Introduction
GuideWaves Ltd ("we," "our," or "us") is committed to protecting your privacy and personal data. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, disclose, and safeguard your information when you use our creative writing guidance and feedback platform.
This policy applies to all users of our platform, including students, parents, guardians, and educators. We take special care when handling children's data and comply with all applicable data protection laws.
Information We Collect
Personal Information
- Name, email address, and contact information
- Age and educational level (for appropriate content delivery)
- Parent/guardian contact information (for users under 18)
- School information (if applicable)
- Payment information (processed securely through third-party providers)
Educational Data
- Creative writing submissions and assignments
- Progress tracking and assessment data
- Learning preferences and goals
- Feedback and comments from educators
- Usage patterns and platform interaction data
Technical Information
- IP address and device information
- Browser type and version
- Operating system and platform details
- Cookies and similar tracking technologies (including session cookies when you sign in)
- Log files and usage analytics
Sign-in, organisations, cookies, and third-party services
How you sign in
We use industry-standard sign-in. Depending on what we enable for your account, this may include:
- Google Sign-In (OAuth) — your Google account ID, name, and email may be shared with us as part of authentication, subject to Google's privacy policy.
- Email and password (where offered) — handled through our authentication providers (for example Google Firebase Authentication). We do not store your password in plain text.
- Sessions — after sign-in, a secure session cookie may be set so you stay logged in until you sign out or the session expires.
Schools, organisations, and subdomains
If you use the Service through a school or organisation, we may process organisation name, subdomain, membership role, invitations, class or group assignments, homework data, and related activity needed to run those features. Organisation administrators may be able to see certain member or usage information as described in the product.
Machine learning and content you submit
Features such as writing feedback, decoding, creativity prompts, image text extraction, or moderation may send the content you provide (including text and, where you upload them, images or files) to third-party language or vision service providers (for example OpenAI) to generate results. Those providers process data under their own terms and privacy policies. Do not submit special-category or highly sensitive personal data unless you accept that risk.
Analytics and marketing technologies
We may use tools such as Google Analytics, Google Ads conversion or remarketing tags, and Meta (Facebook) Pixel to understand how the site is used and to measure advertising. These tools may set cookies or similar identifiers. You can control cookies through your browser and, where available, opt-out tools offered by those platforms.
Payments and email
- Stripe — card and subscription billing are processed by Stripe; we do not store full card numbers on our servers.
- Resend — transactional or notification email (for example contact forms, organisation invitations, or password reset where applicable) may be sent via Resend.
Hosting
The Service is hosted on cloud infrastructure (for example Vercel and connected databases). Data may be processed in the UK, EEA, US, or other regions where our providers operate, consistent with this policy and applicable law.
How We Use Your Information
Educational Services
- Provide personalized creative writing guidance and feedback
- Track learning progress and adapt content to individual needs
- Generate reports for students, parents, and educators
- Facilitate communication between students and tutors
Platform Operations
- Maintain and improve our platform functionality
- Provide customer support and technical assistance
- Process payments and manage subscriptions
- Send important updates and notifications
Legal and Safety
- Comply with legal obligations and regulatory requirements
- Protect against fraud, abuse, and security threats
- Enforce our terms of service and community guidelines
- Safeguard children and maintain a safe learning environment
Children's Privacy
We take special care to protect children's privacy and comply with applicable laws including COPPA and GDPR. For users under 18:
- Parental consent is required before collecting any personal information
- We collect only the minimum information necessary for educational purposes
- Parents have the right to review, modify, or delete their child's information
- We do not use children's data for marketing or advertising purposes
- All staff undergo safeguarding training and background checks
- We maintain strict access controls and monitoring systems
Data Sharing and Disclosure
We do not sell, trade, or rent your personal information. We may share information only in these circumstances:
Educational Partners
With schools and educational institutions (with appropriate consent) to support learning objectives.
Service Providers
With trusted third-party providers who assist in platform operations (under strict data protection agreements).
Legal Requirements
When required by law, court order, or to protect safety and security.
Business Transfers
In the event of a merger, acquisition, or sale (with continued privacy protection commitments).
Your Rights and Choices
Under GDPR and other applicable laws, you have the following rights:
Access Rights
- Request copies of your personal data
- Receive information about data processing
Control Rights
- Correct inaccurate information
- Request deletion of your data
Processing Rights
- Object to certain data processing
- Restrict processing activities
Portability Rights
- Receive data in portable format
- Transfer data to another service
To exercise your rights: Contact our Data Protection Officer at support@creativewriting11plus.com or use the data management tools in your account settings.
Data Security and Retention
Security Measures
- Encryption in transit (HTTPS/TLS) between your device and our services
- Secure cloud storage with regular backups
- Multi-factor authentication for staff access
- Regular security audits and penetration testing
- Staff training on data protection and security
Data Retention
- Student data: Retained for the duration of enrollment plus 7 years for educational records
- Payment data: Retained for 7 years for tax and accounting purposes
- Marketing data: Retained until consent is withdrawn
- Technical logs: Retained for 12 months for security and performance monitoring
Contact Information
For any privacy-related questions or concerns, please contact:
Data Protection Officer
GuideWaves Ltd
Email: support@creativewriting11plus.com
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you believe your data protection rights have been violated.