When we provide services, we want to make them easy, useful and reliable. Where services are delivered on the internet, this sometimes involves placing small amounts of information on your device, for example, your computer or mobile phone. These include small files known as cookies. They cannot be used to identify you personally.
These pieces of information are used to improve services for you, for example, through:
- enabling a service to recognise your device so you don't have to give the same information several times during one task;
- recognising that you may already have given a username and password so you don't need to do it for every web page requested;
- measuring how many people are using services so they can be made easier to use and there's enough capacity to ensure they are fast.
You can manage these small files yourself and learn more about them at Directgov. This site includes a short video that provides information on cookies.
Our use of cookies
The following list shows all of the cookies that are set by education.gov.uk and the third-party services we use. If you have any queries about these cookies or would like more information about them please get in touch.
| X-Mapping-gbooldlg | 32-character string. Used to send the same user's request to the same server where possible for the duration of their session. | When you close your browser |
| style | contrast' or 'null'. Used to store the user's preference for increased contrast display | 1 Year |
| ASP.NET_SessionId | 24-character string. Contains the user's session ID |
When you close your browser |
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|
In addition to the cookies set by education.gov.uk some of our microsites also set cookies that are required to enable them to operate. The cookies set by our microsites are as follows:
www.education.gov.uk/performancetables
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| AAT_SESSION | User's session ID (random 32 characters string). | When you close your browser |
| AAT_SEARCH | Last user search input. | When you close your browser |
| AAT_SHOWMAP | Map show or hide state. | When you close your browser |
| AAT_SCHOOLS | User's schools selection. | When you close your browser |
| AAT_FILTERS | Schools filter criteria. | When you close your browser |
| AAT_PHASE | Current schools phase. | When you close your browser |
www.education.gov.uk/edubase
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| JSESSIONID | User’s session ID. | When you close your browser. |
www.orderline.education.gov.uk
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| ASPSESSIONIDASBQQACR | Session state (web application). | When you close your browser. |
| ASP.NET_SessionId | Session state (web application). | When you close your browser. |
| ASPSESSIONIDQECSSCDT | Session state (web application). | When you close your browser. |
| search%5Fitems | Non-identifying user preference | When you close your browser. |
| search%5Forder | Non-identifying user preference | When you close your browser. |
| BIGipServerqca-80 | Session state (load balancing "sticky" server assignment). | One hour. |
| tSOToolkit | Session state (web application). | When you close your browser. |
| Check=%3F | Non-identifying user preference. | When you close your browser. |
| WT_FPC | Visitor tracking for usage analytics (WebTrends). | Ten years. |
| WEBTRENDS_ID | Visitor tracking for usage analytics (WebTrends) hosted by www.stats.tso.co.uk | Ten years. |
https://ncatools.education.gov.uk
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| ASP.NET_SessionId | Randomly generated number. This cookie helps the service store the choices you make. | When you close your browser. |
| OrderFormCookie | Session state (web application). | When you close your browser. |
| Style | Non-identifying user preference. | One year. |
| WEBTRENDS_ID | Visitor tracking for usage analytics (WebTrends) hosted by www.stats.tso.co.uk | Ten years. |
https://nca-pr.education.gov.uk/PupilRegistration
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| ASP.NET_SessionId | Randomly generated number. This cookie helps the service store the choices you make. | When you close your browser. |
| .ASPXAUTH | This cookie authenticates your access so you don't have to login again for subsequent secure web page visits. | When you close your browser. |
www.education.gov.uk/get-into-teaching
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| Gtp_search_criteria |
A combination of numbers and characters that store a user-generated shortlist of Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP) training providers. |
After seven days. |
| Gtp_shortlist_providers |
A combination of numbers and characters that store progress through the sections of the GTP application form. |
When you close your browser. |
|
website#lang |
Either ‘en-GB’ (English language selection) or ‘en-cy’ (if Welsh is selected). |
Unlimited or until manually cleared. |
|
surveyPrompt |
One value: ‘doNotShowAgain’. This cookie is used to prevent the Get into teaching survey reminder pop-up from being shown after the user chooses ‘Ok, take me there’ or ‘Don’t ask me about this survey again’. | One year. |
www.education.gov.uk/nationalcollege
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| ANONID | Ensures that the user request is sent to the correct server. | When you close your browser. |
| ARPT | Ensures that the user request is sent to the correct server when you click on the link to login to the members’ area of the National College website. | When you close your browser. |
|
WT_FPC (Webtrends) |
Visitor tracking for usage analytics (tracks the number of visitors to the login are of the National College website). | Ten years. |
Cookies for measuring use of service
By understanding how people use our site, we can improve the information provided. This also ensures that the service is available when you want it and fast. We use a number of different methods of gathering this data including services provided by the following companies.
Google Analytics
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| __utma | Randomly generated number. | Two years. |
| __utmb | Randomly generated number. | 30 minutes. |
| __utmc | Randomly generated number. | When you close your browser. |
| __utmz | Randomly generated number and information of how the site was reached (e.g. direct or via a link, using a search engine). | Two months. |
Celebrus
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| dfesPCSADBID | Randomly generated number. | One year. |
| dfesPCSAuvt | Which DfE page is visited and when. | One year. |
| usy46gabsosd | Which DfE page is visited during the visit. | When you close your browser. |
ta-chat.education.gov.uk
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| whoson | The cookie contains a randomly generated key that is used to identify the user in WhosOn across a chat session. It doesn’t contain any personally sensitive information. | 31-Dec-2020 00:00:00 GMT |
https://sa.education.gov.uk
| Name | Typical content | Expires |
|---|---|---|
| style | The cookie contains a randomly generated key that is used to identify the user in WhosOn across a chat session. It doesn’t contain any personally sensitive information. | 31-Dec-2020 00:00:00 GMT |
| JSESSIONID | User’s session ID | When you close your browser |
| idp_authn_lc_key | This cookie is set during the authentication process and contains only information necessary to identify the current authentication process (which usually spans multiple requests/responses) | When the authentication process completes. |
| _idp_session | Once a user has been authenticated they will have a long-lived session with the IdP which is tracked by a cookie named _idp_session. This cookie contains only information necessary for identifying the user's IdP session. | This is a "session" cookie and will be removed when the browser chooses to remove such cookies (often when the browser is closed). |
