Privacy Policy
Last updated: 27 October 2026
Who runs this site
SchoolsGPT is operated by an individual, not a registered company. For any question about this policy or your data, use the Contact page — that's the only contact channel currently available.
Accounts are optional
You can use SchoolsGPT without signing up or giving us an email address. If you choose to sign in, we use your email only to send a one-time sign-in code/link and identify your account. We do not use passwords. Without an account, your browser generates a random anonymous identifier (a "client ID") the first time you visit, stored in your browser's local storage, so your chat history and saved preferences persist between visits on the same device. It isn't linked to your real identity.
What we store
| Data | Where | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Chat messages & AI replies | Server database | To show your conversation history and improve the service. Kept against your anonymous client ID, not your name. |
| Thumbs up/down feedback | Server database | To see which answers were useful. |
| A hashed version of your IP address (against chat/contact messages) | Server database | Basic abuse/spam protection. We store a one-way cryptographic hash, not the raw IP — it can't be reversed back to your address. |
| Your raw IP address (in page-request/traffic logs only) | Server database | To detect and investigate automated scraping/bot traffic against the site. Kept for 30 days, then automatically deleted — not linked to your chat history or any other data above. |
| How each page was read: time on screen, how far down you scrolled, and which links or buttons you clicked (not anything you type) | Server database | To see which pages help people and which they leave straight away. No cookie or browser storage is used, it isn't linked to your chat history, and it is deleted after 30 days. |
| Browser/device type (user agent) | Server database | Debugging and abuse protection. |
| Email address and account sessions (only if you sign in) | Server database; session token in a secure cookie or the mobile device's encrypted storage | To sign you in without a password and sync saved schools. Sign-in challenges expire after 15 minutes; sessions expire after 30 days. |
| Postcode, saved schools, notes, reminders, UI preferences | Your device; saved schools and their notes are also stored server-side if you sign in | So the service remembers your area and school research. Anonymous saved schools stay local unless you sign in or include them in a chat question. |
| Contact form submissions | Server database | To read and respond to your message. Only stored if you submit the form. |
What we don't do
- No passwords and no payment data. Accounts are optional.
- No advertising or third-party analytics trackers (no Google Analytics, Meta Pixel, or similar) on this site as of the date above. Our own page-reading statistics (see the table above) stay on our server and use no cookies.
- We don't sell or share your data with third parties for marketing.
- Chat messages are processed by an AI model we run ourselves — they are not sent to a third-party AI provider (e.g. OpenAI, Google) for processing.
Please don't share sensitive personal information in chat
SchoolsGPT answers questions about schools, admissions and catchment areas using public data — it doesn't need your child's name, date of birth, or other personal details to do that. Please avoid typing personal information about yourself or your children into the chat.
Children
SchoolsGPT is intended for use by parents, guardians and adults researching schools — not for direct use by children. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children.
Cookies and similar technology
The site doesn't set tracking or advertising cookies. If you sign in it sets one strictly necessary, HttpOnly session cookie; it also uses browser local storage for functional preferences. The hosting/security provider in front of the site (Cloudflare) may set its own strictly-necessary cookies for security and traffic routing — these are standard for most websites and aren't used to track you across other sites.
How long we keep data
Chat history and feedback are currently kept indefinitely so the service can be improved over time. You can delete all of it yourself at any time with the "Clear chat history" button in the chat sidebar. If you'd like help, or your feedback ratings removed too, contact us (see below). Signed-in users can delete their account and all server-synced saved schools from the Account page.
Your rights
If you're in the UK/EU, data protection law gives you rights to access, correct, or request deletion of personal data we hold about you. Since we don't collect your name or email by default, the only way we can identify "your" data is via your anonymous client ID (found in your browser's local storage) — include it if you want us to locate specific conversations.
Changes to this policy
If what we collect or how we use it changes materially, we'll update this page and the "last updated" date above.
Contact
Questions, data requests, or concerns — please use the Contact page.
Have a specific question about admissions, scores or dates?
Ask SchoolsGPT