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PRIVACY POLICY

Data Protection and Privacy Policy

I, Sharon Fox, am registered with the Information Commissioners Office as the data controller for The Redditch Therapist.

I collect and hold only the data about you that I need to in order to provide a safe service. This data is not shared with anyone without your prior knowledge and consent, unless I am in a position where I have a obligation to report due to legal reasons or because of duty of care of e.g. imminent danger to self or others; suspicion of abuse of a child; knowledge of a crime that is about to take place. In any of these instances I would not require your consent to share this information, though would always attempt to ensure your knowledge of the process.

This data is part of our shared agreement.

Contact details

I ask you to provide contact details - name, phone/mobile number and email address.

Contact details allow me to get in touch with you about, for example, changes to appointment times, cancellations, or appointments you haven't attended.

Phone numbers are stored in the passcode-protected smartphone I use specifically for work purposes, using initials only, if further identification is needed (e.g. if I have multiple clients with the same initials) I may use a second initial too.

Client Notes

I keep minimal digital notes of our sessions. These notes may contain information that is deemed sensitive by the Information Commissioner's Office (e.g. about mental health conditions). Only initials and a client number are used on these notes, which are password protected.

I will keep these notes for three years after the end of your counselling process and after three years the notes will be deleted. However, in the case of children (under 18) I have a legal obligation to keep client notes for seven years from the 18th birthday, at which time these notes will be deleted.

If You Don't Consent

If you do not consent to The Redditch Therapist collecting and holding this data I will not be able to work with you. This is a decision I make to protect your safety. My duty of care means it would be unsafe and unethical of me to work with a client for whom I held no information.

Right to Access Data

You have a right to access the data The Redditch Therapist holds on you. To do this email theredditchtherapist@gmail.com. Data held will be passed to you within a month.

Right of Erasure

You have right to request that The Redditch Therapist deletes your personal data. The decision about whether I can comply with this request will take into account any legal requirements I must meet about keeping specific data (e.g. regarding a child's counselling process).

Website Cookies

The Redditch Therapist website is hosted by 123 Web Services and captures both Session (Transient) & Persistent (Permanent/Stored) cookies.

Session (Transient) cookies: these cookies are erased when you close your browser, and do not collect information from your computer. They typically store information in the form of a session identification that does not personally identify the user.

Persistent (Permanent/Stored) cookies: these cookies are stored on your hard drive until they expire (i.e based on a set expiration date) or until you delete them. These cookies are used to collect identifying information about the user, such as Web surfing behavior or user preferences for a specific site.

For more information about cookies and instructions on deleting them, please click the "Use of Cookies" link at the bottom of the page.