly necessary to run the conversation you have requested: they keep your chat session connected and remember your conversation as you move between pages during the same visit. tawk.to does not use these for advertising or to track you across other sites. See the tawk.to Privacy Policy for details.
How to control cookies
You can change or withdraw your consent at any time using the link in the footer. You can also control and delete cookies through your browser settings; blocking strictly necessary cookies will prevent you from logging in. Guidance for managing cookies in common browsers is available from each browser provider, and general information is available at ico.org.uk.
Changes to this policy
If we introduce new cookies or similar technologies, we will update this page and, where required by law, ask for your consent again before setting them.
Contact
Questions about this policy can be sent to privacy@needitmade.co.uk.