Last updated 7 November 2026
We keep as little as we can, we never sell it, and children's details stay private to their parents. This page explains what Root & Rise collects and what we do with it.
1. Who is responsible for your information
Paul Gray, trading as Root & Rise is the data controller for the information in Root & Rise. Questions or requests: info@rootandrisebath.co.uk.
2. What we collect
When you sign up and use the app:
- Account: your name, email address and how you sign in (Apple, Google, Facebook or email). If you use Apple's "Hide my email", we only see the hidden address.
- About you: the first name you want shown, whether you home educate, are considering it or run something for home educators, and your area.
- Your area: the first half of your postcode or your town. If you tap "Use my location", your device shares its position once; we use it to look up your postcode area, round it to about a kilometre and never store an exact address.
- Your children (optional): first names and ages only. We use them to show what suits their ages and to fill in your planner. They are never shown to other members.
- What you post: posts, photos, videos, links, comments, hearts, suggestions, "I've been here" and reports.
- What you save: saved places and your planner.
- Private messages: messages you send to and receive from other members, and who you've blocked.
- Feedback: anything you send us through the feedback button, with the page you sent it from.
- Membership: if you pay, Stripe handles your card details. We keep your Stripe customer reference, which plan you're on and whether it's active.
- Waiting list: if you live outside the area we cover and ask us to tell you when we reach you, your email and the area you tried. We use it only for that one email, and delete it when we've sent it or if you ask.
- Technical: sign-in cookies, and basic server logs (time, page and IP address) kept for security for up to 30 days.
We don't collect anything from your contacts, other apps or social media accounts beyond what you choose to share when signing in.
3. How we use it, and why we're allowed to
- To run your account and show you what's near you and suits your children (to provide the service you signed up for).
- To show your posts to other members with your first name and area (to provide the service).
- To take payments and keep tax records (to provide the service, and because the law requires records).
- To keep members safe: handling reports, removing content, stopping misuse (our legitimate interest in a safe community, and legal duties).
- To use your device's location, only when you tap the button (your consent, which you can withdraw by changing your area).
- To email you about your account, membership, new messages and important changes.
- To send the Monday and Thursday emails about what's on near you. You can turn these off in Settings or from the link in any of them (our legitimate interest in telling members about the service they joined).
We don't sell your information, we don't show adverts, and we don't use advertising or tracking cookies.
4. What other members can see
Root & Rise is members-only: nothing in it is visible without signing in. Other members can see your posts, photos, videos and comments, with your first name and area, and listings you've suggested. They can't see your email address, surname, exact location, children's names or ages, saved places, planner or membership. Admins can see what's needed to run the app and handle reports.
Private messages are seen only by you and the person you're writing to. Admins never read them, except messages a member has reported (the last few from the reported person), or where the law requires it or a child may be at risk. Emails telling you about a new message say who it's from, never what it says.
5. Where listings come from
Places, classes and events in the app come from the provider's own website or booking page, public guides, councils and charities, and suggestions from members. Each listing says where it came from.
- We never copy posts, names, photos or meet-up details out of private Facebook groups, WhatsApp groups or other members-only spaces. A meet-up first shared in one of those is only listed if its organiser tells us they're happy for it to be.
- For parent-run meet-ups we show the town, day and time, and a precise meeting point only if the organiser wants it.
- If you run something that's listed and want it changed or taken down, email info@rootandrisebath.co.uk and we'll do it within 7 days, or straight away if it shows where a child can be found.
6. Your local council
We never tell your local council, including its elective home education team, that you or anyone else home educates, and we never share your details with them. The only exception is if the law requires it or we believe a child is at risk of harm.
7. If you sign in with Facebook, Apple or Google
We only receive your name, email address and an account reference from them. We can't see your friends, groups, posts or anything else on those accounts, and we never post anything for you.
To remove that information, delete your account from Settings, or email us and we'll delete it for you within 30 days. You can also remove Root & Rise from the apps connected to your account: on Facebook, go to Settings and privacy, then Settings, then Apps and websites.
8. Photos and videos
When you upload a photo, the app re-saves it at a smaller size on your phone first, which removes hidden details such as where it was taken. Videos are uploaded as they are and can still contain that information, so think before uploading a video filmed at home. Please read the community guidelines before posting any picture of a child.
9. Who we share it with
We use a small number of trusted companies to run the app. They only use your information to provide their service to us:
- Clerk: sign-in and accounts (USA).
- Neon: our database (London, UK).
- Netlify: hosting, and storage for photos and videos (USA).
- Stripe: payments, if you take out a membership (UK, Ireland and USA).
- Resend: sending our emails, such as sign-in codes, message alerts and the Monday and Thursday emails (USA).
Some features fetch information directly from other services, which can see your device's IP address and the approximate area requested:
- postcodes.io, to turn the postcode area or town you type into an approximate location.
- MET Norway, for the weather forecast for your area.
- OpenStreetMap, for map images.
- Wikimedia Commons and venues' own websites, for place photos.
- Any website, video or booking page you choose to open from a link.
Where information goes to the USA, it's protected by the UK's approved safeguards (the UK–US data bridge or the government's standard contract clauses). We'll share information with the police or other authorities if the law requires it or a child may be at risk.
10. How long we keep it
- Your account and everything in it: until you delete it. Deleted information is cleared from backups within 30 days. Deleting your account deletes your chats for both people.
- Reports and moderation notes: up to 12 months after they're resolved, or longer if needed to protect a child or for legal reasons.
- Payment records: 6 years, because the law requires it.
- Server logs: up to 30 days.
11. Your rights
You can ask to see the information we hold about you, correct it, delete it, take a copy, or object to or limit how we use it. You can change most of it yourself in Settings, and delete your whole account from Settings at any time.
For anything else, email info@rootandrisebath.co.uk. We'll reply within one month. If you're not happy with how we've handled your information, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113.
12. Children
Root & Rise is for adults. Children shouldn't create accounts, and we'll delete any account we find belongs to someone under 18. The only information about children is what parents choose to add: first names and ages, kept private to that parent, and anything they post.
13. Cookies and storage on your device
We only use cookies needed to keep you signed in and to take payments securely, so we don't ask for cookie consent. The app also saves a few things on your device, such as your weather forecast for an hour and your settings, so it works quickly and offline. No advertising or analytics cookies are used.
14. Keeping it secure
Everything is sent over encrypted connections, access to the database is restricted to us, and we only keep an approximate location. No system is perfectly secure; if something goes wrong that puts your information at risk, we'll tell you and the ICO as the law requires.
15. Changes
If we change how we use your information, we'll update this page and the date at the top, and tell you in the app before any important change.