Membership Terms & Conditions
Last updated: 1st September 2026
Please read these terms carefully before purchasing your membership.
1. Summary of Terms
These terms and conditions set out the basis on which we provide products to you, including goods, services, digital content, and membership services (“membership”). When we refer to “products” in these terms, we mean any combination of these services that we offer.
2. Basis of Contract
2.1. These terms, together with any membership registration form and, where applicable, Schedule 1 (Progress Tracker Data Processing Terms), form the basis of the agreement between Sounds-Write Limited, company number 04655753 (“we”, “us” or “our”), and you (the “Member”, being the individual or legal entity identified in the membership registration or invoice) for the provision of our products. A Member may include a trust, school, educational organisation or individual. Where an individual enters into these terms on behalf of an organisation, that individual confirms that they have authority to bind that organisation.
2.2. In these terms, a “Business Member” means a Member purchasing membership wholly or mainly for purposes relating to its trade, business, craft or profession, and a “Consumer Member” means an individual purchasing membership wholly or mainly outside those purposes.
3. Description of Goods
3.1. We make every effort to ensure our website is accurate and up to date. However, if a product is listed with incorrect information, is unavailable, or has an error in pricing, we reserve the right to cancel or refuse any order before it is confirmed. In such cases, we may contact you to clarify any discrepancies.
3.2. An order placed via our website constitutes an offer to purchase, which we may accept or decline at our discretion. A contract is only formed once we confirm your order and process payment. If an order is cancelled due to an error, any payments made will be refunded in full.
4. Services Provided
4.1. We agree to provide you with access to training courses, materials and related content (“Training Services”) and, where included in your membership, the phonics progress tracking functionality within the Sounds-Write Members’ Portal (the “Progress Tracker”), for the membership period of 12 months, commencing on the date the invoice is paid (“Commencement Date”).
4.2. The Progress Tracker enables authorised users to record and monitor pupil phonics assessments and receive rule-based teaching recommendations. The child does not directly use the Progress Tracker. Use of Pupil Data through the Progress Tracker is governed by clause 12 and Schedule 1.
4.3. Recommendations generated through the Progress Tracker are intended to support teaching and educational planning and are based on the assessment information entered into the platform and the applicable recommendation rules. They are guidance only and should not be treated as a diagnosis or as a substitute for appropriate professional educational, SEND, medical or other specialist judgement. Users should exercise appropriate professional or parental judgement and seek specialist advice where appropriate before making significant decisions concerning a pupil.
5. Pricing and Payment
5.1. Membership Fees: The applicable membership fees shall be as set forth in the pricing schedule detailed on our Pricing Page.
5.2. Payment Schedule: Payment is due in full at the time of signing up to the membership and upon renewal. Access to Training Services will not be granted until full payment is made.
5.3. Existing Sounds-Write Schools: Schools currently using Sounds-Write in their setting will not receive a printed manual as part of the membership. All necessary materials, including the training modules and teaching resources, are accessible digitally through the portal to support your staff. If you prefer to have a printed manual, they are available to purchase via the membership portal.
5.4. Late Payments: If payment is not received within 30 days of the due date, we reserve the right to suspend access to the Training Services until full payment is made.
5.5. International Payments: Sounds-Write is not responsible for international transfer and banking fees.
5.6. The invoice must be paid in GBP to avoid underpayment due to exchange rate fluctuations.
5.7. For payments made from outside the UK, a £10 administration fee will be added to cover international processing costs. If you are a Consumer Member, any mandatory administration charge will be included in or clearly reflected in the total price shown before you place your order.
5.8. Non-Refundable Payments: All payments are final and non-refundable, including in cases of early cancellation, except to the extent a refund or other remedy is required by applicable law.
5.9. Renewal: Membership does not renew automatically. Before the end of the current membership period, we may contact you to invite renewal. If you do not confirm renewal and pay the applicable fee by the end of the current membership period, your membership and access will be deactivated.
5.10. Taxes: Prices presented to Consumer Members will include VAT and any other mandatory taxes or charges where applicable. Prices quoted to Business Members may be stated exclusive of VAT where this is made clear, in which case VAT will be added at the applicable rate.
5.11. Price Changes: We reserve the right to adjust membership fees upon renewal, with prior notice at least 60 days before the renewal date.
6. Intellectual Property Rights
6.1. All materials, content, and branding related to Sounds-Write, including names, logos, and images, are proprietary and cannot be copied or reused without explicit permission.
6.2. Members receive a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use digital training materials for their own personal or institutional purposes but may not distribute, resell, or modify them.
7. Acceptable Use Policy
7.1. Members must not share login credentials, attempt to breach security, or engage in any activity that may disrupt services for other users. Where the Progress Tracker is used, you must ensure that each user has an individual authorised account, access is limited to users who need it, access is reviewed periodically and removed promptly when no longer required, credentials are kept secure, and any suspected unauthorised access or security incident affecting pupil data is notified to us promptly.
7.2. Any material misuse or serious abuse of the training content, including unauthorised sharing, may result in suspension or termination of access where reasonably proportionate to the circumstances. Where a breach is capable of remedy and does not create an immediate security, confidentiality or intellectual-property risk, we may first give you a reasonable opportunity to remedy it. Any entitlement to a refund or other remedy remains subject to applicable law.
8. Account Creation
8.1. When creating an account, you guarantee that all information you provide is accurate and complete at the time of registration and at any subsequent times.
8.2. You agree to promptly notify us of any changes to the information you have provided and to keep your account information current.
8.3. In instances where your account is secured by a password, you are committed to maintaining the confidentiality of your password, not sharing it with others, and not using it for any unauthorised purposes. You accept full responsibility for all activities conducted under your account credentials.
8.4. Where you upload or enter Pupil Data, you are responsible for ensuring that the data is accurate, relevant and limited to what is necessary for the Progress Tracker and that you are authorised to provide it. Where you are subject to Data Protection Laws as controller, you are also responsible for providing the privacy information and other transparency required of you. Individual personal or household use is addressed separately in clause 12 and the Privacy Policy.
8.5. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account immediately, at our sole discretion, or in the event of a breach of these terms and conditions.
9. Limitation of Liability
9.1. If you are a Business Member, we will not be liable for indirect or consequential losses arising under or in connection with the membership.
9.2. Subject to the paragraph below, if you are a Business Member, our aggregate liability arising under or in connection with the membership is limited to the total membership fees paid in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.
9.3. If you are a Consumer Member, we do not exclude or limit liability for loss or damage that is a foreseeable result of our breach of these terms or our failure to exercise reasonable care and skill, and nothing in this clause limits the statutory rights and remedies available to you under applicable consumer law.
9.4. Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability to the extent it cannot lawfully be excluded or limited, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation. If you are a consumer, nothing in these terms affects your statutory rights.
9.5. The allocation of data-protection responsibilities between you and us is also subject to Schedule 1. Nothing in these terms limits any rights or remedies of data subjects or regulators under applicable Data Protection Laws.
10. Business Member Indemnity
If you are a Business Member, you will be responsible for losses reasonably incurred by Sounds-Write to the extent directly resulting from your material breach of clause 6 or 7, including unlawful or unauthorised distribution of Sounds-Write materials, except to the extent that the loss results from Sounds-Write’s own breach, negligence or other act or omission. This clause does not impose an indemnity on a Consumer Member.
11. Assignment
Sounds-Write may transfer its rights and obligations under this Agreement to another organisation, provided such a transfer does not affect the member’s rights.
12. Data Protection and Privacy
12.1. Each party will comply with applicable Data Protection Laws in connection with the membership. Where you use the Progress Tracker and provide personal data relating to pupils (“Pupil Data”) for processing on your documented instructions, the parties will comply with Schedule 1.
12.2. Where you are subject to Data Protection Laws as controller for Pupil Data and Sounds-Write processes that Pupil Data solely on your documented instructions, you act as controller and Sounds-Write acts as processor. Where an individual Member uses the Progress Tracker solely for personal or household purposes, that individual’s processing may fall outside the scope of the UK GDPR; Sounds-Write’s processing for that use is addressed in its Privacy Policy and any applicable Progress Tracker privacy information. This allocation does not apply to any processing for which either party independently determines the purposes and essential means.
12.3. Each party is responsible for identifying and documenting its own lawful basis for any processing for which it acts as controller. Acceptance of these terms does not constitute consent on behalf of pupils or any other data subject.
12.4. Sounds-Write’s processing in its capacity as controller, including any controller processing connected with individual personal or household use of the Progress Tracker, is described in its published Privacy Policy and any applicable Progress Tracker privacy information.
13. Right to Make Changes
13.1. Sounds-Write reserves the right to modify these terms from time to time where reasonably necessary to reflect changes in law or regulation, security requirements, technical or operational changes to the services, or changes that do not materially reduce the Member’s contractual rights.
13.2. We will give reasonable advance notice of any material change.
13.3. If you are a Consumer Member and a change materially disadvantages you during a paid membership period, you may end the affected service without penalty before that change takes effect, subject to any rights or remedies available under applicable law.
13.4. We will not use this clause to materially vary the data-processing obligations in Schedule 1 except in accordance with that Schedule and applicable Data Protection Laws.
14. Suspension of Services
14.1. We may temporarily suspend services for technical updates, compliance with regulatory changes, requested modifications, or where reasonably necessary to protect the security or integrity of the services or Pupil Data.
14.2. Where a suspension affects Progress Tracker access, we will, where reasonably practicable and lawful, preserve a route for the Member to exercise necessary controller functions in relation to Pupil Data, including export, correction or deletion, subject to legitimate security or legal restrictions. If your account is suspended and you need to access, export, correct or delete Pupil Data, please contact enquiries@sounds-write.co.uk. We may require reasonable verification before providing access or acting on the request.
15. Cancellation Policy
15.1. Memberships are non-refundable except to the extent a refund or other remedy is required by applicable law. If you wish to cancel, your access will remain until the end of the current membership period, subject to any statutory cancellation rights
that apply.
15.2. If you are a Consumer Member and enter into the membership online or otherwise at a distance, you may have a statutory right to cancel within 14 days after the contract is entered into. If you expressly request that services begin during that cancellation period, you may be required to pay for services supplied before cancellation to the extent permitted by law. Where digital content is supplied immediately, any consent and acknowledgement required by law before a statutory cancellation right is lost will be obtained separately as part of the purchase process.
16. Communications with School Staff and Individuals
16.1. We process the professional contact details of school staff and individuals provided during membership registration and sign up to deliver our services, including training support, implementation guidance, The Literacy Loop, and access to resources.
16.2. These communications are based on our legitimate interest in fulfilling the membership agreement and supporting successful implementation. Staff members may opt out of non-essential communications at any time by contacting us at enquiries@sounds-write.co.uk
17. Entire Agreement
17.1. These terms, any membership registration form and Schedule 1 where applicable form the agreement between you and us regarding your purchase.
17.2. You acknowledge that you have not relied on any statements, promises, or representations not explicitly set out in those documents. If there is any conflict, Schedule 1 will prevail in relation to the processing of Pupil Data. Nothing in this provision excludes or restricts liability for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, affects information that applicable consumer law treats as forming part of the contract, or limits any rights or remedies that cannot lawfully be excluded.
17.3. Sounds-Write Limited is a company registered in England and Wales with company number 04655753.
18. Countries eligible for membership
18.1. Europe
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Republic of Cyprus
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Iceland
Ireland
Italy
Latvia
Liechtenstein
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
18.2. Rest of World
Bahrain
Dubai
Hong Kong
Israel
Kuwait
Malaysia
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Singapore
Thailand
UAE
19. Governing Law and Jurisdiction
19.1. These terms and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with them are governed by the law of England and Wales.
19.2. If you are a Business Member, the courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction in relation to any dispute arising out of or in connection with these terms.
19.3. If you are a Consumer Member, nothing in these terms deprives you of any mandatory consumer protection available under the law of the country in which you are habitually resident or any right to bring proceedings before a court that has jurisdiction under applicable consumer law.
20. How to Contact Us
You can contact Sounds-Write by using the enquiry form on our website, emailing enquiries@sounds-write.co.uk or calling us on 01280 825537.
Schedule 1 – Progress Tracker Data Processing Terms
1. Scope and roles
1.1 This Schedule applies where the Member uses the Progress Tracker and Sounds-Write processes Pupil Data on behalf of the Member. “Data Protection Laws” means the UK GDPR, the Data Protection Act 2018 and any other applicable UK law relating to the protection of personal data, in each case as amended or replaced from time to time.
1.2 For processing carried out solely to provide the Progress Tracker on the Member’s documented instructions, the Member is controller and Sounds-Write is processor. Nothing in this Schedule determines a party’s status contrary to Data Protection Laws. Any processing for which Sounds-Write independently determines the purposes and essential means must be assessed separately and is not authorised by this Schedule merely because the data was originally received through the Progress Tracker.
1.3 Where an individual Member uses the Progress Tracker solely for personal or household purposes, the UK GDPR household exemption may mean that the Member is not subject to controller obligations for that personal use. Sounds-Write will nevertheless apply the safeguards in this Schedule as contractual commitments, and any processing for which Sounds-Write acts as controller is described in the Privacy Policy.
2. Member responsibilities
The Member will ensure that it has all necessary authority to provide Pupil Data to Sounds-Write and instruct the processing; where the Member is subject to Data Protection Laws as controller, identify a lawful basis and provide all required privacy information; ensure Pupil Data is adequate, relevant, accurate and limited to what is necessary; manage authorised users and access rights; and not instruct Sounds-Write to process Pupil Data in breach of applicable Data Protection Laws.
3. Processing instructions and confidentiality
3.1 Sounds-Write will process Pupil Data only on the Member’s documented instructions, including in relation to any restricted international transfer, unless processing is required by applicable law. If legally permitted, Sounds-Write will inform the Member before carrying out processing required by law.
3.2 Sounds-Write will ensure that persons authorised to process Pupil Data are subject to appropriate confidentiality obligations and access Pupil Data only to the extent required for their role.
3.3 Sounds-Write will inform the Member without undue delay if, in its opinion, an instruction infringes applicable Data Protection Laws, unless prohibited from doing so by applicable law.
4. Security
4.1 Sounds-Write will implement appropriate technical and organisational measures under Article 32 UK GDPR, taking account of the nature of the Pupil Data and the risks to children. These measures will include encryption in transit and at rest, individual accounts, school-level access segregation, access logging, privileged-access controls and regular access review.
4.2 Sounds-Write will maintain multi-factor authentication for AWS Console access and Sounds-Write privileged administrative accounts. Any separate privileged developer, application or direct production-database access used to access live Pupil Data must also be protected by multi-factor authentication or an equivalent strong authentication control, subject to any documented exception justified by an appropriate security risk assessment.
5. Sub-processors
5.1 The Member gives general written authorisation for Sounds-Write to appoint sub-processors required to provide the Progress Tracker, subject to this clause. Sounds-Write will maintain and make available an up-to-date sub-processor list, give reasonable advance notice of an intended addition or replacement, and provide the Member with a reasonable opportunity to raise a data-protection objection.
5.2 Sounds-Write will impose data-protection obligations on each sub-processor that provide an equivalent level of protection for Pupil Data to the extent required by Article 28 UK GDPR and will remain responsible for the sub-processor’s performance of those obligations to the extent required by law.
5.3 At launch, the Progress Tracker uses (a) Amazon Web Services in the EU-West-2 (London) region for hosting and infrastructure services; and (b) a UK-based external developer/consultant for development, maintenance, troubleshooting, bug fixes and technical support. The developer/consultant is treated as a sub-processor to the extent that they process Pupil Data on Sounds-Write’s behalf.
6. Assistance and personal data breaches
6.1 Taking account of the nature of the processing and the information available to it, Sounds-Write will provide reasonable assistance to enable the Member to respond to data-subject rights requests and comply with its obligations concerning security, personal data breaches, DPIAs and prior consultation with the ICO.
6.2 Sounds-Write will notify the Member without undue delay after becoming aware of a personal data breach affecting Pupil Data and will provide information reasonably available to it to assist the Member with its assessment and notification obligations.
7. Return, deletion and suspension
7.1 At the end of the relevant processing services, Sounds-Write will, at the Member’s choice and subject to applicable law, return or delete Pupil Data and delete existing copies. The current service default is deletion from the live system in accordance with the Progress Tracker retention workflow, with deleted data remaining in backups for no longer than the applicable backup cycle, currently up to seven days.
7.2 The current service default is to retain a pupil record for two years after the pupil’s last assessment so that historical assessment information remains available for progress monitoring and teaching planning. This is subject to the Member’s documented instructions and any earlier deletion requested through the service. Where a Member instructs continued retention because assessment or monitoring continues beyond that period, Sounds-Write will ask the Member at least every 12 months to confirm that continued retention remains necessary. If continued retention is not confirmed, the Pupil Data will be deleted in accordance with the applicable retention workflow.
8. Audits and compliance information
Sounds-Write will make available information reasonably necessary to demonstrate compliance with Article 28 UK GDPR and will allow for and contribute to reasonable audits or inspections by the Member or its mandated auditor, subject to reasonable notice, confidentiality, security and proportionality requirements.
9. International transfers
9.1 Sounds-Write will not make a restricted transfer of Pupil Data except on the Member’s documented instructions or where otherwise permitted by Data Protection Laws and supported by an applicable transfer mechanism or other
lawful basis.
9.2 Where the Member is established outside the United Kingdom, the Member is responsible for ensuring that any transfer of Pupil Data to Sounds-Write in the United Kingdom is lawful under the data-protection laws applicable to the Member, including by relying on any available adequacy decision or other lawful transfer
mechanism where required.
10. Processing particulars
10.1 Subject matter, nature and purpose: provision of the Progress Tracker to enable authorised users to assess and monitor pupils’ phonics progress, record assessment results and receive rule-based teaching recommendations, together with support performed on the Member’s documented instructions. The nature of the processing includes collection, recording, organisation, storage, retrieval, consultation, analysis, authorised access and disclosure to approved sub-processors where necessary to provide the service, and deletion of Pupil Data.
10.2 Duration: for the duration of the Member’s use of the Progress Tracker and the deletion/backup periods described in this Schedule and the applicable retention documentation.
10.3 Categories of data subjects: pupils whose information is entered or uploaded by or on behalf of the Member.
10.4 Types of personal data: pupil name; full date of birth; sex; EAL indicator; FSM indicator; SEND indicator; and detailed phonics assessment information, including recorded responses, areas of difficulty and related assessment observations. The full date of birth is used to calculate the pupil’s chronological age in years and months so that progress can be monitored and compared appropriately by age.
10.5 The sex, EAL, FSM and SEND indicators are required fields used for group-level comparison of assessment outcomes and are not used to determine an individual pupil’s phonics assessment result or recommendation.
10.6 Potential special category data: the SEND indicator, to the extent that in context it constitutes or reveals data concerning health or disability. The Member remains responsible for identifying and documenting any applicable Article 9 condition for its controller processing.
10.7 Approved processing locations and sub-processors: the production environment is hosted in the United Kingdom using Amazon Web Services in the EU-West-2 (London) region. AWS provides hosting and infrastructure services. A UK-based external developer/consultant has production access where necessary for development, maintenance, troubleshooting, bug fixes and technical support. Development and testing environments are separate from production. The current sub-processor list and data-flow documentation will be maintained under clause 5.