Who we are
vEducate is an independent technical website operated by Dean Lewis. Its website address is https://veducate.co.uk.
What this site collects
vEducate is published primarily as a static website. It has no visitor accounts, comment form, contact form, ecommerce system, or advertising platform. It uses Google Analytics only after a visitor has actively allowed it, except in the United States where restricted site analytics is enabled by default and can be declined at any time.
Google Analytics
Google Analytics 4 helps vEducate understand which pages are useful and how the site is used. When enabled, measurement may include the page viewed, page title, a referrer without its query string or fragment, approximate location, browser and device information, and enabled interactions such as scrolling, outbound-link clicks, and file downloads. The implementation is not designed to collect names, email addresses, account identifiers, or user-entered text, and it does not implement advertising measurement or a Google Analytics User-ID. Query strings and URL fragments are removed from measured page locations and referrers as a safeguard.
Google Analytics is provided by Google. Google may process analytics information on servers outside the United Kingdom, including in the United States, subject to the safeguards described in the Google Privacy Policy. Google Analytics processes an IP address to derive approximate location, but Google states that GA4 does not log or store individual IP addresses. See Google's data safeguards information and how Google uses information from sites that use its services.
Cloudflare supplies the request country to a small same-site policy endpoint. The endpoint returns only an opt-in or opt-out tier, is not cached, and vEducate does not store the supplied country. United States visitors receive the opt-out tier. All other and unknown locations receive the prior-opt-in tier; if the lookup fails, Analytics stays off. Where prior consent is required, vEducate uses Google's Basic Consent Mode: until Analytics is allowed, or after it is declined, the Google tag is not loaded and no analytics request is made to Google. Advertising-related consent remains denied even when Analytics is enabled.
Cookies and the consent preference
If Analytics is enabled, Google Analytics may set the following first-party cookies on veducate.co.uk:
| Name | Purpose | Default lifetime |
|---|---|---|
_ga |
Distinguishes one browser from another for analytics. | Up to 180 days; the expiry is not refreshed on later visits. |
_ga_* |
Maintains session state for the GA4 measurement stream. | Up to 180 days; the expiry is not refreshed on later visits. |
Browser controls may shorten these lifetimes. Declining analytics does not set these cookies. The site stores a separate first-party browser preference named veducate.analytics-consent.v2 in local storage after a visitor chooses Allow or Decline. It contains only the choice, timestamp, schema version, and notice identifier, not an analytics identifier or browsing activity. The preference expires after 180 days so the site can ask again. No inferred Allow record is stored for a United States visitor who has not used the controls. The preference is necessary to remember the visitor's choice and prevent an unwanted analytics prompt or tag load on every page.
A visitor can change or withdraw the choice at any time through Analytics settings in the footer. Withdrawal stops subsequent collection and the site removes Google Analytics cookies it can access. Browser settings can also be used to remove stored site data.
Hosting and security logs
The site is delivered through Cloudflare. Like most hosting and security providers, Cloudflare may process request information such as IP address, browser and device details, requested URL, and timestamps to deliver the site, prevent abuse, and maintain security. See the Cloudflare Privacy Policy for details.
Archived comments
Approved comments from the former WordPress site are retained as a read-only public archive. The static site publishes the commenter's chosen display name, optional public website, comment date, and comment text. It does not publish commenter email addresses, IP addresses, browser user agents, moderation records, or account identifiers.
Local search
Typing into site search is processed in the browser against a static index, and the complete search route is excluded from Google Analytics. If a visitor directly opens, bookmarks, or shares a search URL containing ?q=, that URL can still appear in ordinary Cloudflare request logs even though it is not sent to Google Analytics.
Embedded and linked services
Some articles include or link to content hosted by third parties, such as YouTube, Spotify, SlideShare, GitHub, or social networks. Loading or interacting with that content may allow the third party to receive technical request data, set cookies, or associate the interaction with an account held with them. Their own privacy terms apply.
How long data is retained
Google Analytics user-level and event-level data is configured to be retained for two months. Standard aggregated reports may remain available for longer. The consent preference is kept for 180 days. Public article and archived-comment content is retained as part of the site's historical record. Operational logs are retained by hosting and security providers according to their own settings and policies. A secured WordPress migration backup is retained for migration verification, rollback, and historical recovery while it remains necessary and appropriately protected.
Your choices and rights
Analytics is optional. A visitor can allow or decline it without affecting access to the site, and can later use Analytics settings in the footer to change the choice. Browser controls can block or delete cookies and local storage. Data-protection rights may include asking for access, correction, deletion, restriction, or objection where those rights apply. Because vEducate does not assign accounts or collect names through Analytics, it may not be possible to associate an analytics record with a particular person.
If you previously left a comment and want to ask about correction or removal of the public archive entry, contact Dean through the public profile linked below. Requests may require enough information to identify the relevant comment.
Contact
Contact Dean Lewis through his LinkedIn profile.
Last updated: 10 August 2026.