Trust Explorer privacy policy

Last updated: 2 November 2026. Applies to Trust Explorer for iPhone, version 3.8.6 and later.

Summary

Trust Explorer does not collect, store or share your personal data on any server. It has no account, no analytics, no advertising, no crash reporting service and no third-party software development kits. Everything you save stays on your iPhone. The developer cannot see it.

Trust Explorer is an independent app. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by or produced by the National Trust or the National Trust for Scotland.

Who is responsible

The data controller for this app, to the extent UK data protection law applies, is Graham Warwick, United Kingdom. Contact: trustexplorer@outlook.com.

What the app uses, and where it stays

Your location

• The app asks for location "While Using the App" only. It never asks for "Always" access and does not track you in the background.
• It uses your location on the iPhone to show straight-line distances, list places near you, centre the map on you and, while the Stourhead audio tour pilot screen is open, start each stop as you reach it.
• Your location is not saved by the app and is not sent to the developer.
• You can refuse or turn off location in Settings, Privacy and Security, Location Services. The app still works without it, and the audio tour can be played by hand.

Your membership card photo, name and number

• If you choose to, you can photograph your membership card or pick a photo of it, and type your name and membership number.
• The app checks the photo for a barcode or QR code using Apple's on-device Vision framework. The image is not uploaded anywhere.
• The photo and details are saved only in the app's private storage on your iPhone, with iOS file protection.
• When you pick a photo, iOS shows its own photo picker and gives the app only the photo you choose, not your library.
• You can delete the photo, name and number at any time with "Remove stored code, name and number" on the membership screen.

Saved and visited places

• Places you save or mark as visited, and the date you did so, are stored on your iPhone (in the app's settings storage, iOS UserDefaults). So are a few display preferences, such as the membership code size and zoom, and a test switch for the audio tour pilot.
• To remove a place, tap its save or visited button again.

Audio tour

• The audio tour narration is built into the app and read aloud by your iPhone's built-in speech voice. Nothing you say or do on the tour is recorded.

Network connections

The place list, guides, illustrations and audio tour text are all built into the app. The app does not download a catalogue and does not send any data to the developer. It connects to the internet only in these cases:

• Maps. Map screens use Apple's MapKit, which downloads map tiles from Apple. Apple's privacy policy covers those requests (apple.com/legal/privacy). The app keeps these tiles in its own cache, which it trims automatically.
• Links you tap. Buttons for a place's official website, a web search (Google), Google Maps directions, a photo's source or licence page (for example Wikimedia Commons or Creative Commons) or National Trust car parking information open in Safari or in the other app. Apple Maps directions open in the Maps app. Once you leave Trust Explorer, that website's or app's own privacy policy applies.

What the developer receives

Nothing. There are no user accounts, analytics, advertising identifiers, tracking or crash reports. If you choose to share crash data with developers in iOS settings, or if you are a TestFlight tester who sends feedback, Apple passes that to the developer under Apple's own terms. Those reports can include device details and anything you write in your feedback.

Legal basis (UK GDPR)

The app processes your personal data only on your own device, to provide the features you use. The developer does not receive it, so the developer does not process it as a controller in the usual sense. Where UK GDPR applies, for example to any email you send us, the legal basis is our legitimate interest in replying to you, or your consent. We do not sell personal data, and we do not use it for profiling or automated decisions.

Children

The app is suitable for all ages and is not directed at children under 13. It collects no personal data from anyone, including children. A parent or guardian can remove anything stored by deleting the membership details in the app or by deleting the app.

How long data is kept, and how to delete it

• Data stays on your iPhone until you delete it in the app or delete the app. Deleting the app removes everything it stored.
• If your iPhone is backed up to iCloud or a computer, the backup may include the app's data. Apple or you control those backups.
• If you email us, we keep your email only as long as we need to reply, and for no more than 12 months, unless the law requires otherwise.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to access, correct, delete or restrict the use of your personal data, to object to its use, and to data portability. Because the app's data is only on your device, you can view and delete it there directly. For anything else, email trustexplorer@outlook.com. You can also complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk, telephone 0303 123 1113).

Changes to this policy

If the app's data practices change, this policy will be updated before the new version is released, and the date at the top will change.

Contact

Graham Warwick, United Kingdom. Email: trustexplorer@outlook.com.