Privacy Policy

Last updated: September 2026

At The Bark Mark, we take your privacy seriously. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, how we use it, when we may share it and the choices you have regarding your information.

The Bark Mark has two main groups of users: dog owners using our website to find dog care and professional members who join The Bark Mark.

1. Who we are

The Bark Mark is an online platform designed to help dog owners find trusted dog care professionals in one place. For the purposes of data protection law, The Bark Mark is responsible for the personal information collected through our website and services.

If you have any questions about how we use your information, you can contact us at:

[email protected]

2. Information we collect

The information we collect depends on how you use The Bark Mark.

Dog owners

If you create an account or use our services as a dog owner, we may collect:

Your name
Email address
Telephone number
Town, area or postcode
Information about the dog care you are looking for
Information about your dog that you choose to provide
Dates or requirements relating to an enquiry
Messages or other information you send to us
Information relating to your use of our website

Dog owners do not pay The Bark Mark to use our website.

Professional members

If you apply to become a Bark Mark professional member, we may collect information such as:

Your name
Business name
Business address
Email address
Telephone number
Website and social media details
Business information and services provided
Areas covered
Qualifications and training
Insurance/relevant documentation
DBS information where relevant
Other documents or information required as part of our verification process
Information relating to your Bark Mark membership
Information relating to membership payments

The information required will depend on the type of service you provide and the requirements of The Bark Mark Standard.

3. How we use your information

We may use personal information to:

Create and manage owner accounts
Create and manage professional member profiles
Provide and operate The Bark Mark
Help owners find suitable professionals
Carry out professional verification checks
Check and monitor the validity of professional documents
Contact professionals about expiring documents or verification requirements
Respond to enquiries and messages
Process professional memberships and Direct Debit payments
Communicate with professional members about their membership
Improve and develop our website and services
Keep our website and systems secure
Meet our legal and regulatory obligations

We will only use personal information for appropriate purposes and in accordance with applicable data protection law.

4. Sharing owner information with professionals

We will not routinely pass your personal information to professionals simply because you have created an account. If you ask us to help you find suitable dog care, we may ask whether you would like us to share relevant information about you and your enquiry with appropriate Bark Mark Verified professionals.
For example, if you are looking for a dog walker, we may share information such as your name, area, requirements and contact details with relevant professionals so that they can respond to your enquiry. We will only share information that is reasonably necessary for this purpose and with your given permission.

One of the services The Bark Mark may provide is helping owners find suitable professionals.

Once your information has been shared with a professional, that professional is responsible for how they subsequently use and protect your information and may have their own privacy policy.

5. Professional verification

As part of becoming a Bark Mark Verified professional, we may need to collect and review documents and information relating to the professional and their business. This may include insurance documents, licences, qualifications, certificates, DBS information and other relevant documentation. We use this information to carry out our verification process and determine whether the professional meets the relevant requirements of The Bark Mark Standard.

We may also keep records of verification checks, including information such as:

What documents were checked
The date they were checked
Expiry dates
The outcome of the verification
When a document needs to be renewed

We do not intend to publish private verification documents on the website. Information displayed publicly will be limited to information we consider appropriate for a professional’s profile and verification status.

6. Professional membership and Direct Debit payments

Professional members pay a membership fee to The Bark Mark. Membership payments may be collected by Direct Debit using a third-party payment or Direct Debit provider. Where a third-party provider processes your payment information, your information may be processed by that provider in accordance with their own privacy policy and terms.

We may receive information from the payment provider confirming information such as:

Whether a Direct Debit has been successfully set up
Whether a payment has been received
Whether a payment has failed or been cancelled
Information needed to manage your Bark Mark membership

We do not need to store your full bank account details ourselves where these are collected and processed securely by the relevant payment provider.

7. Where we store your information

We store personal information securely using systems and services used to operate The Bark Mark. This may include Microsoft SharePoint and other trusted technology providers. Access to personal information will be limited to people who need it to operate The Bark Mark and carry out their responsibilities. We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against unauthorised access, loss, misuse or disclosure.

8. Third-party service providers

We may use trusted third-party providers to help us operate The Bark Mark.

These may include providers for:

Website hosting
Secure data storage
Email and communications
Direct Debit and payment processing
Website security
Website analytics
Other technology services needed to operate our business

Where third parties process personal information on our behalf, we take reasonable steps to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.

9. Information obtained from other sources

Some information relating to professional businesses may be obtained from publicly available sources or relevant organisations where appropriate. For example, we may check publicly available information relating to licences or other business requirements as part of our verification process.

Where we collect personal information from another source, we will handle it in accordance with applicable data protection law.

10. How long we keep your information

We only keep personal information for as long as we reasonably need it for the purposes for which it was collected.

The length of time we keep information may depend on:

Why we collected it
Whether you continue to use The Bark Mark
Whether you remain a professional member
Whether we need the information to provide our services
Our legal, accounting or regulatory obligations
Our need to maintain appropriate verification records

When information is no longer required, we will take reasonable steps to securely delete or dispose of it.

11. Marketing

We may occasionally contact owners or professional members about The Bark Mark, new services, updates or other information that may be relevant to them.

Where required, we will ask for consent before sending marketing communications. You can unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time. You will still receive important service-related communications where necessary, such as information relating to your account, membership or an enquiry you have made.

12. Cookies

The Bark Mark may use cookies and similar technologies to operate, secure and improve our website. Some cookies may be necessary for the website to function, while others may be used for purposes such as analytics or improving your experience. Where required by law, we will ask for your consent before using non-essential cookies.

13. Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have rights under UK data protection law, including the right to:

Ask for a copy of the personal information we hold about you
Ask us to correct inaccurate information
Ask us to delete your information
Ask us to restrict how we use your information
Object to certain uses of your information
Withdraw consent where we rely on consent
Ask us to provide certain information in a portable format

If you would like to exercise any of these rights, please contact: [email protected]
We may need to confirm your identity before responding to a request.

14. Keeping your information secure

We take reasonable technical and organisational measures to protect personal information. However, no online service or method of electronic storage can be guaranteed to be completely secure. If we become aware of a personal data breach that requires notification under applicable data protection law, we will deal with it in accordance with our legal obligations.

15. Changes to this Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes to The Bark Mark, our services or applicable data protection requirements. When we make changes, we will update the Last updated date at the top of this page.

16. Contact us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we use your personal information, please contact:

The Bark Mark

Email: [email protected]

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you believe your personal information has not been handled correctly. You can follow this link: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/data-protection-framework/