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Privacy policy

How Shapeways.io collects, uses and protects your personal information.

On this page

Introduction
Who We Are
The Information We Collect
How We Use Your Personal Information
Our Legal Basis for Processing Information
Sharing Your Personal Information
International Data Transfers: UK and Ghana
How We Protect Your Information
How Long We Keep Your Information
Cookies and Website Tracking
Your Data Protection Rights
Marketing Communications
Children's Privacy
Third-Party Websites and Services
Data Breaches
Changes to This Privacy Policy
Contact Us

Shapeways.io Ltd

Effective date: 30 October 2026
Last updated: 30 October 2026

1. Introduction

Shapeways.io Ltd (“Shapeways.io”, “we”, “our” or “us”) is committed to protecting the privacy and personal information of everyone who uses our website, accesses our services, participates in our training programmes or interacts with our business.

We operate in the United Kingdom and Ghana, providing digital skills training, business development support, technology solutions and other professional services.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, protect and share your personal information when you:

Visit our website at https://shapeways.io.
Submit an enquiry or contact us.
Apply for one of our training programmes.
Register for courses, workshops or events.
Purchase or receive our services.
Subscribe to our newsletters or marketing communications.
Communicate with us through email, telephone, WhatsApp or social media.

We process personal information in accordance with applicable data protection legislation, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 and Ghana’s Data Protection Act 2012 (Act 843), where applicable.

By using our website or providing your personal information, you acknowledge that you have read this Privacy Policy.

2. Who We Are

Shapeways.io Ltd is the organisation responsible for deciding how and why your personal information is collected and used.

Company: Shapeways.io Ltd
Website: https://shapeways.io
Email: info@shapeways.io
Business address: 89 Bickersteth Road, London, SW17 9SH, United Kingdom.

For questions about this Privacy Policy, your personal information or your data protection rights, please contact us using the email address above.

3. The Information We Collect

We may collect different types of personal information depending on how you interact with Shapeways.io.

3.1 Personal Identification Information

This may include:

Full name.
Date of birth, where required.
Gender, where requested for programme administration or reporting.
Country of residence.
Postal or residential address.
Nationality, where relevant to a service or programme.
Identification information where required for enrolment or verification.

3.2 Contact Information

This may include:

Email address.
Mobile or telephone number.
WhatsApp contact number.
Emergency contact details, where required.
Business contact information.

3.3 Education and Training Information

If you apply for or participate in our training programmes, we may collect:

Educational qualifications.
Previous work experience.
Employment status.
Skills and experience levels.
Course or programme applications.
Assessment and examination results.
Attendance records.
Learning progress and performance.
CVs, portfolios and other application documents.
Information relating to your participation in training and coaching sessions.

3.4 Business and Professional Information

Where you use our business development, consultancy, freelance or professional services, we may collect:

Business name and registration details.
Business contact information.
Professional experience and qualifications.
Business plans and proposals.
Information about your products and services.
Project information and work-related documents.
Invoices and payment records.

3.5 Payment Information

Where you purchase our services or training programmes, we may collect information relating to:

Payment amounts.
Payment dates.
Transaction references.
Billing details.
Payment status.
Instalment arrangements.

Payments may be processed through external payment providers. We do not intend to collect or store complete payment card details where these are handled directly by the payment provider.

3.6 Technical and Website Information

When you visit our website, certain technical information may be collected automatically, including:

Internet Protocol (IP) address.
Browser type and version.
Device information.
Operating system.
Website pages visited.
Date and time of visits.
Referring websites.
Website usage and interaction information.

This information helps us understand how visitors use our website and improve its performance and security.

3.7 Communication Information

We may retain information you provide when communicating with us through:

Website contact forms.
Email.
Telephone calls.
WhatsApp.
Social media platforms.
Online meetings and consultations.

This information may include enquiries, feedback, complaints and correspondence.

4. How We Use Your Personal Information

We only use personal information where we have a lawful reason to do so.

We may use your information for the following purposes:

4.1 Providing Our Services

Processing applications and registrations.
Enrolling students onto training programmes.
Delivering courses, workshops and coaching.
Providing business development and consultancy services.
Managing client relationships.
Delivering projects and professional services.
Providing customer support.

4.2 Managing Training Programmes

Assessing applications and eligibility.
Organising interviews and assessments.
Monitoring attendance and participation.
Tracking student progress.
Communicating programme updates.
Issuing certificates or completion records, where applicable.
Supporting employment, career development and business opportunities.

4.3 Processing Payments

Managing course fees and service payments.
Administering payment plans and instalments.
Issuing invoices and receipts.
Managing outstanding balances.
Maintaining financial and accounting records.

4.4 Communicating With You

Responding to enquiries.
Sending important service updates.
Providing information about courses and opportunities.
Notifying you about changes to our services.
Sending administrative and contractual communications.

4.5 Marketing and Business Development

Where permitted by law, we may use your contact information to:

Send newsletters and company updates.
Inform you about new courses and programmes.
Share business opportunities and events.
Promote relevant services.
Invite you to participate in surveys or provide feedback.

You can unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time.

4.6 Improving Our Website and Services

We may analyse website usage, feedback and service performance to:

Improve our website.
Develop new services.
Improve training programmes.
Understand customer needs.
Improve the quality of our services.
Monitor website security and prevent misuse.

4.7 Legal and Regulatory Requirements

We may process or disclose personal information where necessary to:

Meet legal and regulatory obligations.
Respond to lawful requests from public authorities.
Resolve disputes.
Establish or defend legal claims.
Prevent fraud and protect our business, staff, clients and service users.

5. Our Legal Basis for Processing Information

Under applicable data protection legislation, we must have a lawful basis for processing personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, we may rely on:

Consent: Where you have given us permission to use your information for a specific purpose, such as receiving certain marketing communications or accepting non-essential cookies.

Contract: Where processing is necessary to provide a service, fulfil an agreement or take steps requested by you before entering into a contract.

Legitimate Interests: Where we have a legitimate business reason to process your information, provided your rights and interests do not override those reasons. This may include improving our services, managing relationships and protecting our business.

Legal Obligation: Where we need to process information to comply with applicable laws, including financial, accounting and regulatory requirements.

Where we rely on consent, you can withdraw it at any time. Withdrawing consent does not affect processing that took place before withdrawal.

7. International Data Transfers: UK and Ghana

Shapeways.io operates in both the United Kingdom and Ghana.

As a result, personal information may be accessed, transferred or processed between our UK and Ghana operations.

For example, information relating to a student, client or business partner may be accessed by authorised members of our team in either country to provide services, manage programmes or respond to enquiries.

When transferring personal information internationally, we take appropriate steps to ensure that the information remains protected in accordance with applicable data protection legislation.

Where required, we will use appropriate legal safeguards for international transfers, such as approved contractual safeguards or other legally recognised transfer mechanisms.

8. How We Protect Your Information

We take the security of your personal information seriously.

We implement appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect personal information against:

Unauthorised access.
Accidental loss.
Theft.
Misuse.
Unauthorised disclosure.
Alteration or destruction.

These measures may include:

Restricted access to personal information.
Password-protected systems.
Secure digital storage.
Staff and contractor confidentiality obligations.
Appropriate staff data protection training.
Security measures for our website and IT systems.
Regular reviews of our data handling practices.

Access to personal information is limited to individuals who need it to carry out their responsibilities.

Although we take reasonable steps to protect information, no method of transmitting or storing information electronically is completely secure.

9. How Long We Keep Your Information

We only retain personal information for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes for which it was collected.

The retention period will depend on the type of information and the reason it was collected.

For example:

General enquiries: Retained for as long as necessary to respond and manage the enquiry.
Course applications: Retained for the application and selection process and any necessary follow-up.
Student records: Retained for the duration of the programme and any additional period necessary for administration, certification, legal or reporting purposes.
Client and business records: Retained for the duration of the business relationship and any necessary period afterwards.
Financial records: Retained for the period required by applicable accounting and tax legislation.
Marketing information: Retained until you unsubscribe, withdraw consent or we determine that the information is no longer needed.

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

10. Cookies and Website Tracking

Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to improve your browsing experience and understand how visitors interact with our website.

Cookies are small text files stored on your device when you visit a website.

We may use the following categories of cookies:

Essential Cookies

These cookies are necessary for the basic operation, security and functionality of our website.

Analytics Cookies

These cookies help us understand how visitors use our website, including which pages are visited and how people navigate the site.

Functional Cookies

These cookies help remember preferences and improve your browsing experience.

Marketing Cookies

Where used, these cookies may help us understand marketing performance or provide more relevant advertising.

Non-essential cookies will only be activated where the required consent has been obtained.

You can manage your cookie preferences through our website’s cookie settings, where available. You can also manage or disable cookies through your browser settings.

Please note that disabling essential cookies may affect some website features.

11. Your Data Protection Rights

Depending on the applicable law and circumstances, you may have the following rights concerning your personal information:

Right of Access: You can request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.

Right to Rectification: You can ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.

Right to Erasure: You can request that we delete your personal information where there is a lawful basis to do so.

Right to Restrict Processing: You can ask us to restrict how we use your information in certain circumstances.

Right to Data Portability: You may request a copy of certain personal information in a commonly used electronic format.

Right to Object: You can object to certain types of processing, including processing based on legitimate interests and direct marketing.

Right to Withdraw Consent: Where we rely on your consent, you can withdraw it at any time.

These rights are subject to certain legal conditions and exceptions.

To exercise any of these rights, contact us at:

Email: info@shapeways.io

We may need to verify your identity before responding to your request.

We will respond within the time limits required by applicable data protection legislation.

12. Marketing Communications

We may send you information about our services, programmes, courses, events and business opportunities where we are legally permitted to do so.

We will obtain consent where required by applicable electronic marketing laws.

You can stop receiving marketing communications at any time by:

Clicking the unsubscribe link in our marketing emails, where available.
Contacting us at info@shapeways.io.
Asking us to remove you from our marketing communications.

Please note that opting out of marketing communications will not stop essential administrative messages relating to services you have purchased or programmes in which you are enrolled.

13. Children's Privacy

Our services and training programmes may be accessed by individuals of different ages, depending on the programme.

Where we collect personal information from individuals under the age of 18, we will take appropriate steps to protect their information and meet any applicable requirements relating to parental or guardian involvement and consent.

We do not knowingly collect personal information from children where doing so would be unlawful.

If you believe that a child has provided personal information to us without the necessary authorisation, please contact us so that we can investigate and take appropriate action.

14. Third-Party Websites and Services

Our website may contain links to external websites, platforms and services.

These may include social media platforms, payment providers, online learning platforms and other third-party websites.

Please be aware that we do not control the privacy practices of these external websites.

If you follow a third-party link, we recommend reviewing that organisation’s privacy policy before providing personal information.

15. Data Breaches

In the event of a personal data breach, we will investigate the incident and take appropriate steps to minimise any potential harm.

Where required by applicable law, we will notify the relevant regulatory authority and affected individuals within the legally required timeframes.

We will also take reasonable steps to prevent similar incidents from happening again.

16. Changes to This Privacy Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect:

Changes to our services and business operations.
Changes to data protection legislation.
Changes to our website and technology.
Improvements to our privacy and security practices.

Any updated version will be published on this page with a revised effective date.

We encourage visitors and service users to review this Privacy Policy periodically.

17. Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, how we use your personal information or how to exercise your data protection rights, please contact us.