Last updated: 5 September 2026
This policy explains how the Chiswick Business directory, membership and events service at chiswickbusiness.co.uk (the "Site") collects, uses, and protects your personal data. The Site is operated by Theo Ruby, trading as Theo Ruby Marketing, of Elthorne Avenue, London W7 2JN ("we", "us", "our"), who is the data controller for the purposes of UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018. The Site is run in partnership with the Chiswick Business Network.
1. What data we collect
We collect the following types of personal data:
- Account data: name, email address, and password (stored as a secure hash) when you register.
- Listing data: business name, address, phone number, email, website, description, category, images, and any other details you add to a directory listing.
- Membership and payment data: which plan you’re on, billing frequency, and transaction history. Your card or bank details are collected and processed directly by Stripe, our payment processor. We never see or store full card or bank account numbers ourselves.
- Event data: details of events you submit, and, where relevant, booking or RSVP information.
- Communications: anything you send us by email or through a contact form.
- Technical data: standard web server logs (IP address, browser type, pages visited) and cookies, described in section 5.
2. How we use your data
We use your data to:
- create and administer your account, and publish and display your business listing or event
- process membership payments and manage recurring billing through Stripe
- send you service emails: account confirmation, billing receipts, renewal notices, and replies to enquiries
- send you occasional news about CBN, such as newsletters or event announcements, where you’ve agreed to receive them. You can unsubscribe at any time
- keep the Site secure, prevent fraud and abuse, and enforce our Terms and Conditions
- understand how the Site is used so we can improve it
Our legal bases for these uses are: performance of a contract (running your account, listing and membership), legitimate interests (security, fraud prevention, improving the Site), consent (marketing emails, where applicable), and legal obligation (keeping financial records).
3. Public listing and event information
The whole point of a business directory is that listings are public. Any information you choose to put in your listing or event (business name, address, description, images, and so on) is visible to anyone who visits the Site and may be indexed by search engines. Please don’t include personal information in a listing that you don’t want to be public (for example, use a business contact rather than a personal one where possible).
4. Who we share data with
We share personal data with a small number of service providers who help us run the Site, and only to the extent needed for them to provide their service:
- Stripe: processes membership payments (card and Bacs Direct Debit). See Stripe’s own privacy policy for how it handles payment data.
- Our hosting provider: stores the Site’s data on our behalf.
- Email delivery services: used to send account, billing, and (where you’ve agreed) marketing emails.
- Third-party event platforms (for example Eventbrite, Meetup, or Facebook), where an event booking happens through one of these platforms, the data you give them for that booking is governed by their own privacy policy, not this one.
We don’t sell your personal data. We’ll only share it beyond the above if required by law, to protect our rights, or with your consent.
5. Cookies
The Site uses a small number of cookies needed for it to function, for example to keep you logged in, remember items during checkout, and support the directory search and payment features. These essential cookies are set automatically and don’t require consent under UK law. If we add analytics or marketing cookies in future, we’ll update this policy and ask for your consent where required.
We use Google Analytics 4 to understand how the Site is used and Jetpack Stats for basic visitor counts. Analytics cookies are only set once you accept them in the cookie banner, and you can change your choice at any time from the Manage consent link in the footer. Full details of every cookie are in our cookie policy.
6. How long we keep data
We keep account and listing data for as long as your account is active, and for a reasonable period afterwards in case you return or in case we need it to resolve a dispute. We keep payment and billing records for six years after the relevant tax year, as required by UK tax law. If you ask us to delete your account, we’ll remove your listing and personal data from public view promptly, except where we need to retain limited records for legal or accounting reasons.
7. International transfers
Some of our service providers, including Stripe, may process data outside the UK. Where this happens, they do so under appropriate safeguards such as the UK’s International Data Transfer Addendum or equivalent standard contractual clauses.
8. Your rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:
- ask us for a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- ask us to correct inaccurate data
- ask us to delete your data, subject to the retention needs described above
- ask us to restrict or object to certain processing
- ask for your data in a portable format
- withdraw consent at any time where we rely on consent (for example, marketing emails)
- complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk if you think we’ve mishandled your data
To exercise any of these rights, email us at [email protected]. Most account and listing changes can also be made directly from your account dashboard.
9. Children
The Site is a business service and isn’t directed at, or intended for use by, children. We don’t knowingly collect data from anyone under 18.
10. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time to reflect changes to the Site or the law. We’ll post the updated version here with a new "last updated" date.
11. Contact us
Questions about this policy or your data? Email [email protected].