LEGAL

Privacy Policy

Last reviewed: 6 April 2026

1. Who we are

This Privacy Policy explains how Belgraves Accountants Ltd ("Belgraves," "we," "us," "our") collects, uses, and protects the personal information of visitors to our website and clients of our firm.

Belgraves Accountants is the trading name of Belgraves Accountants Ltd, a company registered in England & Wales (Company Number 12540391). Our registered office is 98 Whitby Road, Ellesmere Port, CH65 0AB.

We are the data controller for the personal information described in this policy.

If you have any questions about this policy or about how we handle your personal data, you can contact us at:

2. Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) registration

We are registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) as a data controller under registration number ZB660394. Our registration is current to 13 February 2027.

The address shown on the ICO public register may differ from the address above while the registration is being updated. Both addresses refer to the same registered entity (Company Number 12540391).

You can verify our registration on the ICO's public register at ico.org.uk.

3. What information we collect

We collect personal information in the following circumstances.

When you contact us through the website, we collect the information you provide in the contact form. This typically includes your name, email address, phone number, business type, services of interest, and the content of your message.

When you become a client, we collect the information necessary to provide our accounting services and to comply with our regulatory obligations. This typically includes your full name, date of birth, residential address, National Insurance number, Unique Taxpayer Reference, identification documents (passport, driving licence, or equivalent) for anti-money-laundering checks, financial records, business records, tax records, and any other information necessary for the engagement.

When you visit our website, we collect limited technical information automatically. This includes your IP address (truncated where technically possible), the pages you visit, the date and time of your visit, the website you came from, and information about your device and browser. This information is collected through cookies and similar technologies - see our Cookie Policy for full detail.

When you correspond with us by email, telephone, or post, we keep records of that correspondence as part of our client files and our regulatory record-keeping obligations.

We do not knowingly collect information from anyone under 18 through our website.

4. How we use your information and our legal basis

We use your personal information only where we have a lawful basis to do so under the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. The legal bases we rely on, and the purposes for which we process your information, are as follows.

To respond to your enquiries. When you submit a contact form or otherwise reach out to us, we use your information to respond to your message and, where appropriate, to send you a follow-up. Our legal basis is our legitimate interest in responding to enquiries about our services.

To provide our accountancy services. Once you engage us as a client, we process your information to deliver the services set out in our engagement letter - including the preparation of accounts, tax returns, VAT returns, payroll, bookkeeping, and related advisory work. Our legal basis is the performance of our contract with you, and in some cases compliance with a legal obligation (for example, our obligations under HMRC and Companies House regulations).

To meet our regulatory and legal obligations. As a UK accountancy firm we are subject to anti-money-laundering legislation, tax legislation, and the rules of our professional body. We use your information to carry out client due-diligence checks, maintain regulatory records, and comply with reporting obligations. Our legal basis is compliance with a legal obligation.

To improve our website and services. We use limited analytics information to understand how our website is used and to improve it. Our legal basis is your consent (managed through our cookie banner) - see our Cookie Policy.

To send you relevant information about our services. Where you have asked us to, or where you are an existing client, we may occasionally send you information about our services, regulatory changes, or matters that may affect your tax or accounting position. Our legal basis is your consent or our legitimate interest in keeping clients informed. You can opt out at any time.

We do not use your information for automated decision-making or profiling.

5. Who we share your information with

We treat your personal information as confidential. We share it only in the limited circumstances set out below.

HMRC, Companies House, and other regulators. Where required to discharge our duties as your accountant or to comply with our legal obligations as a firm.

Our professional advisers, insurers, and regulators. Where necessary to obtain professional advice, manage insurance arrangements, or respond to regulatory enquiries.

Service providers who help us run our business. This includes our cloud accounting software providers, our practice management software, our IT and cybersecurity providers, our email and document storage providers, and the form-submission service that handles enquiries through this website. Each of these providers acts under written agreements that require them to protect your information and use it only for the purposes we have specified. A current list of categories of providers we use is available on request by emailing info@belgraves.co.uk.

Law enforcement, courts, and other authorities. Where we are legally required to disclose information, or where disclosure is necessary to prevent fraud or other criminal activity.

A successor entity. If we sell or restructure our business, your information may be transferred to the buyer or successor - subject to the same protections set out in this policy.

We do not sell your personal information to anyone, and we do not share it with third parties for their own marketing purposes.

6. International transfers

Some of the service providers we use store data outside the United Kingdom - typically in the European Economic Area or the United States.

Where personal information is transferred outside the UK, we ensure that an appropriate safeguard is in place. This will normally be either an adequacy decision recognised by the UK government, the UK International Data Transfer Agreement, or the UK Addendum to the EU Standard Contractual Clauses.

You can request a copy of the safeguards in place by emailing info@belgraves.co.uk.

7. How long we keep your information

We keep personal information only for as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements.

In practice this means:

  • Enquiries that do not become clients - typically retained for up to 24 months from your last contact with us, then deleted or anonymised.
  • Client records - retained for at least 7 years after the end of our engagement, in line with HMRC requirements and our professional and anti-money-laundering obligations. Some records may be retained for longer where required by law.
  • Anti-money-laundering records - retained for at least 5 years from the end of the business relationship, as required by the Money Laundering Regulations 2017.
  • Website analytics data - retained for the period set in our analytics tools (typically up to 14 months) and in aggregated form thereafter.

We review our retention practices periodically and securely delete or anonymise information that we no longer need.

8. How we protect your information

We take the security of your information seriously. We maintain technical and organisational measures appropriate to the sensitivity of the information we hold, including access controls, encrypted storage, encrypted transmission of files where appropriate, secure cloud platforms, and staff training on confidentiality and data protection.

No system is completely secure. If we become aware of a personal data breach that is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify the ICO within 72 hours of becoming aware of it, and notify you directly where required by law.

9. Your rights

Under UK data protection law you have the following rights in relation to your personal information.

  • Access - the right to ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you.
  • Rectification - the right to ask us to correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete.
  • Erasure - the right to ask us to delete your information, subject to our legal and regulatory retention obligations.
  • Restriction - the right to ask us to limit how we use your information in certain circumstances.
  • Objection - the right to object to our processing of your information where we are relying on legitimate interests.
  • Portability - the right to receive certain information in a structured, machine-readable format.
  • Withdrawal of consent - where we are relying on your consent (for example, for analytics or marketing), the right to withdraw that consent at any time.

To exercise any of these rights, please email info@belgraves.co.uk or write to us at the address at the top of this policy. We will respond within one month. There is no charge for exercising your rights, except where requests are manifestly unfounded or excessive.

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office:

  • Website: ico.org.uk
  • Helpline: 0303 123 1113
  • Post: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF

We would, however, appreciate the opportunity to address your concerns first - please contact us before approaching the ICO if you can.

10. Cookies and tracking

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies. For full detail on which cookies we use, what they do, and how to manage them, please see our Cookie Policy.

11. Links to other websites

Our website may contain links to other websites - for example, to our client portal at portal.belgraves.co.uk, or to professional bodies, software providers, or regulators. This Privacy Policy applies only to our own website. We are not responsible for the privacy practices of third-party websites and we encourage you to read the privacy policy of any website you visit.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or in the law. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last reviewed. Where the changes are significant, we will draw them to your attention by appropriate means.

13. Contact us

If you have any questions about this policy, or about how we handle your personal information, please contact us: