Last updated: 28 October 2026
I am an independent counsellor providing private counselling services in the UK. I am the data controller for my practice and am responsible for how your personal information is collected, used, stored and protected.
I am a member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and work in accordance with its Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions.
My professional membership details:
You can read the BACP Ethical Framework and find information about its complaints procedures at www.bacp.co.uk/ethical-framework/.
I am registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).
My ICO registration details:
If you have any questions about this privacy notice or how I handle your personal information, please contact me using the contact details provided on my website.
I may collect and hold the following information:
Information about your health, emotional wellbeing and personal circumstances may constitute special category personal data under data protection law and receives additional protection.
I collect personal information directly from you when you contact me, complete my website contact form, arrange appointments, complete an assessment, attend counselling sessions or communicate with me by email, telephone or text message.
I use this information to respond to enquiries, establish whether counselling is appropriate, arrange appointments and provide counselling services.
I process personal data in accordance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
For information necessary to respond to enquiries and arrange or provide counselling, I use the applicable lawful basis under Article 6 of the UK GDPR. This may include taking steps at your request before entering into a counselling agreement or processing information necessary to fulfil our agreement.
Counselling may involve processing special category personal data, including information about your physical or mental health and other sensitive aspects of your life. I will ensure that an appropriate condition under Article 9 of the UK GDPR and the relevant provisions of the Data Protection Act 2018 apply to this processing.
I explain how your information will be used, how it will be protected and the circumstances in which it may be shared. Where I rely on consent as the legal basis for a particular use of your information, you may withdraw that consent. Withdrawal does not affect the lawfulness of processing carried out before consent was withdrawn. If you withdraw consent, I will consider whether I can continue to process the relevant information under another lawful basis and condition, where applicable.
After counselling ends, I retain relevant records for seven years after your last appointment, as described in this privacy notice. This retention period is intended to support my professional responsibilities and appropriate record-keeping. I will retain information only for as long as justified and will securely destroy or delete it when it is no longer required, subject to any applicable legal obligations or other lawful reasons for retention.
I protect your confidentiality and will only disclose identifiable information where authorised or where there is an appropriate legal or ethical justification. Any disclosure will be considered carefully and limited to what is necessary and proportionate in the circumstances.
I maintain appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your personal information and restrict access to those who need it for legitimate purposes.
I do not sell your personal information or use it for unrelated marketing purposes.
What you share in counselling is treated as confidential. I take reasonable steps to protect your privacy and will not routinely share identifiable information with other people.
As a BACP member, I undertake clinical supervision to support safe, ethical and effective practice.
I may discuss aspects of my counselling work with my clinical supervisor. Wherever practicable, I will anonymise information or remove identifying details. Any sharing of identifiable information will be considered carefully in accordance with my professional responsibilities, confidentiality commitments and applicable law.
There are limited circumstances in which information may need to be shared without your consent. These may include:
Where appropriate and safe to do so, I will try to discuss any proposed disclosure with you first. I will share only information that is necessary for the purpose.
I use a combination of electronic and handwritten records.
I take reasonable steps to protect personal information against unauthorised access, loss, alteration or disclosure. This includes taking appropriate precautions to secure my devices, restrict access to records and keep handwritten notes secure.
Some information may be processed by service providers that help me operate my practice.
IONOS provides my website hosting and email services. Information submitted through the website contact form and communications sent by email may be processed through these services.
Google Meet is used for online counselling. Although I do not record sessions, Google may process technical and other information associated with providing its service in accordance with its applicable privacy terms.
These providers operate under their respective terms and privacy arrangements. Further information about their handling of personal data is available through their privacy notices.
I do not sell your personal information to third parties.
I retain counselling records for seven years after your last appointment. At the end of this period, I will securely destroy handwritten clinical notes and securely delete relevant electronic records, unless there is a lawful or otherwise justified reason to retain particular information for longer.
Information relating to initial enquiries that do not lead to counselling will be kept only for as long as necessary to respond to and manage the enquiry. It will then be securely deleted or destroyed when no longer required.
Financial records and other information may be retained for different periods where required by applicable legal or professional obligations.
I try to be as open as possible about the personal information I hold about you and how I use it.
Under data protection law, you have rights relating to your personal information. Depending on the circumstances, these include the right to ask me to:
You may also have the right to object to certain uses of your personal information.
These rights are subject to legal conditions and exemptions. For example, I may need to retain some counselling records to meet my professional responsibilities, insurance requirements or legal obligations.
You can find out more about your data protection rights at ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/.
If I hold personal information about you and you make a valid request, I will provide you with the information you are entitled to receive. This includes:
I will respond to requests within the applicable legal time limits.
To request access to your personal information, or to exercise any of your other data protection rights, please contact me in writing or by email using the contact details provided on my website.
I may need to verify your identity before responding to a request.
Online counselling takes place using Google Meet. I do not record sessions.
I take reasonable steps to protect the confidentiality of online sessions. You can also help protect your privacy by joining sessions from a private space, using a secure internet connection and ensuring that other people cannot overhear the conversation.
Please be aware that online communications carry some privacy and security risks. If you have concerns about using Google Meet, please discuss these with me.
If you have any concerns about how I collect, store or use your personal information, please contact me in writing or by email using the contact details provided on my website.
I welcome questions, feedback and suggestions that may help me improve the way I protect personal information. I will take your concerns seriously and aim to address them appropriately.
If you are unhappy with how I have handled your personal information, you can also make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent data protection regulator.
Website: ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
Telephone: 0303 123 1113
As a member of BACP, I work in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions.
If you have concerns about my counselling practice, I encourage you to discuss them with me where appropriate. You can also consult the Ethical Framework and information about BACP's complaints and professional conduct procedures.
BACP Ethical Framework: www.bacp.co.uk/ethical-framework/
BACP website and complaints information: www.bacp.co.uk/
I may update this privacy notice if my practice, record-keeping arrangements or legal obligations change. The latest version will be made available on my website.
If a significant change affects how I use your personal information, I will take appropriate steps to bring it to your attention.