Privacy policy

Last updated: 27 September 2026

1. Who we are

BFCA Academy (bfcaacademy.co.uk) is run by BFCA Ltd, a private limited company registered in England and Wales (company number 15192463). Our registered office is 6 St Michaels Court, Victoria Street, West Bromwich B70 8ET.

BFCA Ltd is the data controller for the personal information described in this policy. BFCA Ltd is a separate legal entity from Black Foster Carers Alliance CIC.

For any privacy question or request, email support@bfcaacademy.co.uk.

2. The information we collect

  • Account details: your name, email address and password (stored in encrypted form).
  • Profile details you choose to add: for example your job role, organisation or photo.
  • Learning records: the courses you enrol on, your progress, quiz scores, certificates and the date you completed each course.
  • Reflections: anything you type into a course's reflection activity. This is saved with your course progress so you can return to it. We do not read or use it for any other purpose.
  • Purchase records: what you bought, when and for how much. Card payments are handled by Stripe, and we never see or store your full card number.
  • Messages: anything you send us through the contact form, email or support tickets.
  • Technical information: your IP address, browser type and the pages you visit, collected in our server logs for security and to keep the site working.

We do not ask for special category data (for example health, ethnicity or religion) to use the Academy. Please do not include personal details about children or families you work with in reflections, messages or course activities.

3. How we use your information, and our lawful basis

Purpose Lawful basis (UK GDPR)
Creating and running your account, giving you access to courses and issuing certificates Contract
Taking payment and keeping financial records Contract and legal obligation
Answering your questions and support requests Contract or legitimate interests
Reporting learning completion to an organisation that bought your place (see section 4) Legitimate interests in confirming training has been completed
Keeping the site secure and preventing fraud Legitimate interests
Improving our courses using anonymised or combined data Legitimate interests
Sending news, offers and new course updates by email Consent. You can unsubscribe at any time

4. Who we share it with

We never sell your personal information. We share it only with:

  • Stripe, our payment provider, to process payments securely and prevent fraud.
  • Hostinger, our website host, which stores the site and its data for us.
  • Our email service provider, if you sign up for news and updates.
  • Your organisation, if a fostering service, local authority or other employer bought your place or enrolled you. They can see your enrolments, progress, completion dates and certificates, so they can track staff or carer training. They cannot see your reflections.
  • Professional advisers and authorities, where the law requires it.

Our providers act on our instructions and must keep your information secure.

5. International transfers

Our website is hosted on servers in the European Economic Area, which the UK recognises as providing adequate protection. Stripe may process payment data in the United States. Where information is transferred outside the UK, we make sure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as UK adequacy regulations or the ICO's International Data Transfer Agreement or Addendum.

6. How long we keep it

  • Account and learning records: while your account is open, then 6 years after it closes, so we can reissue certificates and evidence training records.
  • Purchase records: 6 years, as required for tax and accounting.
  • Support messages: 2 years after the query is resolved.
  • Marketing consent: until you unsubscribe.

7. Your rights

Under UK data protection law you have the right to:

  • ask for a copy of your information
  • ask us to correct it
  • ask us to delete it (we may need to keep some records, such as payment records, by law)
  • object to, or ask us to restrict, how we use it
  • ask for it in a portable format
  • withdraw consent at any time, where we rely on consent

To use any of these rights, email support@bfcaacademy.co.uk. We will respond within one month.

8. Complaints

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, please contact us first. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.

9. Children

BFCA Academy is for adults aged 18 and over. We do not knowingly collect information from children.

10. Changes to this policy

We will post any changes on this page and update the date at the top. If a change is significant, we will email account holders.

11. Cookies

11.1 What cookies are

Cookies are small files stored on your device when you visit a website. They help the site work and remember your choices.

11.2 The cookies we use

Cookie Type What it does How long
Session cookie Strictly necessary Keeps you logged in and remembers your basket as you move around the site Until you close your browser or log out
Cookie notice Strictly necessary Remembers that you have seen our cookie notice Up to 12 months
Course progress Strictly necessary Saves where you are in a course so you can pick up where you left off While you are enrolled
Stripe Strictly necessary Set by Stripe during checkout to process payment securely and prevent fraud Set by Stripe
YouTube (privacy-enhanced mode) Third party Some courses include YouTube videos. YouTube may set cookies once you press play Set by YouTube

We do not currently use analytics or advertising cookies. If we add them, we will update this page and ask for your consent before setting them.

11.3 Your choices

Strictly necessary cookies are needed for the site to work, so they cannot be switched off. You can block or delete cookies in your browser settings, but parts of the site, such as logging in and courses, will not work without them. To find out how to manage cookies in your browser, visit aboutcookies.org.

11.4 Contact

Questions about cookies: support@bfcaacademy.co.uk. BFCA Academy is run by BFCA Ltd (company number 15192463). See our privacy policy for how we handle personal information.