Privacy Notice

Last updated: 17 May 2026

This Privacy Notice explains how The Doula Hive Ltd ("The Doula Hive", "we", "us", "our") collects and uses personal data when you use our platform at thedoulahive.co (the "Platform"). It is written in plain English so you understand what we do with your information.

We are the data controller for the personal data described in this notice.

Contact: hello@thedoulahive.co — please use this email for any privacy questions or to exercise your rights below.

1. Who this notice applies to

This notice applies to doulas and birth workers who create an account, list a profile, or otherwise use the Platform during our MVP launch. As we add features for families and clients, we will update this notice.

2. What personal data we collect

When you sign up and use The Doula Hive, we collect:

Account information: your name, email address, password (stored hashed), and login provider details if you sign in with Google or Apple.
Profile information: any information you choose to add to your public doula profile — for example, your location, training, certifications, areas of practice, languages, bio, photo, pricing, availability.
Communications: messages you send to us via email or in-app, and any feedback you provide.
Technical data: IP address, device and browser type, pages visited, and basic analytics about how you use the Platform.
Cookies: see Section 9.

We do not currently process client (family/birthing person) health data on the doula side of the MVP. If and when we add features that involve sharing or storing client information, we will update this notice and ask for appropriate consent.

3. Why we use your data, and the legal basis

Under UK GDPR we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. Ours are:

To provide the Platform to you (Contract — Article 6(1)(b)): creating and managing your account, displaying your profile, enabling messaging, providing customer support.
To improve and develop the Platform (Legitimate interests — Article 6(1)(f)): understanding how doulas use the Platform, fixing bugs, improving features. Our legitimate interest is running and improving a useful service for the doula community. You can object — see Section 7.
To send you service emails (Contract / Legitimate interests): account confirmations, important updates, security notices.
To send marketing emails (Consent — Article 6(1)(a)): only if you opt in. You can unsubscribe at any time.
To comply with legal obligations (Article 6(1)(c)): tax, accounting, regulatory requirements.

4. Producing aggregated insights

A core part of The Doula Hive's long-term mission is to make the value of doula care more visible. We may use anonymised and aggregated data (data that does not identify you or any individual) to produce research, industry insights, and to improve the Platform. Anonymised data is no longer personal data and falls outside UK GDPR.

5. Who we share your data with

We share your personal data only with the following categories of recipients, under written agreements that require them to protect your data:

Hosting and database providers — currently Supabase.
Authentication providers — currently Google and Apple (for Google or Apple sign-in, where you choose to use them).
Email delivery providers — currently [Resend / Postmark — confirm].
Analytics providers — currently [PostHog / Plausible — confirm, or remove if none].
Professional advisors such as lawyers and accountants, where necessary.
Authorities and regulators, where we are legally required to disclose data.

We may change service providers from time to time. We will update this notice when we make material changes to who processes your data on our behalf.

We do not sell your personal data and we do not share it for third-party advertising.

Your public profile information is intentionally visible to other Platform users and, where you choose, to the public web.

6. International transfers

Some of our service providers are based outside the UK. Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, we rely on UK Government adequacy regulations or appropriate safeguards such as the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or Standard Contractual Clauses.

7. How long we keep your data

We keep your personal data only as long as we need it:

Account data: while your account is active, and for up to 12 months after deletion in case you wish to reactivate, unless you ask us to delete it sooner.
Communications: up to 3 years for support and quality purposes.
Financial records: up to 7 years where required by UK tax law.
Anonymised/aggregated data: indefinitely.

8. Your rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to:

Access the personal data we hold about you
Ask us to correct inaccurate data
Ask us to delete your data ("right to erasure")
Restrict or object to our processing
Data portability (receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format)
Withdraw consent at any time (where we rely on consent)
Complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk

To exercise any of these rights, email hello@thedoulahive.co. We will respond within one month.

9. Cookies

We use a small number of cookies and similar technologies, broadly in three categories:

Strictly necessary (always on): for logging you in and keeping you logged in.
Analytics (only with your consent): to understand how the Platform is used.
No advertising or third-party tracking cookies.

You can manage cookie preferences at any time via the cookie banner on the Platform or through your browser settings.

10. Security

We use industry-standard measures to protect your data, including encryption in transit (HTTPS), encrypted databases, access controls, and audit logging. No system is 100% secure — please use a strong, unique password and contact us immediately if you suspect your account has been compromised.

11. Children

The Platform is intended for use by adults (18+) who are practicing doulas or birth workers. We do not knowingly collect personal data from children.

12. Changes to this notice

We will update this notice as the Platform evolves. If the changes are material, we will let you know by email or via an in-app notice before they take effect. The "Last updated" date at the top shows when this notice was last changed.

13. How to contact us

The Doula Hive Ltd (Company number: 16890604) [Registered address — add from Companies House] Email: hello@thedoulahive.co

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can complain to the ICO at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.