Legal
Privacy policy
What we collect, why, and the choices you have. Last updated 5 October 2026.
Who we are
Fourth Floor is an independent magazine based in London. We decide how and why your personal data is used, which makes us the "controller" under UK data protection law. You can contact us about anything on this page at [email protected].
What we collect and why
When you visit the site
Our web host records standard technical information when a page is requested, including your IP address, browser type and the page you asked for. We use this to deliver the site, keep it secure and fix faults. Images are delivered by Sanity, the service we use to manage our content, so your IP address is also visible to them when images load.
Our legal basis: legitimate interests in running and protecting the site.
When you contact us or send us work
If you email us, use the pitch form on the Submit page or the enquiry form on the Partnerships page, or send a pitch, mix or other work, we receive your name, email address and whatever you choose to include. We use it to reply, to consider your work and to keep a record of our editorial conversations. We do not use it for marketing.
Our legal basis: legitimate interests in running a publication, and taking steps at your request. We keep messages for as long as we need them for those purposes. You can ask us to delete them at any time.
Translating a page
The Translate menu in the footer is optional. Nothing is sent anywhere until you choose a language, and then the address of the page you are on is passed to Google Translate, which shows you a translated copy under Google's own privacy policy. We never load anything from Google on our pages for this.
Audio and other embedded content
The Play buttons on the Picks of the month list load Bandcamp's player, but only when you press one. When it loads, Bandcamp receives your IP address and may set its own cookies, under its own privacy policy. Nothing is sent to Bandcamp before you press Play.
The Audio page shows SoundCloud players. When they load, SoundCloud receives your IP address and may set its own cookies, under its own privacy policy. Links to Instagram, X and other sites take you away from ours, and those services have their own policies.
Cookies and similar technologies
These are the things we store in your browser. Anything not strictly necessary only runs with your consent.
| Name | What it does |
|---|---|
ff-analytics-consent | Remembers your cookie choice so we do not ask on every page. |
| SoundCloud player | May set cookies when the players on the Audio page load. See SoundCloud's policy. |
Who we share data with
We use a small number of service providers who process data for us: our web host, Sanity (content management and images). We do not sell your data and we do not share it for advertising.
Some of these providers may handle data outside the UK. Where they do, we rely on approved safeguards such as the UK's data transfer arrangements.
Your rights
You have the right to ask us for a copy of the personal data we hold about you, to have it corrected or deleted, to restrict or object to how we use it, and to receive it in a portable format. Where we rely on your consent you can withdraw it at any time. To use any of these rights, email [email protected].
If you are unhappy with how we have handled your data, you can complain to the UK Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk. We would appreciate the chance to put things right first.
Changes to this policy
If we change how we use data we will update this page and the date at the top.