1. What This Policy Covers
Grace Companion can use phone or browser location features to support emergency help, family safety checks, safe places, and optional trusted visitor updates. This policy explains when location is used, who can see it, and the limits of using GPS through a web app or PWA.
This policy sits alongside our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, and should be read with the Grace Care & Safeguarding Framework.
2. When Grace Uses Location
Location is used only for safety and care coordination features, such as:
- Emergency button alerts, where location sharing is enabled.
- Share Now or Share While Out sessions started from Safety Location settings.
- Family Safety Map updates and latest-known location shown to authorised next of kin or guardians.
- Location-gone-quiet alerts when an active sharing session stops sending updates.
- Safe places, such as home, school, clinic, or regular community locations.
- Trusted Visitor Check-In where a visitor chooses to include their location.
- Grace Notes visit check-ins where a professional optionally records GPS evidence for audit.
Grace does not use location for advertising, profiling, or sale to third parties.
3. What Location Data May Include
When a location feature is used, Grace may store:
- Latitude, longitude, approximate accuracy, timestamp, and map link.
- The type of session, such as emergency, temporary sharing, or Share While Out.
- Device or source details needed to understand whether the update came from the web app, PWA, or a supported native app in the future.
- Safe place names, radius, status, and related safety timeline events.
- The linked family member, child safety profile, family helper, guardian, visitor, or professional profile involved in the event.
4. Who Can See Location Data
Location data is visible only to people with a legitimate role in the safety plan, such as the person whose location is shared where appropriate, authorised next of kin, parents, legal guardians, or a relevant care organisation/professional where that product feature is being used.
Family or guardian access must be based on consent, parental responsibility, legal authority, or a genuine best-interests safety reason. Location sharing must never be used for covert tracking, coercion, stalking, or monitoring someone without the proper authority.
5. Consent, Controls & Visibility
Location sharing normally requires the phone or browser to ask for permission. The person using Grace can start and stop sharing from Safety Location settings where they are able to do so. A parent, guardian, or authorised family helper may help set up the safety plan, but live GPS updates must come from the person's signed-in device.
- Location controls are kept in Safety Location settings for the profile and Family Safety Map for authorised family or guardians.
- Timed sessions are designed to end automatically so sharing is not left on by mistake.
- Browser or phone location permissions can also be turned off in the device settings.
- Children and vulnerable adults need extra care, clear explanation, and a lawful basis before location sharing is enabled.
6. PWA, iPhone & Android Limits
Grace Companion can request location through the browser or installed PWA on supported iPhone and Android devices. This works best while the app is open, active, and has location permission. If updates stop, Grace may continue showing the latest known point and create a location-gone-quiet alert.
Important: A web app/PWA cannot guarantee continuous background GPS when the phone is locked, the app is closed, the browser suspends activity, battery saving is active, or network/GPS signal is weak. Reliable always-on background tracking would require later native iPhone and Android app work.
7. Retention & Deletion
We keep location data only for as long as needed for safety, audit, family reassurance, support, and legal or safeguarding responsibilities. Routine location sessions should be minimised and may be deleted on request where no safeguarding or legal reason requires retention.
Emergency and safeguarding-related location events may be kept with the wider safety record in line with the retention periods explained in our Privacy Policy.
8. Accuracy & Emergency Use
GPS and browser location can be delayed, inaccurate, unavailable, or affected by buildings, poor signal, device settings, battery saving, and network coverage. Grace Companion is not an emergency service and should not replace calling 999 or the relevant local emergency number where there is immediate risk.
Location features are designed to help families and carers respond more quickly, but they are one part of a wider safety plan rather than a guarantee of rescue or supervision.