Terms of use

My Chess Family is a free chess app for children, their families and friends, in the UK. These are the few rules that come with it, in plain words.

Who we are

My Chess Family is run by Steven MacGregor, a parent and club chess player. Questions about anything here: [email protected].

Who can use it

A grown-up (18 or over) applies to join, and we approve families one at a time. The grown-up makes the family's account and the children's profiles, and is responsible for how the family uses the app. Children use the app only through a grown-up's account.

Keep your sign-in email and grown-up PIN to yourself, and tell us if you think someone else has used your account.

Playing fair and kind

• Play your own moves: no chess programs choosing moves in games against other people.
• Only share a friend code with families you know.
• Don't try to break, overload or get round how the app works.

If an account breaks these rules, we may pause it or close it. We'll email the grown-up to say why.

It's free, and it's a beta

There's nothing to pay, nothing to buy and no ads. The app is new and still changing: we do our best to keep it working and your family's progress safe, but things may sometimes go wrong, and features may change or go. If we ever close the app, we'll email you first and give you time to download your family's data.

Lessons, pictures and printables

The lessons, words and pictures are ours. You're welcome to print our worksheets for your family, a club or a school, as long as you don't sell them. The avatars, chess pieces, puzzles and fonts come from other people, under the licences on our credits page.

Our social media

We post chess lessons, puzzles and news on our own accounts (like TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest). We never post anything about a family or a child who uses the app.

Your data

What we keep, why and for how long is in our privacy notice. You can download or delete your family's data at any time in Family settings.

The legal bits

Nothing in these terms takes away your rights under UK law. We're not responsible for losses we couldn't reasonably have foreseen, or for problems caused by things outside our control. These terms are under Scots law, and you can bring a claim in the courts of Scotland or of the part of the UK where you live.

If we change these terms in a way that matters, we'll email grown-ups first. Last updated 16 October 2026.