Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how UK College of Personal Development Ltd. (trading as "Coach Connector", "we", "us") collects, uses, and protects personal data when you use the Coach Connector website and apps (the "Platform"), whether you're browsing as a visitor, booking as a Client, or listed as a Coach.

We are the data controller for the personal data described below. If you have questions, contact us at info@ukcpd.co.uk.

1. What This Policy Covers

This policy applies to everyone who uses the Platform: visitors browsing the directory, Clients who create accounts and book sessions, and Coaches who list their services. It does not cover the coaching session itself — the video call between Coach and Client happens through a third-party provider (Zoom™, Google Meet™, or Microsoft Teams™) that the Coach connects; Coach Connector does not record, store, transcribe, or otherwise access the content of that call.

2. Information We Collect

2.1 Information you give us directly

• Account details: name, email address, password (or OAuth sign-in via Google), account type (Coach or Client).
• Coach profile information: bio, photo, category, specialisms, links, location (postcode/town, or country/city for overseas Coaches), delivery mode, session types and prices, professional memberships you declare, and any qualification documents you choose to upload for optional verification.
• Booking and communication details: session bookings, package purchases, inquiry/contact-form messages, and reviews you submit.
• Payment information: handled directly by Stripe (see Section 4) — we do not store full card numbers.

2.2 Information collected automatically

• Device and usage data (browser type, pages visited, approximate location from IP address, referral source) via standard web analytics and server logs.
• Cookies and similar technologies used for login sessions, security, and basic analytics. See Section 8.

2.3 Information from connected third-party services

Where you choose to connect them:

• Video providers (Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams) — we receive only what's needed to generate a meeting link for your booking (e.g. an OAuth token and meeting metadata), not call content, audio, or video.
• Calendar providers (Google Calendar™, Outlook) — with your consent, we read free/busy time to show mutual availability and, where you connect two-way sync, may create calendar events for confirmed bookings. We do not read the content, title, or attendees of unrelated calendar events beyond what the provider's free/busy interface exposes.
• Payments (Stripe) — Coaches' payout details and onboarding status; Clients' saved payment methods (tokenised by Stripe, not held by us).
• Location lookups (postcodes.io for UK postcodes; a general geocoding provider for overseas locations) — used to convert a postcode or town into approximate coordinates for radius-based search.

2.4 Special category data

We do not ask you to disclose health, mental health, or other special-category information as part of using the Platform. If a Coach's category relates to health or wellbeing coaching, any such information you choose to share with a Coach happens directly between you and the Coach during your session — not through data we collect or store. Please avoid including sensitive health or medical details in booking notes, inquiry messages, or reviews.

3. How We Use Your Information

We use personal data to:

• Create and manage your account;
• Operate the directory, search, and "find a coach" matching tool;
• Process bookings, package purchases, and payments, and route payouts to Coaches;
• Generate video meeting links and calendar events for confirmed bookings;
• Send booking confirmations, reminders, and service-related emails;
• Display professional memberships and review qualification verification requests, showing an approved badge where relevant;
• Moderate reviews;
• Maintain security, prevent fraud, and enforce our Terms of Service;
• Understand how the Platform is used so we can improve it;
• Comply with legal obligations (e.g. tax, accounting, and regulatory record-keeping).

Legal basis (UK/EU GDPR)

Where UK/EU data protection law applies, we rely on: performance of a contract (creating your account, processing a booking); legitimate interests (fraud prevention, service improvement, direct communications about your bookings); consent (connecting optional third-party services such as calendar or video providers, and non-essential cookies); and legal obligation (tax and financial record-keeping).

4. How We Share Information

We share personal data only as needed to run the Platform:

• Stripe — payment processing, Coach payouts, and (where used) saved payment methods. Stripe's own privacy policy governs their handling of payment data.
• Video conferencing providers (Zoom / Google Meet / Microsoft Teams) — only the minimum needed to generate your meeting link, via the OAuth connection the Coach set up.
• Calendar providers (Google / Outlook) — only where you've connected sync, to read free/busy time and create booking events.
• Hosting and infrastructure providers (e.g. our database, storage, and hosting providers) — to store and serve Platform data securely.
• Coaches and Clients, to each other — a Client's name and booking details are shared with the Coach they book, and vice versa, strictly to facilitate the session. A Coach's public profile (bio, memberships, verified qualifications, reviews) is visible to anyone browsing the directory.
• Legal and safety reasons — where required by law, to enforce our Terms, or to protect the rights, safety, or property of Coach Connector, our users, or the public.
• Business transfers — if Coach Connector is involved in a merger, acquisition, or asset sale, personal data may be transferred as part of that transaction, subject to this policy or a successor policy.

We do not sell personal data to third parties.

5. Qualification Verification Documents

A Coach may optionally submit a document to verify a listed qualification (professional memberships, by contrast, are self-declared and never require a document). Any document you upload for this purpose is stored securely and is visible only to you, to Coach Connector administrators reviewing the submission, and where legally required, to relevant authorities. It is not shared with Clients or displayed publicly — only the resulting "Verified" badge is shown on your profile, and only once approved.

6. International Transfers

Some of our providers (including Stripe and certain hosting/infrastructure or video/calendar providers) may process data outside your home country. Where this involves a transfer out of the UK or EEA, we rely on appropriate safeguards such as Standard Contractual Clauses or an adequacy decision, as required by applicable law.

7. Data Retention

We keep personal data for as long as your account is active, and afterwards for as long as needed to meet legal, tax, accounting, or dispute-resolution requirements — typically no longer than 6 years from account closure unless a longer period is required by law. Qualification verification documents are retained for as long as they support an active or recently active listing, then deleted or anonymised. You can request earlier deletion under Section 9, subject to any legal obligation we have to retain certain records.

8. Cookies

We use cookies and similar technologies to keep you signed in, remember preferences, and understand how the Platform is used. You can control cookies through your browser settings; disabling essential cookies may affect your ability to log in or book sessions. Where required by law, we'll ask for your consent to non-essential analytics cookies via a cookie banner.

9. Your Rights

Depending on where you live, you may have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you;
• Correct inaccurate data;
• Request deletion of your data ("right to be forgotten"), subject to legal retention requirements;
• Object to or restrict certain processing;
• Request a portable copy of data you provided to us;
• Withdraw consent at any time for processing based on consent (e.g. disconnecting a calendar or video integration);
• Complain to your local data protection authority (in the UK, the Information Commissioner's Office, ico.org.uk).

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@ukcpd.co.uk. We may need to verify your identity before actioning a request.

10. Children

The Platform is not directed at, and should not be used by, anyone under 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, contact us and we'll delete it.

11. Security

We use reasonable technical and organisational measures — including encrypted connections, access controls, and secure third-party payment processing — to protect personal data. No system is completely secure, and we can't guarantee absolute security of information transmitted to the Platform.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We'll post the updated version with a new "last updated" date, and where changes are material we'll make reasonable efforts to notify account holders directly.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your data, contact us at:

UK College of Personal Development Ltd. (trading as Coach Connector) 128 City Road, London, EC1V 2NX info@ukcpd.co.uk