Privacy
Policy

Who We Are

Grad2Grid is an online platform connecting young applicants with employers in the United Kingdom, operated by an individual based in the UK.

For the purposes of UK GDPR, Grad2Grid is the data controller for personal information collected through the Platform. You can contact us at info@grad2grid.com with any privacy-related queries.

What Data We Collect

We collect the following personal data when you use Grad2Grid:

• Name, email address and password when you register
• Account type (applicant or employer)
• Location (city or region)
• Postcode and approximate location coordinates (latitude and longitude), used to enable distance-based search. Only your city name is ever displayed publicly — your postcode and coordinates are never shown to other users
• Trade, experience level and qualifications (applicants)
• Company name and sector (employers)
• Profile information you choose to add such as bio, skills and work experience
• Messages you send to other users through the Platform
• Profile view counts and activity data, including a record of the profiles you view. When you view another user's profile we log your name, account type and trade or sector against that profile so its owner can see who has viewed them

We do not collect payment information directly — this will be handled by a secure third-party payment processor if premium features are introduced.

How We Use Your Data

We use your personal data to:

• Create and manage your account
• Display your profile to other relevant users on the Platform
• Enable messaging between applicants and employers
• Show you relevant profiles when browsing
• Show users relevant profiles within their selected travel distance, based on postcode. We calculate distance using your stored coordinates and the search coordinates, but only ever display the city name to other users — never the full postcode
• Track profile views and platform activity, including showing Premium subscribers a list of the users who have recently viewed their profile
• Send you important service communications such as password resets
• Improve and develop the Platform
• Comply with legal obligations

Legal Basis for Processing

We process your personal data on the following legal grounds:

• Contract — processing is necessary to provide you with the Grad2Grid service you have signed up for
• Legitimate interests — to improve the Platform, prevent fraud and ensure security
• Legal obligation — where we are required to process data to comply with UK law
• Consent — where you have explicitly agreed to a specific use of your data

Who We Share Your Data With

We share your data with the following third parties:

• Google Firebase — our platform infrastructure provider, used for authentication, database storage and hosting. Firebase is operated by Google LLC and processes data in accordance with Google's Privacy Policy
• Other users — your profile information is visible to other registered users of the Platform as described in these terms
• Profiles you view — when you view another user's profile, that user may be shown that you viewed them, including your name, account type and trade or sector. Premium subscribers can see a list of who has recently viewed their profile

We do not sell your personal data to third parties. We do not share your data with advertisers.

Data Retention

We retain your personal data for as long as your account is active. If you delete your account, we will delete your personal data within 30 days, except where we are required to retain it for legal purposes.

Messages exchanged on the Platform may be retained for up to 12 months after the conversation ends for safety and moderation purposes.

Your Rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights regarding your personal data:

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at info@grad2grid.com. We will respond within 30 days.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk if you believe we have not handled your data correctly.

Cookies

Grad2Grid uses session storage (a browser technology similar to cookies) to track whether you have already viewed a profile in a session, to ensure profile view counts are accurate. This data is not stored permanently and is cleared when you close your browser.

Firebase Authentication uses essential cookies and local storage to maintain your login session across visits. These are strictly necessary for the Platform to function and cannot be disabled without preventing you from staying logged in.

We do not currently use tracking cookies or advertising cookies.

Security

We take the security of your personal data seriously. Your data is stored securely on Google Firebase infrastructure. Passwords are encrypted and never stored in plain text. We use HTTPS encryption for all data transmitted to and from the Platform.

However, no method of transmission over the internet is completely secure. While we take all reasonable steps to protect your data, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

Data Breaches

In the event of a data breach that poses a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify the Information Commissioner's Office within 72 hours as required by UK GDPR, and we will notify affected users without undue delay where the breach is likely to result in a high risk to their rights.

Children's Privacy

Grad2Grid is intended for users aged 16 and over. We do not knowingly collect personal data from anyone under 16. If you believe a person under 16 has provided us with personal data, please contact us at info@grad2grid.com and we will delete it promptly. For users aged 16 to 17, we apply additional protections in line with the ICO's Age Appropriate Design Code (Children's Code) to ensure their data is handled with appropriate care. Paid Premium subscriptions are only available to users aged 18 or over; users aged 16 to 17 can use all free features but cannot purchase Premium.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. We will notify you of significant changes by posting a notice on the Platform. The date at the top of this page indicates when the policy was last updated.