Privacy & Data Protection Notice

Mainstone Counselling

Last updated: [11.10.26]

At Mainstone Counselling, your privacy and confidentiality are important to us. We are committed to protecting your personal information and handling it in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation, including the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.

This Privacy Notice explains what personal information we collect, why we collect it, how we use and store it, when we may share it, and the rights you have in relation to your information.

1. Contact details

If you have any questions about this Privacy Notice or how your personal information is handled, please contact:

Mainstone Counselling

Telephone: 07903 619191
Email: jodie@mainstonecounselling.com

2. What information we collect and why

The personal information we collect will depend on your relationship with Mainstone Counselling and the services you use.

Client accounts and administration

We may collect and use:

• Your name and contact details.

• Your address.

• Client registration and account information.

• Information needed to manage appointments and administer our services.

We use this information to manage client relationships, communicate with you and provide our services effectively.

Enquiries and initial consultations

When you contact us to enquire about counselling, we may collect information such as:

• Your name and contact details.

• Your date of birth, where relevant.

• Your gender and preferred pronouns, where relevant.

• Your occupation and other relevant background information.

• Information you choose to share about your circumstances, health and wellbeing.

• Information about family members or other third parties, where relevant to your enquiry or support.

• Records of relevant communications, meetings and decisions.

We use this information to respond to your enquiry, assess your needs and consider whether our counselling services are suitable for you.

Counselling and client wellbeing

To provide safe and effective counselling, we may collect and use:

• Your contact and client account details.

• Relevant health and wellbeing information.

• Information about your personal circumstances and therapeutic needs.

• Therapeutic notes and relevant feedback.

• Emergency contact details.

• Information necessary to assess and respond to safeguarding concerns.

Information about your physical or mental health is considered special category personal data under UK data protection law and receives additional protection.

Payments and financial administration

Where applicable, we may process payment-related information, such as details needed to manage fees, payments, refunds or bank transfers. We will only collect financial information that is necessary for these purposes.

Legal and safeguarding responsibilities

Where necessary, we may collect and use personal information to meet our legal obligations and protect individuals from harm. This may include:

• Contact and client account details.

• Relevant health and safety information.

• Safeguarding information.

• Health information.

• Criminal offence information, where necessary and lawful.

• Other information required to meet applicable legal obligations.

We only process sensitive information, including health information and criminal offence data, where an appropriate legal condition permits us to do so.

Updates and marketing

If you choose to receive updates from Mainstone Counselling, we may use your name and contact details to send relevant information about our services.

You can withdraw your consent to marketing communications at any time by contacting us. We will not use your information for marketing purposes without an appropriate lawful basis.

3. Our lawful bases for using your information

Data protection law requires us to have a lawful basis for processing personal information. Depending on the purpose, we may rely on the following:

Consent

Where appropriate, we will ask for your permission before collecting or using information for a specific purpose, such as receiving marketing communications. You can withdraw your consent at any time. Withdrawal does not affect processing that took place lawfully before you withdrew consent.

Legal obligation

We may need to process personal information to comply with legal requirements.

Legitimate interests

We may process information where it is necessary for our legitimate interests, or those of a third party, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests. These interests may include administering our services, maintaining appropriate records and supporting safe and effective therapy.

Vital interests

Where necessary, we may process personal information to protect someone's life or prevent serious harm, particularly in an emergency.

For health information and other special category data, we will also need to meet an additional condition under data protection law. Where criminal offence data is processed, the relevant legal requirements for that type of information must also be satisfied.

4. Confidentiality and safeguarding

Counselling relies on trust, and we treat the information you share with us with care and respect.

We will not routinely share information about your counselling with others without an appropriate lawful basis. However, confidentiality is not absolute.

In certain circumstances, we may need to share relevant information where:

• There is a serious risk of harm to you or another person.

• There is a safeguarding concern involving a child or an adult at risk.

• We are required to disclose information by law or a court order.

• Sharing information is otherwise necessary and lawful to protect someone's vital interests.

Where appropriate and safe to do so, we will aim to discuss a necessary disclosure with you before making it. We will only share information that is relevant and proportionate to the circumstances.

5. Where we get your information

We usually obtain personal information directly from you when you contact us, complete registration information or take part in counselling.

Where appropriate and lawful, we may also receive relevant information from other mental health professionals or healthcare providers as part of a referral or to support continuity of care.

6. How long we keep your information

We retain adult client counselling and psychotherapy records for seven years following the end of the therapeutic relationship, in accordance with our professional record keeping policy.

Records relating to children and young people, safeguarding concerns or other circumstances requiring longer retention may be kept for an extended period where legally or professionally necessary.

Once the relevant retention period has expired, records will be securely deleted or destroyed, unless there is a lawful reason to retain them for longer.

7. Who we share your information with

We respect your privacy and do not share your personal information routinely. Where necessary, appropriate and lawful, information may be shared with:

• Emergency services, where there is an urgent concern for someone's safety or wellbeing.

• Relevant authorities or organisations where disclosure is required by law.

• Other professionals involved in a referral or continuity of care, where an appropriate lawful basis exists.

We will consider confidentiality, safeguarding responsibilities and data protection requirements before sharing information.

8. Your data protection rights

Under UK data protection law, you may have the right to:

• Access: Request a copy of the personal information we hold about you.

• Rectification: Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.

• Erasure: Ask us to delete your personal information in certain circumstances.

• Restriction: Ask us to limit how we use your information in certain circumstances.

• Object: Object to certain types of processing, including processing based on legitimate interests.

• Data portability: Request your information in a portable format where the legal conditions apply.

• Withdraw consent: Withdraw consent where we rely on consent as our lawful basis.

These rights are subject to certain conditions and exemptions. For example, we may need to retain some counselling records where there is a legal or other lawful reason to do so.

To exercise your rights, please contact us using the details in Section 1. We will respond without undue delay and generally within one month, subject to any lawful extension or applicable exemption.

You can find further information about your rights on the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) website: https://ico.org.uk/

9. How to make a complaint

If you have concerns about how Mainstone Counselling handles your personal information, please contact us in the first instance so we can try to resolve the issue.

Email: jodie@mainstonecounselling.com
Telephone: 07903 619191

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's independent data protection regulator.

Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)

Website: https://ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/
Telephone: 0303 123 1113

10. Changes to this Privacy Notice

We may update this Privacy Notice from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal obligations or the way we handle personal information. The latest version will be made available on our website, together with the date it was last updated.

If you have any questions about this notice or how your information is handled, please contact Mainstone Counselling using the details provided above.