Privacy Policy & Accessibility

Privacy Policy - www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk Ascent Publishing Ltd (“Ascent”) will use the information provided by you in the course of our dealing with you to process your requests and orders and in order to provide a more personalised web-surfing experience.
 

Our principlesWe are absolutely committed to protecting your privacy. Our policy can be summarised in one sentence: we will not share your information with other companies outside of Ascent and those Centaur Companies that provide related products and services without your prior consent. We have also established the following three principles:
1.  We will continue to invest in the best quality security available and do our utmost to protect user privacy.
2.  We will not pass on any individual User details (including your e-mail address) unless we have your prior consent.
3.  Otherwise, we will only share aggregate statistics about our Users, sales and traffic patterns with our advertisers.
 

What information do we collect?We collect some basic information from all of our registered Users. This includes your name, e-mail address, and post-code. We also ask some further questions so we can gain a clearer understanding of our Users. They also enable us to personalise services for our Users. We collect data listings on which of our pages are most frequently visited and by which types of Users.
 

Frequently Asked Questions

• How does www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk protect customer information?We do our utmost to protect User privacy. To comply with UK Data Protection legislation, we follow procedures in the storage and disclosure of information that you have given us, to prevent unauthorised access.

• Why does www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk use "cookies"?"Cookies" are small pieces of information that are stored by your browser on your computer's hard drive. They make it possible for us to identify registered Users without needing to ask for registration details every time you access one of our sites. Using cookies make accessing our site more convenient as you don't need to remember your username and password each time you enter.

• Will www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk disclose the information it collects to outside parties?
www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk will not sell, trade or rent your personal information to other companies outside relevant Centaur Companies unless you have given us your permission. With your permission we will only share the information with carefully chosen, reputable and trustworthy third parties. Also, www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk may provide aggregate statistics about our customers; sales, traffic patterns and related site information to reputable third-party vendors, but these statistics will include no personally identifying information. www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk follows the relevant legal requirements and uses all reasonable precautions to ensure only responsible third parties see the information; however we are not responsible for any breach of security or any actions of any third parties who receive the information.

• What if you change your policy in future?
Any changes to our policy will be posted here. Tell us what you think.
www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk welcomes your questions and comments. Please contact us with your feedback.

Interpretation

In this Privacy Policy, the following words and phrases shall bear the following meanings: • “Centaur Companies” are any company under the direct control of Centaur Media plc; the ultimate parent of Ascent Publishing Ltd (“Ascent”)

• “Personal Information” means Personal Data as defined in the Data Protection Act 1998 as amended

• "User" means any person who accesses or uses www.realhomesmagazine.co.uk.  

Accessibility

Centaur Special Interest Media are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of technology or ability.
 
We are actively working to increase the accessibility and usability of our website and in doing so adheres to many of the available standards and guidelines.
 
Web Accessibility Initiative
 
This website strives to achieve Double-A accessibility of the World Wide Web Consortium's (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 (WCAG 1.0), employing best practice techniques where certain Priority 3 checkpoints have become outdated.
 
The WCAG 1.0 explain how to make web content more accessible for people with disabilities. Conformance with these guidelines will help make the web more user friendly for all people.
 
W3C Standards
 
This site has been built using code compliant with W3C standards for XHTML and CSS. The site displays correctly in current browsers and using standards compliant XHTML/CSS code means any future browsers will also display it correctly.
 
Exceptions
 
Whilst Centaur Special Interest Media comply with known accessibility and usability guidelines, it is not always possible to do so to the letter of each checkpoint. Browsers and access technologies have outgrown many of the difficulties that once needed guidelines to overcome them, rendering some checkpoints obsolete.
 
In light of this, we are continually developing solutions that ensure the website conforms to the spirit of each checkpoint, bringing together a high standard of practical accessibility and usability throughout the website. The following exceptions are also in line with the new version of the accessibility guidelines to be released soon.
 
Pre-filled form fields
 
Checkpoint 10.4 of WCAG 1.0 recommends that until user agents (such as browsers or screen readers) are capable of recognising text fields that do not contain default text, text fields in forms should be pre-filled with text.
 
User testing, combined with evidence from our web stats, show that this is no longer a necessity for accessibility. Research has in fact shown that pre-filled text fields can cause difficulties for some modern screen readers, therefore we do not include them unless they demonstrate a positive advantage within the application.
 
Cross Browser Compliance
 
This site has bee tested for correct display and function using the following browsers:
 
Firefox V2.X for PC
IE V6, V7 for PC
Firefox V2.X for Mac
Safari V3.X for Mac
 
It requires Javascript to be active and Cookies to be enabled for correct functionality.
 
Should you experience any difficulty in using this website, please contact us.

COMPETITION TERMS & CONDITIONS

1.These rules apply to all prize promotions including free draws, prize competitions and instant win offers. Depending on the nature of the competition there may be additional rules. Promotions are open to UK residents aged 18 and over, except employees of Centaur Special Interest Media, the competition promoter and their immediate families, the promoters advertising agency and sales promotion consultancy, and anyone else connected with the creation and administration of the promotion.

2.       Prizes are non-transferable, non-negotiable and no cash alternatives will be offered. Centaur and the promoter reserve the right to substitute the prize for another prize of equal value.

3.       No purchase necessary to enter the competitions unless otherwise stated on the promotional activity with a specific competition.

4.       By entering the prize draw, the entrant agrees to be bound by the rules and by any other requirements set out in the promotional material accompanying the promotion.

5.       By entering the promotion, the entrant agrees to the terms of the privacy policy. In addition, Centaur Special Interest Media may pass your personal information to the promoters and their data processors if you are opted-in to this service. However, we always demand that those parties adhere to the same security procedures that we follow ourselves.

6.       It is assumed that by entering competitions which, if won, could result in time off work, your employer is in agreement to time off. When dates are specified they cannot be altered. Depending on the nature of the prize, its use or enjoyment may be subject to further conditions or restrictions.

7.       Winners will be notified by email within 5 days of the day of the draw (unless otherwise specified). Where required in the terms of the competition, winners will have 21 days to respond in full to the email, or another winner will be drawn.

8.       By entering the promotion, the winner(s) consent(s) to any publicity generated as a result of the promotion, and for this to be used on the Real Homes website or within the magazine at any time.

9.       The website Editor's decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. Odds of winning depend on the number of eligible entries received.

10.    Only one entry per person. Spammers will be disqualified.

11.    Real Homes will not accept responsibility for loss through technical fault, incomplete, illegible or other damaged entries.

12.    Proof of postage/entry will not be accepted as proof of receipt.

13.    Postal entries will not be accepted for online only competitions.

14.    The promotional draw is held by Real Homes. Registered offices: Centaur Special Interest Media, 50 Poland Street, London, W1F 7AX.

15.    These terms and conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.