1. Introduction
The Care App (‘we’, ‘us’, ‘our’) is committed to protecting your privacy. This policy explains what personal information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the rights you have over it.
We are a marketplace that connects families with independent, self-employed carers. We are not a care provider and we do not deliver care. We do, however, process personal information so that families and carers can find each other, communicate, book sessions, and pay safely through our platform. This policy applies to anyone who uses The Care App, including families looking for care, independent carers offering their services, and visitors to our website.
2. Who we are
The data controller for the personal information described in this policy is:
[SafeKey Limited] (trading as The Care App) Company number: [12808606] Contact email: [info@thecare-app.com]
If you have any questions about this policy, or about how we handle your personal information, you can contact us using the details above.
3. The information we collect
If you are a family or client
Identity and contact details: name, address, email address, phone number
Account details: username, password (stored in encrypted form), profile information
Care-related information you choose to share: the type of support you are looking for, preferred hours, The relationship between you and the person receiving care, and any preferences you decide to include in messages to carers
Booking and transaction history: the carers you have contacted, sessions booked, dates, durations, and payment records
Communications: messages exchanged with carers through the platform, and any correspondence with us
Payment information: processed securely by Stripe (see section 6). We do not see or store your full card details.
Technical information: IP address, device type, browser, and information collected through cookies (see our separate Cookie Policy)
If you are a carer
Identity and contact details: name, date of birth, address, email address, phone number
Right-to-work documentation: passport, visa, or other documents you provide to confirm your right to work in the UK
DBS information: the existence and reference number of a current DBS certificate
Insurance information: confirmation that you hold your own public liability and professional indemnity insurance
Profile information: your self-declared qualifications, experience, availability, hourly rate, profile photo, and any introduction you choose to write
Bank details: provided to Stripe for payouts (see section 6)
Booking and transaction history: the families you have worked with through the platform, sessions completed, and earnings
Communications: messages exchanged with families through the platform, and any correspondence with us
Tax-related information: where required for marketplace reporting obligations
Technical information: IP address, device type, browser, and cookie information
Information we collect automatically
Whenever you use the platform, we collect basic technical information about your visit, including your IP address, the pages you view, the actions you take, and the device and browser you are using. We use this information to keep the platform working, to detect fraud and misuse, and to improve how the service performs.
4. How we use your information
We use your personal information for the following purposes.
To run the platform
Create and maintain your account
Show carer profiles to families and family profiles to carers, where appropriate
enable bookings, messaging, and payments
Send service-related communications (booking confirmations, reminders, receipts, security notices)
Provide customer support
To verify users at onboarding
Confirm identity
Confirm right to work in the UK (for carers)
Confirm that a DBS certificate exists and is current (for carers)
Confirm that the carer holds their own public liability and professional indemnity insurance (for carers)
These are administrative verification checks, not assessments of a carer’s competence or quality. Carers remain responsible for their own practice, training, and professional standards.
To keep the platform safe
Detect and prevent fraud, abuse, and breaches of our terms
Investigate concerns raised about platform use
Cooperate with statutory authorities where required (for example, with adult safeguarding teams or the police)
Enforce our terms, including in relation to off-platform arrangements
To improve the platform
Understand how the platform is being used
Identify problems and improve features
Carry out internal analysis and reporting
To meet our legal obligations
Maintain records required by HMRC, Companies House, and other regulators
Respond to lawful requests from authorities
Comply with our duties under data protection law
To communicate with you (where you have agreed)
Send updates about new features
Send occasional newsletters
Invite feedback
You can opt out of marketing communications at any time without affecting your use of the platform.
5. The legal basis for processing
Under UK GDPR, we must have a legal basis for processing your personal information. We rely on the following.
Contract: to provide the platform you have signed up to use, including creating your account, enabling bookings, and processing payments
Legal obligation: to meet our obligations under tax, anti-money laundering, and other UK laws
Legitimate interests: to keep the platform safe, prevent fraud, improve our service, and enforce our terms, in each case balanced against your rights
Consent: for marketing communications, non-essential cookies, and any other situations where we ask for your explicit agreement. You can withdraw consent at any time.
Where we rely on legitimate interests, you have the right to ask us about the balancing we have carried out. See section 10.
6. Who we share your information with
We share your information only where necessary, and only with parties that have appropriate safeguards in place.
Other users of the platform
By using The Care App, you agree that some of your information is visible to other users so that the platform can work. Specifically:
Carer profiles are visible to families browsing the platform
Families share relevant details with carers when making a booking
Messages exchanged through the platform are visible to the people in that conversation
You should not share more information than is necessary for arranging care. Avoid sharing sensitive personal information, financial details, or contact information outside the platform’s secure messaging system.
Service providers (data processors)
We use a small number of trusted third parties to help run the platform. Each of these has signed a data processing agreement with us and is required to handle your information securely.
Stripe: processes payments and payouts. Stripe acts as an independent data controller for some of its processing. See Stripe’s privacy policy at stripe.com/privacy.
Email service provider: sends transactional and (where you have agreed) marketing emails
Hosting provider: stores the platform’s data on secure servers
Analytics provider: helps us understand how the platform is used. Where this involves non-essential cookies, we ask for your consent first.
A current list of our service providers is available on request.
Authorities and statutory bodies
We may share information with authorities where we are legally required to do so, or where it is necessary to:
Comply with a court order or lawful request
Cooperate with local authority adult safeguarding teams, the police, or other statutory bodies Investigating a concern
Meet our duties under tax, anti-money laundering, or other applicable law
Professional advisers
We may share information with our legal, accounting, or insurance advisers where this is necessary to protect our rights or to obtain advice.
Business transfers
If we ever sell, merge, or restructure the business, your information may be transferred to the new entity. We will let you know in advance if this happens.
7. International transfers
The Care App primarily operates in the UK and your information is stored within the UK or the European Economic Area (EEA).
Some of our service providers (for example, certain email or analytics tools) may transfer information to countries outside the UK or EEA. Where this happens, we make sure appropriate safeguards are in place, such as the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or the EU Standard Contractual Clauses, so your information continues to be protected.
8. How long we keep your information
We keep your information only for as long as we need it.
Active accounts: for as long as your account is open
Closed accounts: generally up to 6 years after closure, to meet legal, tax, and dispute-resolution obligations
Booking and payment records: generally 6 years, to meet HMRC requirements
Verification documents (DBS, right to work, insurance): for as long as the carer is active on the platform, plus a short period afterwards
Communications with our support team: generally 2 years
Records of banned accounts: retained on a long-term basis to enforce the ban, on the basis of our legitimate interest in protecting the platform and its users
Marketing preferences: until you withdraw consent
After these periods, we either delete the information or anonymise it so it can no longer be linked to you.
9. How we protect your information
We take reasonable steps to keep your information secure, including:
Encryption of data in transit and at rest where appropriate
Access controls so that only the people who need to see information can see it
Secure payment processing through Stripe (we do not store your full card details)
Regular review of our security practices
No system is ever completely secure. If we become aware of a personal data breach that is likely to affect your rights, we will notify the Information Commissioner’s Office within 72 hours and inform you directly where required.
You can help keep your account safe by choosing a strong password, not sharing your login details, and contacting us immediately if you suspect your account has been compromised.
10. Your rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights over your personal information.
Access: you can ask for a copy of the information we hold about you
Correction: you can ask us to correct information that is wrong or incomplete
Deletion: you can ask us to delete your information in certain circumstances (sometimes known as the ‘right to be forgotten’)
Restriction: you can ask us to limit how we use your information in certain circumstances
Portability: you can ask us to provide your information in a portable format so you can move it to another service
Objection: you can object to certain uses of your information, particularly where we rely on legitimate interests
Withdraw consent: where we rely on consent (for example, marketing emails), you can withdraw it at any time
Automated decisions: you have rights in relation to automated decision-making and profiling. We do not currently make significant automated decisions about you.
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at [info@thecare-app.com]. We will respond within one month. We may need to verify your identity before acting on a request.
Please note that some rights are not absolute. For example, we may need to keep certain records to meet legal obligations or to enforce our terms, even if you ask us to delete them.
11. Complaints
If you are unhappy with how we have handled your personal information, please contact us first so we can try to resolve the issue.
12. Cookies
We use cookies and similar technologies on our website. These are described in our separate Cookie Policy.
13. Children
The Care App is intended for adults. We do not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 18. If you believe a child has provided us with their information, please contact us so we can remove it.
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will update the ‘last updated’ date at the top of this page. If the changes are significant, we will tell you directly (for example, by email or through a platform notification) before they take effect.
15. Contact us
If you have any questions about this policy, or about how we handle your personal information:
Email: [info@thecare-app.com]
(Last updated: 11th May 2026)