Reader privacy
A clear view of your information.
Research should be readable without an account, a pop-up or a tracker from someone else. Here is exactly what this site records.
Reading the site
No account is required. There are no advertising pixels, social-media widgets or third-party analytics scripts. The web server keeps normal security and access logs for a limited period.
First-party measurement
To learn which research is useful and whether a mailing worked, the site records a small number of events on our own server: page views, how far down an article you read, clicks on source documents, and newsletter sign-ups. Each event carries the page path and, if you arrived from a printed brief, the campaign code and a broad geography code printed on that brief (for example a state). A random identifier stored in your browser for 30 days lets us count returning readers without knowing who you are. We do not store IP addresses with events, we do not use cross-site tracking, and we never sell data.
Newsletter sign-ups
If you subscribe, we store your email address, the date, and the campaign code of the page you subscribed from, so we can send The Great North Letter and understand which issues bring readers in. Every email includes an unsubscribe link, and we honour one-click unsubscribe headers. We do not sell or share subscriber lists.
Messages you send us
If you use the contact form we keep your name, email address and message so that we can reply, and we delete them on request.
Cookies
One functional cookie remembers the campaign you arrived from for the duration of your browser session; one stores the random reader identifier described above. Neither contains personal information. The admin area, which is not public, uses a sign-in cookie.
External sources
Links to issuer, government and regulatory websites open external services with their own privacy policies.
Your choices
You can unsubscribe from the letter at any time using the link in any email, and you can ask us to delete your email address and any associated records. Contact the desk.
Policy dated September 30, 2026.