Privacy Policy

Last Updated: 7 April 2026

Whether you are an independent business owner sharing your story or a local resident looking for somewhere good to spend your money, you are trusting us with your information.

This Privacy Policy explains exactly what data we collect, why we collect it, and how we keep it safe. No corporate jargon—just the plain English facts.

1. Who We Are

When we say “we”, “our”, or “us”, we mean Small Biz Marketing Ltd. We are a company registered in England and Wales (Company Number: 11818306). Our registered office is at Holt Drive, Loughborough, LE11 3JA.

For the purposes of UK data protection law (UK GDPR), we are the “data controller” of the personal information you provide to us or that we collect when you visit yourlocalsource.co.uk.

2. What Information We Collect

The data we collect depends on how you use our website.

If you are an independent business owner claiming a profile:
We only collect what we actually need to tell your story and run the directory properly.

Identity & Contact Data: Your name, email address, phone number, and business website.
Interview Data: Notes, transcripts, or recordings from our 20-minute Founder Profile interviews.
Profile Data: Information about your business, history, and operations that you choose to share for publication.

If you are a general website visitor (reading business profiles, expert interviews and articles):
We do not ask for your name or email just to read the site. We only collect technical information to understand how the site is performing.

Technical & Usage Data: Information about how you use our site, such as your IP address, browser type, device information, and the pages you visit. We collect this automatically using cookies.

Only give us your contact data if you are an independent business owner looking to get you Founders Interview and/or Expert Interviews published.

3. How We Use Your Data and Our Legal Basis

We use your information strictly to provide the service you asked for or to improve the website.

For Business Owners:

To write, review, and publish your Founder Profile and directory listing.
To communicate with you about your listing and get your approval before anything goes live.
Legal basis: Fulfilling our contract with you (getting your story told) and your consent.

For General Visitors:

To understand how people use our site. We look at trends to see which articles are popular, how people navigate the directory, and how we can make the platform better for local businesses.
Legal basis: Our legitimate interest in studying how our website is used to grow the business and improve the platform.

4. Cookies and Google Analytics

We use cookies (small text files placed on your device) to distinguish you from other users and provide a smooth experience.

Crucially, we use Google Analytics to collect aggregated, anonymous data about website traffic. This helps us understand things like how many people are reading the Founder Profiles and which areas are getting the most interest. Google Analytics uses cookies to do this, but the data is grouped together so it does not identify you personally.

When you first visit the site, you will see a cookie banner allowing you to accept or decline non-essential cookies (like those used for analytics). You can change your browser settings to refuse cookies at any time.

We will never sell your data.

We only share your information with trusted third-party service providers who help us run the business. This includes:

Our website hosting provider.
Google Analytics (for aggregated website traffic data).
Our email marketing software (so we can send drafts to founders).
Secure storage tools for interview notes.

These providers are legally bound to keep your data secure and cannot use it for their own purposes.

6. How Long We Keep Your Data

For Business Owners: We hold onto your data for as long as your business is listed on Your Local Source. If you ever decide you want your profile taken down, we will remove it and securely delete your interview data and personal contact details, keeping only what we are legally required to retain for tax or accounting purposes.
For General Visitors: Aggregated analytics data is kept for a limited period (typically 14 to 26 months) simply so we can compare year-on-year website traffic.

7. Your Rights and Your Control

You are in complete control of your data. Under UK law, you have the right to:

Request access to the personal data we hold about you.
Ask us to correct any information that is inaccurate.
Request erasure of your personal data (the “right to be forgotten”).
Object to or restrict how we process your data.
Withdraw your consent at any time.

If you want to exercise any of these rights, just email Matt at [email protected] and we will sort it out promptly.

8. Complaints

If you feel we have mishandled your data, please talk to us first so we can put it right. However, you also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues (www.ico.org.uk).