Privacy Policy

The French Ritual

Last updated: 15/07/2026

This Privacy Policy explains how The French Ritual ("we", "us", "our") collects, uses, and protects your personal data when you visit our website, listen to our podcast, subscribe to a membership, or purchase our digital products. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your data in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018, and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025.

1. Who we are

The French Ritual is [a business / sole trader / limited company] based in the United Kingdom, producing the podcast of the same name along with paid memberships and digital courses.

For any questions about this policy or your personal data, you can contact us at:

  • Email: [YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS]

  • Business address: [YOUR ADDRESS, if applicable]

We are the "data controller" responsible for your personal data.

[If you are registered with the ICO, add: Our ICO registration number is [NUMBER].]

2. What personal data we collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:

  • Identity and contact data — your name and email address.

  • Membership and purchase data — details of your subscription or course purchases and your billing address.

  • Payment data — payment details required to complete a purchase or subscription. Note: payments are handled securely by our payment processor (see Section 4); we do not store your full card details ourselves.

  • Marketing data — your email address and preferences if you sign up to our newsletter.

  • Communications data — any messages you send us via our website contact form.

  • Listening data — aggregated and device-level information (such as approximate location, device type, and episode downloads) provided by our podcast hosting platform.

  • Technical and usage data — your IP address, browser type, device information, and how you use our website, collected automatically through cookies and analytics.

3. Why we use your data and our lawful basis

Under UK GDPR, we must have a valid "lawful basis" for using your personal data. Here is how we use it:

PurposeData usedLawful basisTo manage your membership and give you access to paid contentIdentity, contact, membership, payment dataContract — necessary to fulfil our agreement with youTo process and deliver your digital course purchasesIdentity, contact, payment dataContractTo respond to messages you send via our contact formIdentity, contact, communications dataLegitimate interests — to answer your enquiryTo send you marketing newslettersContact, marketing dataConsent — you can withdraw this at any timeTo understand our podcast audience and improve the showListening dataLegitimate interestsTo improve our website and understand how it's usedTechnical, usage dataConsent (for non-essential cookies) / Legitimate interestsTo comply with legal and tax obligationsMembership, payment dataLegal obligation

4. Who we share your data with

We never sell your personal data. We share it only with trusted third parties who help us run our business:

  • Podcast hosting: [Spotify / Acast / your host] distributes our episodes and provides audience analytics.

  • Payment processing: [Stripe / PayPal] processes your payments and subscriptions securely.

  • Email marketing: [Mailchimp / your provider] delivers our newsletters (only if you've subscribed).

  • Analytics: Google Analytics helps us understand website usage.

  • Advertising: We use tracking pixels from [Meta (Facebook/Instagram) / TikTok] to measure and improve our advertising (only where you have consented).

Some of these providers may process data outside the UK. Where they do, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place (such as UK-approved data transfer mechanisms) to protect your data.

5. Cookies and tracking

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies, including Google Analytics and advertising pixels from [Meta / TikTok].

  • Essential cookies keep the site working and don't require your consent.

  • Analytics and advertising cookies are only used where you have given consent.

When you first visit our site, you'll see a cookie banner allowing you to Accept or Reject non-essential cookies. You can change your preferences at any time via [your cookie settings link / banner]. For full details, see our separate [Cookie Policy].

Note: analytics your podcast host collects (downloads, listener location, etc.) are governed by that platform's own privacy policy.

6. How long we keep your data

We keep your personal data only for as long as necessary:

  • Membership and payment records: retained for [6 years] to meet UK tax and accounting requirements.

  • Course access data: kept for as long as you have access to the course, plus [a reasonable period].

  • Newsletter data: kept until you unsubscribe.

  • Contact form messages: kept for [e.g. 12 months] after your enquiry is resolved.

  • Analytics data: retained for [e.g. 14 / 26 months] in line with our analytics settings.

7. How we protect your data

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to keep your data secure, including [SSL encryption on our website, secure third-party providers, restricted access to personal data]. While no online service can be guaranteed 100% secure, we take reasonable steps to protect against unauthorised access, loss, or misuse.

8. Your rights

Under UK data protection law, you have the right to:

  • Access the personal data we hold about you.

  • Correct any inaccurate or incomplete data.

  • Delete your data ("right to be forgotten").

  • Restrict or object to how we use your data.

  • Data portability — receive your data in a usable format.

  • Withdraw consent at any time (e.g. unsubscribe from marketing).

To exercise any of these rights, email us at [YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS]. We'll respond within one month.

9. Complaints

If you have a concern about how we handle your data, please contact us first at [YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS] so we can try to resolve it.

You also have the right to complain to the UK's data protection regulator:

Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) Website: www.ico.org.uk Helpline: 0303 123 1113

10. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with a revised "Last updated" date.

This policy is a general template tailored for The French Ritual. It's not a substitute for legal advice — if you handle sensitive data or have specific concerns, consider a professional review.