When we provide services, we want to make them easy, useful and reliable. Where services are delivered on the internet, this sometimes involves placing small amounts of information on your device, for example your computer or mobile phone. These include small files called cookies. They cannot be used to identify you personally.
These pieces of information are used to improve services for you through, for example:
• enabling a service to recognise your device so you don't have to give the same information several times during one task
• recognising that you may already have given a username and password so you don't need to do it for every web page requested
• measuring how many people are using services, so they can be made easier to use and there's enough capacity to ensure they are fast.
Aboutcookies.org has information about: cookie law; controlling cookies; and deleting cookies.
Our use of cookies
Cookies for improving service
Google Analytics
Google Analytics sets cookies to help us accurately estimate the number of visitors to the website and volumes of usage. This to ensure that the website is available when you want it and fast.
Name: _utma
Typical content: randomly generated number
Expires: two years
Name: _utmb
Typical content: randomly generated number
Expires: 30 minutes
Name: _utmc
Typical content: randomly generated number
Expires: at end of session
Name: _utmz
Typical content: randomly generated number and information on how the site was reached (for example directly or via a link, organic search or paid search)
Expires: six months
For further information on the cookies set by Google Analytics, go to the Google code website.
Javascript
Javascript is used for some website features like pop-ups.
Name: has_js
Typical content: value = 1
Expires: at end of session
This cookie is added by javascript as a way to let code know that the user has javascript enabled.
Cookies to enable user logins and sessions
The following cookie is used to identify your user session and help display personalised content to improve your experiece of ofsted.gov.uk
Name: SESS_random_string_
Typical content: randomly generated string
Expires: 3 hours
AddThis
This cookie is added by AddThis social sharing service to ensure a user sees an updated share count if present.
Name: __atuvc
Typical content: randomly generated string
Expires: 3 hours
This cookie is added by AddThis social sharing service which enables sharing of pages.
Name: __atuvs
Typical content: randomly generated string
Expires: 3 hours