Privacy policy


On this page


Who we are?

Guide Dogs is a working name of The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association. Registered Office: Hillfields, Burghfield Common, Reading, Berkshire RG7 3YG. A company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales (291646) and a charity registered in England and Wales (209617) and Scotland (SC038979) and the Isle of Man (1334)
Tel: 0118 983 5555 Email: guidedogs@guidedogs.org.uk  
Website: www.guidedogs.org.uk 

Guide Dogs also operates Guide Dogs Shop @The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association (Trading Company) Ltd (291646) and its privacy policy can be found on the website.

Our Data Protection Officer is Phillippa T. Caine.

If you have any questions regarding our Privacy Policy, please write to her at:

Guide Dogs
Hillfields
Burghfield Common
Reading
Berkshire RG7 3YG

Or email us

What do we do?

At Guide Dogs we are building Extraordinary Partnerships for every person who is blind and partially sighted. Achieving mobility is a journey that is personal and unique.

  • Our vision is for a society in which people who are blind and partially sighted enjoy the same freedom of movement as everyone else
  • Our purpose is to deliver the guide dog service and other mobility services, to break down legal and physical barriers and to enable people who are blind and partially sighted to get around on their own
  • Our values mean that we will always seek to be trustworthy and transparent, that we will always be innovative and responsive and that we will collaborate with others whenever it is to the benefit of people who are blind and partially sighted.

Collection of Data through ‘Cookies’ on the Guide Dogs Website

Guide Dogs employ a number of cookies across our website in order to enhance the user experience, and ensure that we are able to provide the relevant content that our visitors might expect. To do this we use a combination of session, persistent and third-party cookies. 

  • Session cookies allow our users to link their actions during browser sessions, they expire after a session and are not stored long term. We use this type of cookie to maintain a user session on the website, we also use session cookies to collect data on how visitors use our website, for example what type of browser they are using and what pages are popular.
  • Persistent cookies are stored on the user’s device in between browser sessions which allows preferences or actions of the user across a site to be remembered. We use persistent cookies to make our website more accessible to users. These cookies help us to provide the user with the text size and colour options they require.
  • Third party cookies are set by a domain other than the one visited by the user. We use these cookies for our work with third party organizations, to allow us to understand the journey that our visitors take to get to our website.

Marketing (targeting or advertising) cookies

These cookies collect information about your browsing habits in order to make advertising relevant to you and your interests. They remember websites you have visited, and that information is shared with other parties such as advertisers. For example, we use third party companies such as Google’s DoubleClick to provide you with more personalised adverts when visiting other websites.

You can change your settings on your browser to prevent cookies from being stored on your computer or mobile device without explicit consent. Your browser ‘help’ section will normally provide details on how to manage the cookie settings. To opt-out of Google's DoubleClick use of cookies please visit Ad Settings (google.com) or for any other marketing cookies NAI Consumer Opt Out (networkadvertising.org). If you have any further questions about cookies then please contact website@guidedogs.org.uk. 

What happens when you follow a link to another site?

Our websites contain links to other websites. This privacy policy applies only to our sites, so you should always be aware when you are moving to another site and read the privacy statement of any site which collects personal information. We do not pass on any personal information about you to any other site when you link to another non-Guide Dogs' site.

Information Security

We use cloud based systems to process our data and, as such, this data may be processed outside of the EEA. We adopt the Information Commissioners approved measures when we process outside of the EEA which means that all processing conducted in a location outside of the EEA is carried out in accordance with European Data Protection regulations. If you require further information, please contact our Data Protection Officer.

By submitting your personal data, you agree to this transfer, storing or processing. We will take all the steps necessary to ensure that your data is treated securely and in accordance with this privacy policy.

All information you give to us is stored on our secure servers. Any payment transactions will be encrypted. Where we have given you (or where you have chosen) a password which enables you to access certain parts of our site, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential. We ask you not to share a password with anyone. Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we will do our best to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted to our site; any transmission is at your own risk. Once we have received your information, we will use strict procedures and security features to try to prevent unauthorised access.

Notification of changes to this privacy policy

This privacy policy may change from time to time, for example to reflect new legal requirements. If it changes we will place an updated version on this page. Please review this page regularly to keep up to date with any changes to the Privacy Policy.

This policy was last updated 01 May 2024.

What to do if you are not happy with this Privacy Policy?

In the first instance, please talk to us directly so we can help resolve any problem or query. Our friendly supporter services team can help on 0800 953 0113 or by emailing us, or you can contact our data protection officer.

You can also register with the fundraising preference service (FPS). This service is run by the Fundraising Regulator and allows you to stop email, telephone, addressed post, and/or text messages from a selected charity or charities by using the Fundraising Regulator or by calling 0300 303 3517. Once you have made a request through the FPS, we will ensure that your new preferences take effect within 28 days.

You also have the right to contact the Information Commissioners Office (ICO) if you have any concerns about Data Protection using their helpline 0303 123 1113 or their website