Why did a newborn photographer call after nan signed me up to a baby club?

Why would a studio have mum's number?

Emma's Diary's gift-pack pages, checked 10 September 2026, include a tick that reads: "Yes, I would love to receive FREE samples and offers from Emma's Diary trusted partners by post and email." The same pages list Barrett & Coe under "Manage trusted partners", alongside other named partners such as Kiddies.

Barrett & Coe publishes a separate partnership page: it has provided pregnancy and baby photography for Emma's Diary and runs Baby of the Month and Baby of the Year competitions. A studio call after a family signup is therefore a published partner route, not a random cold call from an unnamed photographer.

Name only the partners the club or studio publishes. Other studios may have their own club deals; if the caller names a different brand, check that brand's own privacy notice rather than assuming every newborn photographer is Barrett & Coe.

Who consented — nan or mum?

ICO consent guidance says consent must be a freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous indication by the person whose data is used. Requests must be granular, and they must name any third-party controllers who will rely on the consent. A bundled "trusted partners" tick is the kind of wording the ICO tells organisations to split into separate choices.

The ICO also says a third party can indicate consent on someone's behalf only if they have authority to do so, and that this is hard to verify in most cases. Nan ticking a partner box on a gift-pack form does not, by itself, prove mum agreed to a photography sales call. The club still has to show who opted in, when, and what they were told.

What does Barrett & Coe say it will do with a number?

Barrett & Coe Limited's privacy notice (dated 12 May 2022) says it is the franchisor; franchise studios run the sittings. If you provide data and give permission, it may keep email, telephone, SMS and offline contact. For a baby, family or pet session registration, details are sent to a franchise studio or an approved photographer.

The same notice lists tick boxes on its own forms for marketing by email, telephone, SMS or post, and gives opt-out routes: [email protected], 01603 629739, or write to Jonathan Scott Hall, First Floor Chapel, Thorpe Road, Norwich, NR1 1UH. It also states a right to object to direct marketing.

That is a lawful photography offer if the studio can show a valid opt-in. It is not a hospital appointment and not a fee you already owe. You can say no, ask where the number came from, and use the published opt-out.

How do I stop further calls without treating the offer as a scam?

1. 1
   Ask which club and which tick they are relying on A studio that obtained the number through a named partner list should be able to say so. Note the date, the number that called, and the name they used for the account.
2. 2
   Decline the sitting if you do not want it Say you do not want a session and you object to further marketing calls, emails, SMS and post from that studio and from Barrett & Coe Limited. That is an objection, not a complaint about photography as a trade.
3. 3
   Use the studio's published opt-out Barrett & Coe's notice: email [email protected], call 01603 629739, or write to the Norwich address above. Ask them to add the number to their do-not-call list.
4. 4
   Turn off the club's partner tick Emma's Diary's pack pages include "Manage trusted partners". Open the club account that nan created and switch the partner options off, then change the phone number if it is yours.

ICO live-call rules: for most live marketing calls, PECR does not need prior consent if the number is not on the Telephone Preference Service and the person has not already objected. A TPS listing is a general objection — the caller may only phone a TPS number if the subscriber specifically consented to that organisation's calls. A family tick for "trusted partners" is a weak record of that specific consent.

Is the call proof that someone booked a newborn shoot?

No. Published pages show a partner marketing route and a studio that will telephone if it believes it has permission. They do not show a confirmed booking, a home visit you must accept, or a debt. If the caller cannot name the club or the tick, treat it as any other unsolicited marketing call and ask them to stop.

In shortEmma's Diary names Barrett & Coe as a trusted partner; Barrett & Coe says it may call when permission was given. ICO consent must be granular and must name the studio. Decline, opt out in writing, and switch the club's partner tick off. A sales call is not a sitting.