Cookie details
This service website puts small files (known as 'cookies') onto your computer.
These cookies are used to:
- help us understand how you use the website, so we can make improvements
- remember what notifications you have seen so you are not shown them more than once
- temporarily store the selections you make
Find out more about how to manage cookies.
Session cookies
We store session cookies on your computer to help keep your information secure while you use the service website. A session is the time you spend using the service website.
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| .Login.Identity.Application | Allows you to stay signed in to the service | When you sign out or the session expires |
| idsrv.session | Allows you to stay signed in to the service | When you sign out or the session expires |
Measuring website usage
We use Google Analytics software to collect information about how you use the service website. This information helps us to improve the service.
We don not collect or store your personal information (for example, your name or address) so this information cannot be used to identify who you are.
Google Analytics cookies
Google Analytics cookies collect and store information about:
- the pages you visit
- how you got to the service
- what you click on while you are visiting the website
We don not allow Google to use or share our analytics data, but you can opt out of analytics cookies.
Google Analytics sets the following cookies:
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| _ga | This cookie helps us understand how you have used the service | 2 years |
| _gat | Used to manage the rate at which page view requests are made | 10 minutes |
| _gid | This helps us track how many people visit the service website | 24 hours |
Messages across GOV.UK
We might display a message on all GOV.UK pages to tell you about an important event or situation. We will save a cookie that will let us know how many times you have seen it, or if you have dismissed it.
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| global_bar_seen | Remembers the number of times you have seen the message, or if you have dismissed it | 12 weeks |
Our performance survey
We select some users to take part in a performance survey. If you take part, or dismiss the survey, we will save a cookie that lets us know you have seen the message so that we don not show it to you again.
| Name | Purpose | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| govuk_takenUserSatisfactionSurvey | Saves a message to remember if you have taken the survey or dismissed it | 4 months |
We use SmartSurvey to collect responses to the survey. If you take part, SmartSurvey will save extra cookies to your computer to track your progress through it.
| Name | Purpose |
|---|---|
| ASP.NET_SessionId, SX_X, _ga, _gat_X, _gid | We use SmartSurvey for the performance survey on this service website. For more information, please see SmartSurvey privacy information. |