Last updated: 01 September 2025

This Privacy Policy describes how Marketic, trading as “My Local Awards” (“My Local Awards”, “we”, “us”, “our”) collects, uses, and discloses personal data when you use our websites, services, and when we contact businesses about awards nominations and voting. It also explains your privacy rights and how UK law protects you.

Plain English summary: We sometimes email businesses about awards (including where we sourced the email from public records). We do this in line with UK GDPR and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR). Every message includes an easy way to opt out. If you opt out, we add your address to a suppression list so you won’t be contacted again. You can also ask us to unlink your email from a business profile, or remove/rectify your data, at any time: support@mylocalawards.co.uk.

Who we are (Data Controller)

Marketic (trading as “My Local Awards”)
 Registered office: Unit 106631, PO Box 4336, Manchester, M61 0BW, United Kingdom
 Email: support@mylocalawards.co.uk

If you have questions, contact us at the email above. We have not appointed a statutory Data Protection Officer, but we take privacy seriously and will respond promptly.

Key definitions

  • “Service” means our websites and online services, including mylocalawards.co.uk and any nomination/voting tools.

     

  • “Personal Data” means information relating to an identified or identifiable person.

     

  • “Corporate subscriber” means a company/work email (e.g. support@mylocalawards.co.uk). “Individual subscriber” covers sole traders, partnerships, and personal mailboxes (e.g. Gmail).

     

Other capitalised terms have the meanings given in UK GDPR/PECR or as used below.

What data we collect

Data you provide

  • Contact details (name, work email, phone), job title/role.

     

  • Business information submitted for nominations/votes (business name, sector, location, website, why nominated).

     

  • Communications and preferences (e.g., whether you want marketing or not).

     

Data we collect automatically (when you use the site)

  • Usage Data (IP address, device/browser, pages viewed, time on page).

     

  • Cookies/Similar tech for essential site functionality, analytics, and to remember preferences (see Cookies).

     

Data from public and third-party sources

  • Public websites, official registries, industry directories, social media pages, review platforms, and listings.

     

  • Commercial data providers (where lawfully obtained and shared).

     

  • Nominations submitted by third parties (e.g., a customer nominating a business).

     

Why we use your data (lawful bases)

We process Personal Data only where we have a lawful basis under UK GDPR:

  1. Legitimate interests (Article 6(1)(f))

     

    • B2B outreach about awards: emailing corporate subscribers in relevant roles about nominations, voting, verification, category fit, ceremonies, and similar updates. We balance these interests against your rights and provide an opt-out in every message.

       

    • Awards administration: verifying eligibility, preventing duplicate/abusive votes, running shortlists, and publishing winners.

       

    • Business operations and site security: analytics, troubleshooting, fraud/spam prevention, and improving our Service.

       

  2. Consent (Article 6(1)(a))

     

    • Where required (e.g., individual subscribers without soft opt-in), or for optional marketing where you have actively agreed. You can withdraw consent at any time.

       

  3. Soft opt-in for existing customers/enquirers (PECR)

     

    • If you purchased from or enquired with us, we may email you about similar services, with an opt-out in each message.

       

  4. Contract (Article 6(1)(b))

     

    • To provide services you request (e.g., managing your account or nomination).

       

  5. Legal obligation (Article 6(1)(c))

     

    • To comply with laws, court orders, and regulatory requests.

       

PECR note: We may contact corporate subscribers (e.g., support@mylocalawards.co.uk) about awards without prior consent, provided we identify ourselves and include an easy opt-out. For individual subscribers (sole traders/partnerships/personal emails), we rely on consent or soft opt-in where applicable.

Email outreach to businesses (direct marketing)

  • What we send: notifications about nominations, requests to verify business details, voting invitations, category/location updates, deadlines, and ceremony/news information.

     

  • Where we got your email: from public sources (your website, official registries, directories, social/business pages) or because someone nominated your business.

     

  • Your choices: every email contains a one-click unsubscribe link. You can also email support@mylocalawards.co.uk and we’ll action it.

     

  • Suppression list: if you unsubscribe or ask us not to contact you, we retain your email only on a suppression list so we don’t message you again (this is a legal/legitimate interest).

     

“Unlinking” your account or profile

If your email has been associated with a business page or nomination on our system, you can ask us to unlink it. That means we will:

  • Remove the association between your email and that business profile;

     

  • Stop further emails about that profile (and add your address to our suppression list if requested);

     

  • Where feasible, update the profile to reflect non-personal, public business contact details only.

     

Request unlinking at support@mylocalawards.co.uk (we may need to verify identity).

How we use Personal Data

  • Provide and operate the Service, administer nominations and voting, verify entries, detect/prevent abuse or duplicate votes, and maintain eligibility records.

     

  • Communicate with you, including operational emails (verification codes, deadlines, changes to categories/locations), and B2B outreach where permitted.

     

  • Improve and secure our websites and services (analytics, diagnostics, anti-spam, and security logs).

     

  • Legal and compliance (record-keeping, responding to regulators/courts, enforcing rights).

     

  • Business changes (merger, acquisition, or asset transfer—your data may transfer under appropriate safeguards).

     

We do not sell personal data.

Who we share data with

  • Service Providers/Processors: email delivery (SMTP/ESP), CRM/helpdesk, web hosting/CDN, analytics, security/anti-spam, survey tools, and event platforms.

     

  • Professional advisors (legal, compliance) where necessary.

     

  • Authorities when required by law or to protect rights/safety.

     

  • Event partners (e.g., venues, printers) only as needed for confirmed finalists/winners and under confidentiality where appropriate.

     

We require processors to protect your data and only act on our instructions.

International transfers

Some providers may process data outside the UK. Where that happens, we ensure an adequate safeguard—for example, UK adequacy regulations, UK International Data Transfer Agreement/Addendum, or Standard Contractual Clauses, plus supplementary measures where required.

Retention

  • Operational/event data: for the awards cycle and up to 24 months thereafter for audit, dispute handling, and to improve future programmes.

     

  • Marketing records: until you opt out or while relevant to our B2B relationship.

     

  • Suppression list: indefinitely (minimal data only) so we can honour your opt-out.

     

  • Security/diagnostic logs: typically up to 12 months, unless needed longer for investigation/compliance.
     We may keep data longer if required by law or to establish/defend legal claims.

     

Your rights (UK GDPR)

You have the right to access, rectify, erase, restrict, object (including to direct marketing), and data portability, and to withdraw consent at any time. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the ICO (ico.org.uk).
 To exercise your rights, email support@mylocalawards.co.uk. We will respond within the statutory timeframe and may need to verify your identity.

Cookies and tracking

We use essential, preferences/functionality, and analytics cookies and similar technologies. You can control cookies via your browser settings; however, some features may not work without essential cookies. See our Cookies Policy for details.

Children

Our Service is not directed to children under 13, and we do not knowingly collect their data. If you believe a child has provided us data, contact support@mylocalawards.co.uk and we will delete it.

Security

We use appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect Personal Data. No method of transmission or storage is 100% secure, but we work to keep data safe using industry-standard practices and access controls.

Links to other websites

Our websites may link to third-party sites we don’t control. Review their privacy policies; we aren’t responsible for their practices.

Changes to this policy

We may update this policy. We’ll post changes here and revise the “Last updated” date. For significant changes, we’ll provide a prominent notice and/or email where appropriate.

Contact

Questions, requests, or complaints: support@mylocalawards.co.uk

Compliance notes (helpful to keep internally, can remain public)

  • PECR compliance (B2B): We identify ourselves in every email, include a working unsubscribe link, and honour opt-outs immediately.

     

  • Individual subscribers: For sole traders/partnerships/personal inboxes, we use consent or soft opt-in (existing customer/enquirer, similar services, opt-out offered at collection and in every message).

     

  • Suppression list: We retain only the minimum necessary (email + “do not contact” flag).

     

  • Source transparency: Where practical, we’ll tell you if we sourced your email from public records or a nomination submission.

     

  • Unlinking: We offer a clear route to remove the association between a contact and a business profile and to stop communications.