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Privacy Policy

Last updated: 13 April 2026

1. Introduction

Welcome to ScholarAssist. We are a United Kingdom-based academic consulting company dedicated to supporting students and researchers with high-quality guidance and consultancy services. We take your privacy seriously and are committed to protecting and respecting your personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, share, and protect your personal information when you visit our website, use our services, or otherwise interact with us. Please read this policy carefully to understand our practices regarding your personal data.

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us at info@scholarassist.co.uk.

2. Data Controller Information

For the purposes of the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, the data controller responsible for your personal data is:

ScholarAssist
Email: info@scholarassist.co.uk

As the data controller, we determine the purposes and means of processing your personal data. We are responsible for ensuring that your data is processed lawfully, fairly, and transparently.

3. What Data We Collect

We may collect and process the following categories of personal data:

Identity and Contact Data:

Full name
Email address
Telephone number

Academic and Project Data:

Academic level (e.g. undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral)
Subject area and field of study
Project descriptions, briefs, and requirements
Deadlines and timelines
Any documents or materials you provide in connection with our services

Financial Data:

Payment information (processed securely via our third-party payment processors; we do not store full card details on our servers)
Billing address
Transaction history

Technical and Usage Data:

IP address
Browser type and version
Operating system
Referring website or source
Pages visited, time spent on pages, and navigation patterns
Cookie data and similar tracking technologies

4. How We Collect Data

We collect personal data through the following methods:

Directly from you:

When you fill in forms on our website, including quote request forms and contact forms
When you correspond with us by email, telephone, or any other means
When you place an order for our services
When you provide feedback or participate in surveys

Automatically via cookies and similar technologies:

When you browse our website, we automatically collect technical data about your device, browsing actions, and usage patterns
We collect this data using cookies, server logs, and other similar technologies (see Section 11 for further details)

From third parties:

Analytics providers such as Google Analytics
Payment service providers such as Stripe and PayPal
Advertising and social media platforms, if applicable

5. Legal Basis for Processing

Under the UK GDPR, we must have a valid legal basis for processing your personal data. We rely on the following lawful bases depending on the context:

Consent (Article 6(1)(a)):

Where you have given us clear, affirmative consent to process your personal data for a specific purpose, such as receiving marketing communications or newsletters. You may withdraw your consent at any time by contacting us or using the unsubscribe link in our emails.

Performance of a Contract (Article 6(1)(b)):

Where processing is necessary to fulfil a contract we have with you, or to take steps at your request before entering into a contract. This includes processing your data to deliver our academic consultancy services, manage your orders, and process payments.

Legitimate Interests (Article 6(1)(f)):

Where processing is necessary for our legitimate interests or the legitimate interests of a third party, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms. This includes improving our website and services, conducting analytics, and ensuring the security of our systems.

Legal Obligation (Article 6(1)(c)):

Where processing is necessary for us to comply with a legal obligation, such as maintaining financial records for tax purposes or responding to lawful requests from public authorities.

6. How We Use Your Data

We use your personal data for the following purposes:

Service delivery: To provide, manage, and deliver our academic consultancy services, including preparing quotes, assigning consultants, and delivering completed work.
Communication: To respond to your enquiries, send order confirmations, provide progress updates, and notify you of changes to our services or policies.
Payment processing: To process payments securely through our third-party payment providers, issue invoices, and manage refunds where applicable.
Service improvement: To analyse how our website and services are used, identify trends, and make improvements to the user experience.
Marketing: With your explicit consent, to send you promotional materials, newsletters, and information about our services that may be of interest to you. You can opt out at any time.
Legal and regulatory compliance: To comply with applicable laws, regulations, and legal processes, including tax and accounting obligations.
Security and fraud prevention: To protect our website, services, and users from fraudulent activity and security threats.

7. Data Sharing and Third Parties

We do not sell, rent, or trade your personal data to any third parties. However, we may share your data with the following categories of recipients where necessary:

Payment processors: We use Stripe and PayPal to process payments securely. These providers have their own privacy policies governing the use of your payment information.
Hosting providers: Our website is hosted on secure servers provided by our hosting partner. They process data on our behalf and in accordance with our instructions.
Analytics providers: We use analytics services (such as Google Analytics) to understand how visitors use our website. These providers collect anonymised or pseudonymised data.
Professional advisers: We may share data with our legal, accounting, or insurance advisers where necessary for professional advice.
Law enforcement and regulators: We may disclose your data where required by law, regulation, or court order, or to protect our rights, property, or safety.

All third-party service providers are required to process your data securely and in accordance with applicable data protection legislation. We enter into data processing agreements with third parties who process personal data on our behalf.

8. International Data Transfers

Some of our third-party service providers may be based outside the United Kingdom. Where we transfer your personal data outside the UK, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place to protect your data, including:

UK adequacy decisions: Transferring data to countries that the UK Secretary of State has deemed to provide an adequate level of data protection.
International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA) or Addendum: Using the UK-approved International Data Transfer Agreement or the UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses where no adequacy decision exists.
Binding Corporate Rules: Where applicable, relying on binding corporate rules approved by a supervisory authority.

If you would like further details about the specific safeguards applied to transfers of your personal data, please contact us at info@scholarassist.co.uk.

9. Data Retention

We retain your personal data only for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected, or as required by law. The criteria we use to determine retention periods include:

Active client relationships: We retain your data for the duration of our business relationship and for a reasonable period thereafter to allow for follow-up enquiries or repeat services.
Contractual and legal obligations: Financial and transactional records are retained for a minimum of six years in accordance with UK tax and accounting requirements.
Marketing data: If you have consented to receiving marketing communications, we retain your contact details until you withdraw consent or unsubscribe.
Website analytics data: Anonymised analytics data may be retained indefinitely for statistical analysis.
Enquiry and correspondence records: We retain records of enquiries and communications for up to three years after the last point of contact, unless a longer retention period is required for legal or regulatory purposes.

When your personal data is no longer required, we will securely delete or anonymise it in accordance with our data retention procedures.

10. Your Rights Under UK GDPR

Under the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, you have the following rights in relation to your personal data:

Right of access: You have the right to request a copy of the personal data we hold about you and to receive information about how it is processed (a Subject Access Request).
Right to rectification: You have the right to request that we correct any inaccurate or incomplete personal data we hold about you.
Right to erasure: You have the right to request that we delete your personal data in certain circumstances, such as when it is no longer necessary for the purpose for which it was collected.
Right to restriction of processing: You have the right to request that we restrict the processing of your personal data in certain circumstances, such as when you contest its accuracy.
Right to data portability: You have the right to receive a copy of your personal data in a structured, commonly used, and machine-readable format and to request that we transmit it to another controller.
Right to object: You have the right to object to the processing of your personal data where we rely on legitimate interests as the legal basis, or where your data is processed for direct marketing purposes.
Rights relating to automated decision-making: You have the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, which produces legal effects or similarly significantly affects you.
Right to withdraw consent: Where we rely on your consent to process your data, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. Withdrawal of consent does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before the withdrawal.

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@scholarassist.co.uk. We will respond to your request within one month of receipt. In certain circumstances, we may extend this period by a further two months, in which case we will inform you of the extension and the reasons for it.

There is no fee for exercising your rights unless your request is manifestly unfounded or excessive, in which case we may charge a reasonable fee or refuse to act on the request.

11. Cookies

Our website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to enhance your browsing experience, analyse website traffic, and understand how visitors interact with our site. Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit our website.

We use the following types of cookies:

Strictly necessary cookies: These are essential for the operation of our website and enable core functionality such as page navigation and access to secure areas.
Analytical/performance cookies: These allow us to recognise and count visitors and to see how visitors move around our website, helping us to improve the way our website works.
Functionality cookies: These are used to recognise you when you return to our website and enable us to personalise content and remember your preferences.

You can manage your cookie preferences through your browser settings. Please note that disabling certain cookies may affect the functionality of our website. For more detailed information about the cookies we use, please refer to our Cookie Policy.

12. Children's Privacy

Our services are not directed at individuals under the age of 18. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 18 years of age. If we become aware that we have inadvertently collected personal data from a child under 18, we will take reasonable steps to delete that data as soon as possible.

If you are a parent or guardian and believe that your child has provided us with personal data without your consent, please contact us at info@scholarassist.co.uk so that we can take appropriate action.

13. Data Security

We take the security of your personal data seriously and implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect it against unauthorised access, alteration, disclosure, or destruction. Our security measures include:

Encryption: We use SSL/TLS encryption to protect data transmitted between your browser and our servers. Sensitive data is encrypted at rest where appropriate.
Secure servers: Our website and data are hosted on secure servers with industry-standard firewalls and intrusion detection systems.
Access controls: Access to personal data is restricted to authorised personnel who require it for legitimate business purposes. Staff are subject to confidentiality obligations.
Regular reviews: We regularly review and update our security practices to ensure they remain effective and aligned with current best practices.

While we strive to protect your personal data, no method of transmission over the internet or method of electronic storage is completely secure. We cannot guarantee absolute security, but we are committed to taking all reasonable precautions to safeguard your information.

14. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated "Last updated" date.

Where we make significant changes to how we process your personal data, we will take reasonable steps to notify you, such as by displaying a prominent notice on our website or by sending you an email notification where appropriate.

We encourage you to review this Privacy Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your data.

15. Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal data, we would appreciate the opportunity to resolve your concerns. Please contact us first at info@scholarassist.co.uk so that we can investigate and address your complaint.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent supervisory authority for data protection:

Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)
Website: ico.org.uk
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
Address: Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

16. Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our data processing practices, please do not hesitate to contact us: