What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files stored on your device by your browser when you visit a website. They allow the site to remember you between requests — for example, to keep you logged in or to preserve your progress in a form. UK law requires us to tell you which cookies we use and to obtain your consent for any that aren't strictly necessary.
Cookies we use
We use three kinds of cookies and similar technologies: strictly necessary cookies that make the site work, analytics cookies that help us understand how the site is used, and advertising cookies that help us measure and improve our marketing. Analytics and advertising cookies never contain your health information.
Strictly necessary cookies
- twc_session — keeps you logged in to the patient portal or prescriber dashboard. Expires when you close your browser, or after 8 hours, whichever is sooner.
- PHPSESSID — used by the consultation form to remember your answers as you progress between steps so you can refresh without losing data. Expires when you close your browser.
- _csrf — used to protect form submissions from cross-site request forgery attacks. Expires with your session.
- __cf_bm and similar Cloudflare cookies — set by Cloudflare, which sits in front of our website, to filter automated/bot traffic and keep the site secure. Short-lived (typically 30 minutes).
- Stripe cookies (e.g. __stripe_mid, __stripe_sid) — set by our payment and identity-verification provider during checkout and ID checks to prevent fraud. See Stripe's privacy policy.
Analytics cookies
- _ga, _ga_* — Google Analytics. Help us understand how visitors find and use the public pages of our site (pages viewed, approximate location at city level, device type), so we can improve it. Kept for up to 2 years. See how Google uses cookies, and Google's opt-out browser add-on.
Advertising cookies
- _fbp and the Meta Pixel — set by Meta (Facebook/Instagram) on our public pages so we can measure whether our advertising works and reach people likely to be interested in our service. Kept for up to 90 days. We do not send Meta your questionnaire answers or any health information. You can control how Meta uses ad data in your Meta ad preferences, and opt out of personalised online advertising at Your Online Choices.
Video consultations
- Daily.co — when you join a video consultation, our video provider may set cookies strictly needed to run the call. Calls are not recorded.
Local storage
- twc_cookies_accepted — remembers that you've dismissed the cookie banner so we don't show it on every page load. Stored locally in your browser, kept for 365 days.
How to control cookies
You can refuse or delete cookies via your browser settings at any time. If you block the strictly necessary cookies, parts of our service that depend on them (logging in, completing the consultation, the prescriber dashboard, paying securely) will not work — these are technically required, not optional. Blocking analytics and advertising cookies does not affect how the site works for you.
Helpful instructions per browser: Chrome · Firefox · Safari · Edge.
For the analytics and advertising cookies specifically, you can also use the provider opt-outs linked above (Google's opt-out add-on, Meta's ad preferences).
Changes to this policy
If we add or remove cookies, we will update this page. The "last updated" date at the top reflects the latest revision.
Questions about cookies or privacy?
Questions about cookies or privacy? Email hello@northharrowpharmacy.co.uk.
