### Website Functionality and Your Privacy: Understanding Essential Cookies

In today's digital age, cookies are integral to how websites function and interact with users. Essential cookies are crucial for the basic operation of any website and cannot be disabled within the system. These cookies are typically triggered by user actions, such as setting privacy preferences, logging in, or completing forms. While it is possible to configure your browser to block or warn you about these cookies, doing so may impair certain functionalities of the site. Importantly, these cookies do not store information that can personally identify you.

Another type of cookie that websites use enhances functionality and personalisation. These cookies can be set directly by the site or by third-party providers charged with delivering added features. If you choose to disable these cookies, some services provided by the website might not perform correctly.

We take our users' privacy seriously, offering the option to opt out of sharing personal data with advertisers and social media companies. Users can exercise this choice across our business platforms and services by using a designated toggle switch. Detailed explanations of your rights and available options can be found in our privacy notice.

Performance cookies are also employed to measure and improve the site's efficiency. These cookies gather aggregated, anonymous data that help us understand which pages are most and least popular and how visitors navigate through the site. Without these cookies, our ability to monitor and enhance site performance is compromised, as we wouldn't know when you visited our site.

Social media cookies are set by various services integrated into our site, enabling content sharing with friends and networks. These cookies can track your browser activity on different sites and construct a profile based on your interests. Although opting out may limit your ability to use sharing tools, it helps maintain the relevance of the content and messages you encounter elsewhere online.

Lastly, advertising cookies, which may be placed through our site by marketing partners, are designed to build a profile of your interests. They ensure that adverts you see on other sites are relevant to you. While these cookies do not store personal information directly, they rely on unique identifiers for your browser and internet device. Choosing to disable these cookies will result in less targeted advertising but will not eliminate ads altogether.

In summary, cookies play a vital role in providing a tailored and efficient user experience on websites while also raising important considerations about privacy and data security. It is essential for users to understand their choices and implications regarding cookie settings.