Privacy

Using CivicRoute

You can search and browse the public directory without creating an account or providing personal information. Normal technical information may be processed by the website hosting infrastructure when the service is accessed, such as request and error logs used to keep CivicRoute secure and working.

Traffic analytics

The public website may use Vercel Web Analytics to understand overall use of CivicRoute, including page views, anonymised visitor counts, referring websites, broad country information, browser and device type. Before a page-view URL is sent to this analytics layer, CivicRoute removes its query string and page fragment. This prevents search words, filter values and service-link fragments in the URL from appearing in the traffic report.

Private Project Tools and internal API routes are excluded from public traffic analytics. CivicRoute does not create its own advertising identifier, account, or persistent visitor, session or device identifier for traffic reporting, and traffic information is not used to build a profile of a person seeking support.

Product improvement evidence

CivicRoute may record a limited aggregate signal when a selected type of help and council area produces no matching service. This first product-improvement measure contains only the reviewed help category, council area and the fact that the result count was zero. It does not send the words you typed, your name, contact details, precise location, saved services or a CivicRoute-created device identifier.

These signals are used to identify service-coverage gaps and improve maintenance priorities. Any operator analysis or export should remain aggregate and limited to the product question being reviewed.

Privacy-preserving usage evidence

CivicRoute may also record limited product-usage signals to understand whether public features are useful and where the service-finding experience may need improvement. The approved event contract includes actions such as a directory page load, switching Community or Professional view, selecting a reviewed support category or council area, submitting a text search reduced to a result-count band, using a secondary filter, opening service details, choosing list or map view, using a contact method, saving or removing a service, using the Support Matcher, opening feedback, and opening or printing a directory resource.

The usage event does not contain the words you typed, your name, phone number, email address, client or case information, precise device location, the identity of a service you viewed or saved, Matcher answers, feedback text, cookies, or a CivicRoute-created persistent visitor, session or device identifier. Contact evidence records only the method used, such as phone, email, website, directions or public transport, rather than the provider contacted.

Bounded product events may be stored as custom events in Vercel Web Analytics for aggregate reporting. Each custom event is limited to the reviewed event name and no more than two bounded data fields. CivicRoute also sends the same reviewed event to a separate server-side evidence endpoint that rejects unexpected event fields and records only the canonical event as an operational audit/fallback signal.

Usage evidence is used to improve CivicRoute, prioritise research and produce aggregate reporting. It is not used to create behavioural profiles, infer vulnerability or eligibility, prove a referral outcome, or claim that website activity represents community prevalence or provider quality. Project Tools reads aggregate analytics rather than individual visitor journeys.

CivicRoute Pro pilot usage evidence

During a bounded CivicRoute Pro pilot, CivicRoute may record a small set of professional workflow signals such as opening professional search, a curated collection, a generated collection guide or data-health view, and whether a submitted text search returned zero, one, two to five, six to ten, or eleven or more results.

The signed-in session and requested workspace are used only to verify that the event came from a person with current access to that workspace. Only after that check succeeds does CivicRoute's server record the reduced event. The server may submit the reduced event to Vercel Web Analytics for aggregate reporting and records the same strict canonical event under the PRO_PILOT_USAGE_V1 operational fallback marker. The F7 event does not include the account user ID, email address, workspace or tenant ID, organisation name, collection name, private Pro route, search words, support category, council area, service or provider identity, client information, case notes or other free text.

CivicRoute's ordinary browser analytics continues to suppress private /pro routes. Pro pilot evidence is recorded through the authorised server endpoint instead, so a browser-side analytics call is not treated as trusted pilot evidence. The server adds an opaque authenticity tag to aggregate Web Analytics events so the internal aggregate reader can exclude browser-forged events with matching names. The tag is derived from an existing server-only signing secret and contains no user, workspace, search, service or client information.

Pro pilot usage evidence is intended to show aggregate professional interaction volume and no-result patterns. It does not establish which worker performed an action, whether any individual worker returned or repeatedly used CivicRoute, prove a referral or service outcome, measure worker confidence or navigation time, or establish community demand. Those questions require separate pilot evidence.

Mobile app location

The mobile app only asks for location access when you choose to sort services using your location. Precise location is used on your device for that action and is not sent to the CivicRoute server. You can continue to use CivicRoute without granting location access.

Saved services

Services saved in the mobile app are stored on your device. CivicRoute does not require a cloud account to keep a saved list. Usage evidence may record that a save or remove action occurred, but not which service was involved.

Feedback and corrections

If you submit a correction, suggest a service or provide follow-up contact details, the information you choose to submit is sent to the CivicRoute operator so it can be reviewed. Avoid including unnecessary sensitive or client information. Usage evidence may record that the feedback pathway was opened, but not the text you enter.

External services

CivicRoute links to service providers, phone services, websites and mapping applications. Those third-party services operate under their own privacy practices.

Questions or privacy concerns

You can contact the CivicRoute operator through the public feedback pathway.