Privacy policy
Protecting your personal information.
This Privacy Policy, relates to the website, use of emails and texts for the purposes of contacting you about the service, and any other ways I collect information. It covers how I process any personal information you provide, as well as how I am committed to keeping it safe and managing it in line with data protection laws.
WHAT INFORMATION I COLLECT
The main pieces of information I collect are:
- Name
- Mobile phone number
- Email address
- Postal address
WHEN I COLLECT YOUR INFORMATION
There are a few occasions when I might collect information from you. These include when:
- You first call or email to make an enquiry about the service;
or to make an appointment. - You complete & return the Intake Form & Therapy Agreement.
- I conduct the Initial Assessment.
I do not have any features that collect any information from you via a contact form, comment boxes or payment facility on my website.
HOW I COLLECT YOUR INFORMATION
I collect information in the following ways:
- When you give it to me directly.
I do not collect your data in any other way. I will only ever get it from you.
HOW I PROTECT YOUR INFORMATION
I am fully trained in the importance of maintaining confidentiality. I go to great lengths to keep all your information safe. I invest in the appropriate resources to protect your personal information from loss, misuse, unauthorised access, modification or disclosure. I make sure I manage it in accordance with my legal responsibilities under applicable data protection laws.
However, no internet-based platform, including email, is 100% secure, so I cannot be held responsible for unauthorised or unintended access that is beyond my control. When we communicate via email, there is always the possibility that email platforms can be hacked; or email transmission may not be encrypted when corresponding back and forth. I remain mindful of this and ensure that I do everything in my capability to protect your personal information.
HOW I USE AND PROCESS YOUR INFORMATION
After I have received your information, there are a few ways in which I might use it to ensure I give you the best possible service. They include:
- To help me to identify you when you contact me.
- To contact you to make, confirm, cancel or reschedule
appointments. - To respond to any queries or complaints that you raise.
- If I have a legal obligation to use or disclose information
about you for instance, where I am ordered by a court or regulatory authority. - For any other purpose to which you agree.
I will not disclose your information to any third party except in accordance with this Privacy Policy.
HOW I KEEP YOUR INFORMATION SAFE AND WHO HAS ACCESS TO IT
I want you to know that I will never sell or pass on your personal information to third parties for their own purposes.
As all therapists are required to keep appropriate records of their client work, I may keep some brief notes of your sessions. The notes are pseudo-anonymised and do not contain any of the information I collect from you, as detailed above. Pseudo-anonymised notes are kept in a locked cabinet or on a password protected secure computer in accordance with data protection laws.
HOW I RETAIN YOUR INFORMATION
My professional insurance requires that all my records are kept for 5 years following the completion of therapy or for children & young people for 5 years after their 18th birthday after which time they will be destroyed.
HOW I WILL COMMUNICATE WITH YOU
I will only ever communicate with you via email or telephone (calls or texts), outside of our face to face or online sessions.
VISITING THRID PARTY WEBSITES
This website may contain links to other websites that I believe may be of interest to you. This Privacy Policy only applies to this website, so if you link to another website, I recommend you read the privacy policy of that website before sharing any personal or financial data.
COOKIES
Like most websites, I use ‘cookies’ to help improve how I create, and how you use, this site. Cookies mean that a website will remember you and can obtain an overall view of visitor habits and volumes to this website. They can make interacting with a website faster and easier.
Cookies are small text files stored on your computer by websites that you visit. They are used by most websites in order to make them work efficiently, to make controls respond properly and to provide information to owners of web sites, or third parties. The cookies stored by this site cannot be used to identify you personally.
If you want to know how to disable the use of cookies on your device, visit aboutcookies.org. Please note that if you turn off the use of cookies on the website, you are likely to find your browsing experience significantly degraded.
WHAT YOUR RIGHTS ARE
I want to make sure you’re in control of how your information is used and stored.
You have the right to:
- be told how your personal information will be used;
- request a copy of the information I hold about you;
- update or amend the information I hold about you if it is
wrong; - change your communication preferences at any time;
- ask me to remove your personal information from my
records (see ‘How We Retain Your Information’ above) although there are exemptions to the ‘right to be forgotten’ which will usually apply to therapy notes due to insurance requirements & the possibility of legal claims. - request an electronic copy of your personal information be sent
to you; - raise a concern or complaint about the way in which your
information is being used.
If you wish to find out more about these rights, have any questions about this Privacy Policy, have anything you’d like to correct, or you’d like to request a copy of the information I hold about you, please contact:
Email: nicolawildin@coldashcounselling.com
To complain about how I handle your data in the first instance it is necessary to raise this with me at the above email address & I will respond within 30 days. If the outcome is not satisfactory you can contact the Information Commissioner’s Office website at https://ico.org.uk/for-the-public/