First, the basics
What cookies are
Cookies are small text files stored on your device when you visit a website. They allow the site to remember settings or to recognise a returning visitor. Some cookies are deleted when you close the browser. Others remain for a defined period. This policy uses the term cookie for similar storage technologies as well, because they work in the same way and raise the same questions about storage and control.
That distinction matters in practice. A session cookie disappears with the browser session. A longer-lived cookie can keep a preference between visits. Either way, the file sits on your device, and your browser is where you can see, block or delete it.
Needed to run
Essential cookies
Essential cookies are required for basic website functions, such as security and form handling. Without them, parts of the website may not work correctly. These cookies do not require consent under applicable law. They are deleted when their purpose ends.
You can still block them in your browser, but the website may then be limited. For example, an enquiry form may not be able to keep track of what you typed, or a security check may fail. That is a browser setting, not a consent choice, and the site cannot work around a block that removes a function it depends on.
Your choices, remembered
Functional cookies
Functional cookies remember choices you make, such as language or display preferences. They improve convenience without being required for the site to operate. Where functional cookies are used, they are applied only as described in this policy.
You can delete them at any time through your browser settings. Deleting them may reset your preferences, so a choice you made earlier would need to be made again on your next visit. Nothing else about the site depends on them.
