Terms and Conditions

Terms and conditions for use of the Directgov website

[This page was last updated on 21 April 2008]

Directgov is managed by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP): referred to as 'We' below). In entering our site you as a user ('You') are accepting our terms and conditions. Please note that the following terms and conditions apply equally to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) which is responsible for Muck In4Life and any reference to the liability of Directgov on this page should be read as refering equally to Defra.

Using Directgov

Directgov is maintained for your personal use and viewing. The access and use of Directgov featuring these terms and conditions constitutes your acceptance of these terms and conditions. They take effect from the date on which you first use this website.

You agree to use this site only for lawful purposes, and in a manner that does not infringe the rights of, or restrict or inhibit the use and enjoyment of, this site by any third party. Such restriction or inhibition includes, without limitation, conduct which is unlawful, or which may harass or cause distress or inconvenience to any person, and the transmission of obscene or offensive content or disruption of normal flow of dialogue within this site.

You are prohibited from posting or transmitting via this website any unlawful, defamatory, obscene, offensive or scandalous material, or any material that constitutes or encourages conduct that would be considered a criminal offence, likely to give rise to civil liability, or otherwise violates any law. We will fully co-operate with any law enforcement authorities or court order lawfully requesting or directing us to disclose the identity of anyone posting any such information or materials on this website.

Information collected by us is used for internal review to:

1. improve the content of Directgov
2. customise the content and/or layout of Directgov
3. notify users (with their consent) about updates to Directgov
4. contact users (with their consent) for marketing purposes

Information collected is not shared with other organisations for commercial purposes.

Linking to Directgov

Directgov welcomes and encourages other websites to link to the information that is hosted on these pages. You do not have to ask permission to link but We can provide wording and linking graphics. Follow the link below for more details.
Help with linking to Directgov

Disclaimer

The Directgov website and material relating to government information, products and services (or to third party information, products and services), is provided 'as is', without any representation or endorsement made and without warranty of any kind whether express or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of satisfactory quality, fitness for a particular purpose, non-infringement, compatibility, security, completeness and accuracy.

We do not warrant or represent that the functions contained in the material available on this site will be uninterrupted or error free, that defects will be corrected, or that this site or the server that makes it available are free of viruses or represent the full functionality, accuracy or reliability of the materials.

In no event will We be liable for any expense, loss or damage including, without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any expense, loss or damage whatsoever arising from use, or loss of use, of data, or loss of profits, arising out of or in connection with the use of www.direct.gov.uk, or reliance on its content.

No data transmission over the internet can be guaranteed as totally secure. Whilst We strive to protect such information, we do not warrant and cannot ensure the security of any information which you transmit to us. Accordingly, any information which you transmit to us is transmitted at your own risk.

The Directgov website is not a substitute for independent professional advice and users should obtain any appropriate professional advice relevant to their particular circumstances.

The material on this website may include the views or recommendations of third parties, which do not necessarily reflect the views of HM Government, or indicate its commitment to a particular course of action. We assume no responsibility or liability arising in respect of any such third party material.

Muck In4Life volunteering opportunity searches

Opportunity searches may return results from a variety of sources. Neither Directgov nor Defra screens any of the information from volunteering organisations or opportunities shown as a result of an opportunity search, nor can either Directgov or Defra accept any responsibility for the quality of any specific project, organisation, activity or volunteering opportunity. Volunteers are strongly advised to satisfy themselves on the management, financial, safety, health and all other aspects of a volunteering opportunity and organisations before enrolling on it. You should verify all information before relying on it. Any decisions made based on information contained in the site, including information received through your use of the services on this website, are your sole responsibility.

Volunteers undertake any volunteering opportunities they may have heard about on this site entirely at their own risk, or under the terms and conditions of the organisation they are working for. Muck In4Life is solely a portal for information to assist volunteers looking for opportunities and Directgov and Defra will not accept liability for any loss or damage or inconvenience volunteers suffer arising through opportunities they have heard about through use of this site.

Parents and guardians accept full responsibility for their children's safety and quality of experience when acting on any information contained within this site.

Governing law

These terms and conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. Any dispute arising under these terms and conditions shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

Links to external websites

Links on Directgov will lead to other websites which are not under our control. We are not responsible for the content of any linked site. Listing and linking should not be taken as an endorsement of any kind and We accept no liability in respect of the content. We cannot guarantee that these links will work all of the time and have no control over the availability of the linked pages.

Virus protection

We make every effort to check and test material at all stages of production. You must take your own precautions to ensure that the process which You employ for accessing this website does not expose You to the risk of viruses, malicious computer code or other forms of interference which may damage your own computer system. It is always wise for You to run an anti-virus program on all material downloaded from the internet.

We cannot accept any responsibility for any loss, disruption or damage to your data or your computer system which may occur whilst using material derived from this website.

Variation

We may at any time revise these terms and conditions without notice. Please check regularly. Continued use of the Directgov website after a change has been made is your acceptance of the change.

General

We accept no liability for any failure to comply with these terms and conditions where such failure is due to circumstance beyond our reasonable control.

If We waive any rights available to us under these terms and conditions on one occasion, this does not means that those rights will automatically be waived on any other occasion.

If any of these terms and conditions are held to be invalid, unenforceable or illegal for any reason, the remaining terms and conditions shall nevertheless continue in full force.