Last updated: May 2026
Who we are
Sears Melvin Ltd (trading as Sears Melvin Memorials) is the data controller for the personal data described in this policy. We are a memorial masonry business registered in England and Wales (company number 16191330), with our registered office at Unit 16, Dorewards Hall, Dorewards Chase, Braintree CM7 5LS, United Kingdom. Our website is searsmelvin.co.uk. You can contact us at info@searsmelvin.co.uk or by calling +44 20 3835 2548.
What information we collect
When you submit an enquiry through our contact form, we collect:
- Your name
- Your email address
- Your phone number (optional)
- Any message or details you choose to include
- Photos you upload (for renovation or repair enquiries)
If you place an order, we additionally collect details necessary to fulfil that order — for example, the cemetery, the deceased's name and dates for inscription, your delivery or installation address, and proof of grave-deed authority where required by the cemetery.
Card payments are processed by Stripe; we do not see or store your full card details. We use cookies solely for anonymous site analytics (via Google Tag Manager) to understand how visitors use our site. You can accept or decline cookies when you first visit. We do not use cookies for advertising or personalisation.
How we use your information
We use the information you provide solely to:
- Respond to your enquiry
- Provide you with a quote or information about our services
- Follow up on your order or project if you become a customer
- Apply for cemetery permits and liaise with the cemetery on your behalf
- Take payment, issue invoices and receipts, and meet our accounting and tax obligations
We do not sell, rent, or share your personal data with third parties for marketing purposes.
Lawful basis for processing
We rely on the following lawful bases under Article 6 of the UK GDPR for the processing described above:
- Contract (Art. 6(1)(b)) — to take steps at your request before entering into a contract (preparing a quote) and to perform a contract once you place an order, including cemetery permit applications and installation.
- Legitimate interests (Art. 6(1)(f)) — to respond to general enquiries, to keep our internal records, and to operate, secure and improve the website. We have considered the impact on your rights and believe these processing activities are reasonable and expected.
- Legal obligation (Art. 6(1)(c)) — to retain accounting and tax records for the periods required by HMRC and the Companies Act 2006.
- Consent (Art. 6(1)(a)) — for non-essential cookies and any optional marketing communications. You can withdraw consent at any time by clearing the consent cookie or contacting us.
Third-party services (data processors)
To run the website and process your enquiry or order, your data passes through the following services. Each acts as a processor on our behalf under a written data-processing agreement.
- Cloudflare — hosts and serves this website and protects it from abuse. Cloudflare's privacy policy is at cloudflare.com/privacypolicy.
- Supabase — stores enquiry, order and product data in our database. Supabase's privacy policy is at supabase.com/privacy.
- Resend — sends email notifications relating to your enquiry or order. Privacy policy: resend.com/legal/privacy-policy.
- Stripe — processes card payments. We do not see or store your full card details. Privacy policy: stripe.com/gb/privacy.
- ClickUp — used internally to log and track customer enquiries and orders. Privacy policy: clickup.com/privacy.
- LeadConnector / HighLevel — powers the live chat widget on this site. Privacy policy: gohighlevel.com/privacy-policy.
- Google (Tag Manager & Analytics) — provides anonymous traffic analytics (loaded only after you accept cookies). Privacy policy: policies.google.com/privacy.
International data transfers
Some of the processors listed above are based, or operate infrastructure, outside the United Kingdom and the European Economic Area — primarily in the United States. Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we rely on one or more of the following safeguards required by the UK GDPR:
- An adequacy decision by the UK government (for example, transfers under the UK extension to the EU–US Data Privacy Framework where the recipient is certified);
- The UK International Data Transfer Agreement (IDTA), or the EU Standard Contractual Clauses with the UK Addendum;
- Other appropriate safeguards permitted by Articles 46–49 of the UK GDPR.
You can request a copy of the relevant safeguards by emailing us.
How long we keep your data
We retain enquiry records for up to 3 years from the date of first contact to allow us to provide ongoing support for your memorial. If you become a customer, we retain order, invoice and installation records for at least 6 years after the end of the relevant tax year so we can meet our accounting and tax obligations and our 30-year guarantee. You may request deletion of your data at any time by contacting us at info@searsmelvin.co.uk; we will delete or anonymise data we are not legally required to keep.
Your rights (UK GDPR)
Under UK data protection law you have the right to:
- Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you (Art. 15);
- Rectification — ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete data (Art. 16);
- Erasure — request deletion of your data where we no longer need it or you withdraw consent (Art. 17);
- Restriction — ask us to limit how we use your data while a query is resolved (Art. 18);
- Data portability — receive the data you provided to us in a structured, commonly used, machine-readable format, or have it transmitted to another controller where technically feasible (Art. 20);
- Object — object to processing based on legitimate interests, including any direct marketing (Art. 21);
- Withdraw consent — at any time, where we rely on consent;
- Lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at info@searsmelvin.co.uk. We will respond within one month.
Children
Our services are aimed at adults arranging memorials for deceased loved ones. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children under 16. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it.
Security
We take reasonable technical and organisational steps to protect your information from unauthorised access, loss or disclosure. All data is transmitted over HTTPS, payment data is handled directly by Stripe, and access to internal systems is restricted to authorised staff.
Data breaches
If a personal data breach is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we will notify the Information Commissioner's Office within 72 hours of becoming aware of it, and — where the risk is high — we will inform affected individuals without undue delay, in line with Articles 33 and 34 of the UK GDPR.
Changes to this policy
We may update this policy from time to time. The date at the top of this page will reflect the most recent revision. Continued use of the website after a change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
Contact
If you have any questions about this privacy policy, or wish to exercise any of your rights, please contact us:
- Email: info@searsmelvin.co.uk
- Phone: +44 20 3835 2548
- Post: Sears Melvin Ltd, Unit 16, Dorewards Hall, Dorewards Chase, Braintree CM7 5LS, United Kingdom