Last updated: 9 July 2026
This Cookie Policy explains how Sonar Development uses cookies and similar technologies on this website (https://sonardevelopment.com). It should be read alongside our Privacy Policy, which explains how we handle the personal data submitted through the site.
What cookies are
Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. Similar technologies, such as browser local storage, can store information in comparable ways. Cookies are widely used to make websites work, to remember preferences, and to provide information to site operators.
In the United Kingdom, the use of cookies and similar technologies is governed by the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR), alongside the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 where a cookie involves the processing of personal data.
Cookies we use
This is a deliberately minimal website. The only cookie set by default is a strictly necessary authentication cookie used for the internal studio admin area. It is not set when you browse the public pages of the site.
We do not set analytics, advertising, social-media, or other tracking cookies by default. The site does not load any third-party analytics script or tracking pixel by default.
The cookies and similar technologies in use are set out in the table below.
| Name | Purpose | Category | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| sonar_session | Authenticates an internal studio admin/staff session. This cookie is only set on successful admin login and is never set for ordinary public visitors. The cookie holds an opaque random token; only a SHA-256 hash of that token is stored server-side. | Strictly necessary (authentication) | Session cookie expiring after 8 hours, with sliding expiration (renewed when under 30 minutes remain). Attributes: HttpOnly, SameSite=Lax, Path=/, Secure in production. |
| sonar_consent | Remembers your cookie choices (whether optional analytics is allowed) so the consent banner is not shown on every visit. Set only after you make a choice. Stores a small JSON record — a version number, the analytics on/off flag, and a timestamp — and no personal data. | Strictly necessary (stores your consent choice) | 12 months. Attributes: SameSite=Lax, Path=/, Secure in production. Readable in the browser so your choice can be honoured. |
| Analytics (optional) | No analytics, advertising, or third-party tracking script is loaded unless you allow analytics in the consent banner. Any analytics we enable will be privacy-friendly and cookieless by design; if that ever changes, this table will be updated and consent re-requested. | Optional — off unless you allow it | N/A (cookieless by design; no analytics cookie is set) |
Strictly necessary cookies and consent
The sonar_session cookie is strictly necessary: it is essential to provide the secure admin functionality that an administrator has explicitly requested by logging in. Under PECR, strictly necessary cookies of this kind do not require prior consent, because they are required to deliver a service the user has asked for.
Because this cookie is only ever set after an administrator chooses to sign in, ordinary visitors to the public website are not asked to accept it and it is not placed on their devices.
Analytics and marketing cookies
By default, no analytics, advertising, or third-party tracking script is loaded, so no non-essential cookies are set unless you choose to allow them. When you first visit, a consent banner lets you Accept all, Reject non-essential, or open Preferences to toggle the optional Analytics category; strictly necessary cookies are always on and cannot be switched off. Your choice is stored in the sonar_consent cookie described above.
You can change your choice at any time using the “Cookie preferences” control in the site footer, which re-opens the banner. If you reject analytics, or withdraw consent later, no analytics is loaded.
Any analytics we enable will be privacy-friendly and cookieless by design. Should any consent-requiring cookies ever be introduced, we will update this policy and ask for your consent before they are set, as PECR requires.
No analytics is enabled in production today. If we switch analytics on, we will name the vendor and describe its exact cookie behaviour in the table above before it goes live.
Third parties and processors
Some services we rely on to operate the site (for example, our hosting platform, our email delivery provider, and any anti-abuse or CAPTCHA verification service) may process technical request data when you interact with the site. These services support core functionality and security rather than tracking, and the email and CAPTCHA services are only engaged when you submit one of our forms. None of them sets cookies on the public pages of this site. Details of how personal data is handled by these processors, including the named providers currently in use, are described in our Privacy Policy.
How to control cookies
Most web browsers allow you to view, manage, block, and delete cookies through their settings. The location of these controls varies between browsers, but they are usually found within the privacy or security section of the browser settings or preferences menu.
You can typically choose to block all cookies, block only third-party cookies, delete existing cookies, or be warned before a cookie is stored. You can also clear browser local storage from the same area.
Please note that the sonar_session cookie is strictly necessary for the admin area: blocking it will prevent an administrator from staying signed in. Blocking cookies will not otherwise affect ordinary browsing of the public website, because no other cookies are set by default.
- Browser help pages explain how to manage cookies for that specific browser.
- Clearing or blocking cookies is done through your browser settings, not through this website.
- Settings are per-browser and per-device, so you may need to repeat them on each browser and device you use.
Changes to this policy
We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time, for example if we introduce new functionality or change the technologies we use. When we make changes, we will revise the date shown at the top of this page. Material changes affecting non-essential cookies will, where required, be accompanied by an updated consent mechanism.
Contact us
If you have any questions about this Cookie Policy or our use of cookies and similar technologies, you can contact us at support@sonardevelopment.com.
This policy and any related processing are governed by the laws of England and Wales. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).