Privacy Policy
Last updated 20th November 2023
I understand how important your privacy is. I take care to maintain your confidentiality in accordance with current data protection laws under the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018). These guidelines have been set up to protect your confidential material and ensure that your therapist always conducts themselves with professionalism and integrity.
In order to provide you with the best service possible, I will hold your personal contact details and records of your therapy sessions. Please find below important information about how this information will be held and used.
Your personal information
I use secure and password protected practice management to collect and store your electronic personal data. At the point of booking your initial consultation with me, you will be asked for your personal contact information, for example your name, address, email address and telephone number and you may also choose to share details of the issues you are looking for help with.
Your contact information is stored securely and can only be accessed by me.
In order to be able to fulfil my duty of care to you, in your initial consultation or first treatment session, I will ask you for contact information for your elected Emergency Contact person. These details will be stored securely and will only be accessible to me.
Written notes taken during your session will be stored securely and only accessible to me.
Please note that I will need to keep a record of your name and client information for seven years after the end of your therapy, so that we can respond effectively to any potential requests regarding your clinical notes and treatment.
I will never pass on your contact details to any third party organisations for the purposes of sales, marketing or research and will never use your personal data for any purposes other than the administration of the counselling service I am providing to you i.e. to arrange, cancel and rearrange appointments and collect payment for sessions.
Your therapy sessions
Everything that you discuss with me is confidential. Confidentiality will only be broken if there is a valid concern about your safety or the safety of someone else or I am instructed to do so by a Court of Law. I will always endeavour to speak to you about this first.
During remote working I will ensure that I am conducting online and telephone sessions in a quiet, private and confidential setting.
I discuss my clinical work with a mentor. This is to ensure that I am offering you the best service possible. These conversations are bound by confidentiality and you will not be referred to by your first name.
I keep notes of each session. These are anonymised and are stored in a locked secure system. These notes are for my use only and help to keep a track of everything that is being discussed. In line with industry guidelines, these notes will be kept securely for up to seven years after your therapy comes to an end. After this time, they will be confidentially destroyed.
If your sessions are paid for or arranged via a third party, (e.g. your employer, a friend, or a family member), other than payment requests, invoices or receipts your counselling information will not be shared. Details about what is discussed in your sessions will remain confidential between us. Any other information can only be shared if you provide your written consent.
Your communications with me
All of our email communication is private and password protected. If you send an email to my email address, only I will have access to it.
Data Usage
I will only use your email address and telephone number to contact you about your appointments. I may also contact you directly via email in order to share information with you that is pertinent to your therapeutic process.
The option give your requested consent to receive information regarding other events and therapies provided will be given on your initial session registration.
Your phone number may also be used to issue appointment reminders via text message.
Your rights
Any personal data retained by me is kept in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA 2018). Under these guidelines you have the following rights:
- The Right to Request Access to Your Data – You can request to view the information that I hold about you (contact details, appointment logs etc.) at any time. If during therapy you would like to see your session notes, please let me know
- The Right of Rectification – At any point during your time using my service or during the seven years thereafter, while we retain your records, you have the right to request amendments to your contact details or session notes. This right can be exercised either by speaking directly to me or by contacting me in writing
- The Right to Be Forgotten – You can request that I delete and confidentially destroy the information that I hold about you and your sessions at any time. This request can be made by contacting me on email at susie@skyrose-wellbeing.co.uk
Instances where I would not be able to comply with your request are as follows:
- It is necessary for me to retain these records in order to continue providing an effective service
- I am compelled to retain these records by a Court of Law
- I require these records in order to establish, exercise or defend legal claims
Consent
When you book your first session with me you will be asked to provide a signature to confirm that you consent to the storage and processing of your personal data for the purposes of providing therapeutic services.
You are entitled to withdraw this consent at any time and can do so by emailing me at susie@skyrose-wellbeing.co.uk
Breaches of data protection
In the event of any breach of my data protection policies, I will notify you and the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) within 72 hours and will seek to rectify this immediately.
Raising concerns
Should you have any concerns about my data protection practices, please raise these directly with me by emailing susie@skyrosewellbeing.co.uk so I can work with you to resolve them. You may also notify the Information Commissioner’s Office. I am registered with ICO under reference ZB312743.