Policies

Draft version 0.2 · updated 17 October 2026

1. Privacy notice

Who we are

Turf Paws is run by [legal company name], registered in England and Wales under company number [number], at [registered address]. We are the data controller for the personal data described here. Our ICO registration number is [ZA000000].

How to contact us

• Privacy and your data: privacy@turf-paws.co.uk
• Help, reports and account problems: support@turf-paws.co.uk
• Anything else: hello@turf-paws.co.uk

The short version

• We only record your location during a walk you start, and we stop when you finish.
• Other players see the plots you claim, never your route, your times or where you are right now.
• Plots within 200 metres of where a walk starts and ends are never claimed or shown, so your patch can't reveal your home.
• Lost dog alerts are public on purpose. Only post details you're happy for nearby strangers to see.
• We don't sell your data.
• You can download everything we hold about you, or delete your account, at any time from your profile.

What we collect

We don't ask for, and you shouldn't post, your home address, or information about your health, ethnicity, religion or other sensitive subjects.

Why we use it, and our lawful basis

Who we share it with

We use these service providers to run Turf Paws. They act on our instructions and can't use your data for their own purposes:

• Supabase: database, sign-in, sign-in emails and photo storage, hosted in London, UK
• Cloudflare: hosting the app, and passing on emails sent to our turf-paws.co.uk addresses
• Google (Gmail): our email inbox, where messages you send us are stored
• OpenFreeMap and OpenStreetMap: map images. Your device requests the map area you're looking at, which shares your IP address and that area with them.
• Overpass API: finding dog bins, water and pubs in the area you're looking at
• Google Fonts, cdnjs, jsDelivr and unpkg: delivering fonts and code libraries, which receive your IP address
• Apple, Google and Mozilla push services: delivering notifications to your device

Other players see your dog's name, the plots you hold and your leaderboard position. Everyone using the app can see lost dog reports and sightings.

We may share data if the law requires it, for example with the police, or to protect someone's safety.

International transfers

Some providers, such as Cloudflare, Google and the code delivery networks, process data outside the UK. Where they do, we rely on UK adequacy regulations or the UK International Data Transfer Agreement or Addendum to protect it. [Confirm each provider's transfer mechanism.]

Your rights

You can ask us to give you a copy of your data, correct it, delete it, restrict or object to how we use it, or send it to you in a portable format. You can withdraw consent at any time, for example by turning off location or notifications in your device's settings.

You can do most of this yourself in the app, under Menu → Profile:

• Download my data gives you a file (JSON format) with your account, profile, dogs, walks, lost dog reports and sightings.
• Your dogs and About you let you correct or remove your details at any time.
• Delete my account permanently deletes your account and data. See deleting your account.

For anything else, or if you can't use the app, email privacy@turf-paws.co.uk. We'll respond within one month. We may ask you to confirm your identity first, for example by replying from the email address on your account.

If you're unhappy with how we've handled your data, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or on 0303 123 1113. We'd appreciate the chance to put things right first.

Deleting your account

Choose Menu → Profile → Delete my account and type DELETE to confirm. Straight away we delete:

• your account, email address and profile
• your dog profiles and photos
• your walks and routes
• your lost dog reports and sightings
• your notification subscriptions

Plots you held go back on the map for anyone to claim. Copies in our database backups are overwritten within [7] days. This can't be undone, so download your data first if you'd like to keep it.

If you play as a guest without saving an email address, your account is tied to that browser. If you clear your browser data or lose your phone, we can't recover it. You can ask us to delete a guest account you can no longer open by emailing privacy@turf-paws.co.uk with your dog's name and roughly where you walk, and otherwise it's deleted automatically after 3 years without use.

Age

Turf Paws is for people aged 16 and over. If we learn that someone younger has an account, we'll delete it.

Automated decisions

Our anti-cheat checks automatically reject walks that are impossibly fast or long. That only affects the game, and you can ask us to review a decision.

Changes

We'll tell you in the app before any important change to this notice takes effect.

2. Terms of use

These terms are an agreement between you and [legal company name] ("we"). By using Turf Paws you accept them.

Who can use Turf Paws

You must be 16 or over and live in the UK. You're responsible for your account and for anything done with it.

The game

• Plots are claimed by walking through them on foot, with a dog.
• Plots, strength, leaderboards and badges have no monetary value, can't be sold or transferred, and may be reset, rebalanced or removed, for example at the start of a new season.
• We may change, pause or end any part of the game.

Fair play

Don't fake your location, claim plots from a vehicle or bike, use more than one account to gain an advantage, or interfere with the app or other players. We may remove plots or suspend accounts that break these rules.

Your safety and your dog's welfare

• Pay attention to your surroundings, not your screen, especially near roads.
• Stay on public paths and rights of way. Never trespass, including on railways, building sites, schools or farmland, to claim a plot.
• Follow the Countryside Code: keep dogs on leads around livestock and wildlife, and pick up after your dog.
• Don't walk your dog further or faster than is healthy for it, especially in hot weather, or with puppies, older dogs or flat-faced breeds.
• Use Turf Paws at your own risk. We don't check routes for safety, and map information, including places marked as dog-friendly, may be wrong or out of date.

Content you post

You keep ownership of photos and text you post, such as dog names, lost dog reports and sighting notes. You give us permission to display them in the app and in alert notifications so the service works. Only post content you have the right to share and that follows our community guidelines. We may remove content that doesn't.

Lost dog alerts

We provide alerts to help, but we can't guarantee anyone will see them or that a dog will be found. Always also contact your microchip database, your local council's dog warden, and nearby vets and rescue centres. See the lost dog alerts policy.

Liability

We provide Turf Paws free of charge and "as is". To the extent the law allows, we aren't liable for indirect losses or for losses caused by your use of the app, including injury while walking, harm to your dog, trespass, or a missed alert. Nothing in these terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that can't be limited by law. Your statutory rights as a consumer are not affected.

Ending your account

You can delete your account at any time under Menu → Profile → Delete my account. This permanently deletes your data, as explained in the privacy notice. If you play as a guest without saving an email address, you'll lose your account if you clear your browser data or change phone. We may suspend or close accounts that break these terms.

Law

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. If you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland, you can also bring proceedings in your local courts.

3. Community guidelines

Turf Paws works because dog owners look out for each other. Please:

• Keep names and photos friendly. No offensive, hateful or sexual names, captions or images.
• Only post genuine lost dog alerts and sightings. Fake alerts waste searchers' time and put real dogs at risk.
• Never ask for money for the return of a dog. Report anyone who asks you for payment.
• Respect privacy. Don't post other people's names, addresses or photos of them without permission.
• Play fair and keep it light. It's a game, and the dogs don't mind who's winning.
• Be kind, especially to someone whose dog is missing.

Report anything that breaks these guidelines using the report option in the app [to be built] or by emailing support@turf-paws.co.uk. We review reports and may remove content or suspend accounts.

4. Lost dog alerts policy

Posting an alert

• Only the dog's owner or keeper, or someone acting for them, should post an alert.
• Alerts show the dog's name, description, photo, last-seen time and place, and the contact details you enter. Everyone using the app can see these.
• Use a mobile number or email address. Never include your home address.
• The last-seen location is shown on the map, so choose a nearby public spot if you'd rather not pinpoint your home.

Who gets alerted

People who have turned on alerts and whose approximate location is within [3] km of the last-seen location get a notification. People nearby who open the app also see a banner.

Sightings

Anyone can pin a sighting. It records where you were when you pressed the button, plus any note you add. The owner is notified.

Closing alerts

Mark your dog as found as soon as you can, so nearby owners know to stop looking. Alerts close automatically after 14 days, and you can post a new one if your dog is still missing.

You can also delete your alert at any time: open it under Lost dogs and choose Delete this alert. It disappears for everyone straight away, along with its photo and sightings. Notifications already sent can't be recalled from people's phones. We may remove alerts that appear fake, abusive or duplicated.

Scams

Sadly, some people target owners of missing pets. Never pay anyone who claims to have your dog before you've seen it. Arrange to meet in a public place, take someone with you, and contact the police if you're threatened.

Other places to report a lost dog

• Your dog's microchip database, to flag the chip as missing
• Your local council's dog warden service
• Local vets, rescue centres and kennels
• Local social media groups. Use the Share button on the alert.

5. Cookies and device storage

Turf Paws doesn't use advertising or tracking cookies at the moment. It stores some information on your device so the app works:

Essential storage doesn't need consent under the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations. Before we add analytics or advertising, we'll ask for your consent and let you change your mind at any time.

6. How long we keep data

7. When a dog dies

We're very sorry if you're reading this because you've lost your dog.

• Go to Menu → Profile, tap your dog, and choose Remember. We'll stop all reminders about them straight away and take them off the leaderboard.
• Your walks together stay in your history for as long as you want them. They belong to you, not to your dog's profile, so they stay even if you delete the profile. You can download them at any time with Download my data.
• Your dog's patch stays on the map as it is. [Planned: choose to keep it as a memorial for 30 days, pass it to another of your dogs, or let it fade back gradually.]
• If there's an open lost dog alert for them, you can delete it under Lost dogs. If you'd rather not, email support@turf-paws.co.uk and we'll remove it quietly for you.
• If you'd like support, the Blue Cross Pet Bereavement Support Service is free and confidential.

If an account holder has died, their family can contact us at support@turf-paws.co.uk to close the account or keep it as a memorial.