Privacy Notice
This Privacy Notice was last reviewed in May 2024.
Please note, changes to wording have been made to help make it easier to read and understand.
The purpose of this privacy notice is designed to notify you of how you can expect counselling@unit12 to use your personal data when you contact us or use one of our services to be referred to one of the counsellors listed on this website. How the different counsellors handle your personal data will depend on their systems and processes. You can find privacy notices relating to each of the counsellors under these links:
Ed Magee: www.cau12.com/ed-magee-privacy
Allison Woodley: www.cau12.com/allison-woodley-privacy
Andy Wareham: www.cau12.com/andy-wareham-privacy
Diana Alejandra Pinzón: www.cau12.com/diana-alejandra-pinzon-privacy
Jenny Harrison: www.cau12.com/jenny-harrison-privacy
Jo Turley: www.cau12.com/jo-turley-privacy
Mandy Keene: www.cau12.com/mandy-keene-privacy
Mandy Martin: www.cau12.com/mandy-martin-privacy
Rachel Burrows: www.cau12.com/rachel-burrows-privacy
Sandra Woolsey: www.cau12.com/sandra-woolsey-privacy
If you are looking for information about the cookies our website uses, please refer to our cookie policy at www.cau12.com/cookie-policy.
This privacy notice has been written in a way that we hope is clear and easy to understand. However, in order to keep it concise we might refer to terms or situations which are not immediately obvious to you. If you come across anything that you would like to have explained, please do contact us by emailing administrator@cau12.com and we will do our best to provide further clarification.
As a counselling practice we highly value your right to privacy. As such we will only use the personal data that you entrust us with for the purpose which it was given to us. We adhere to the current UK data protection legislation, including the Data Protection Act 2018, General Data Protection Regulation (EU/2016/679 - GDPR) and Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 (PECR).
Ed Magee, who is the main Data Controller for counselling@unit12, is registered with the information Commissioners Office (ICO) with the number: ZA835595
This privacy notice covers the following points:
What personal data we collect
The purposes of processing your personal data
The legal basis for processing your personal data
How we store your personal data
Who we share your personal data with and why
How long your personal data is retained
Your rights around the use of your personal data
How to contact the authority if you have concerns
What personal data do counselling@unit12 collect?
When you initially make contact with us, we will collect some basic contact information, including:
Your name
The name and age of a child or young person you are applying on behalf of
Your preferred contact information, i.e. your email address or a telephone number
The reason that you are seeking counselling
These details will be used by counselling@unit12 to determine which the therapists who use our service are in a position to help you address the reasons you are seeking counselling and potentially arrange an initial conversation.
The purposes of processing your personal data
As might reasonably be expected, the Data Protection Act 2018 and GDPR both state that personal data can only be collected and used if there is a legal reason for doing so.
The below table will hopefully help show you which legal condition we are relying upon when using your personal data.
| What data | What it is used for | Legal condition | Legitimate Interests |
|---|---|---|---|
| Name and/or contact details | Communications - e.g. initial enquiry | Performance of contract | N/A |
| Health information, e.g. details relating to current emotional state | Assessment whether suitable service can be offered | Performance of contract | N/A |
| Name and/or contact details of other therapists | Referrals | Explicit Consent | N/A |
How counselling@unit12 stores your personal data
Electronic records, such as your contact details, are stored in a number of different systems, all of which have been carefully selected on grounds of the security they enforce, as far as is reasonably practical. All systems are set up with unique username and strong password combinations and utilise access controls to restrict unauthorised access.
The types of system being used are covered in the section “Who counselling@unit12 shares your personal data with and why”.
Who counselling@unit12 shares your personal data with and why
Confidentiality is at the heart of all we do as a counselling practice. As such, we do our best to ensure that your personal data is kept safe and secure. However, there are instances when your personal data may need to be shared with third parties. Below is a list of third parties that you can expect your personal data to be shared with, and in what situation.
| Recipient of data | Reason for sharing data | Type of data shared |
|---|---|---|
| Email provider | To enable us to communicate with you. | Whatever personal data you include in an email; including information such name and contact information and, in the case of the initial enquiry, details regarding the reason that you are seeking counselling. |
| Website provider | To enable you to submit an enquiry to see one of the therapists who use our service. | Name, contact information and reason for seeking counselling if supplied using the website’s Contact Form. |
| Emergency services | In the event that an emergency took place during a counselling session, or if a safeguarding issue was raised, we might be required to contact one of the emergency services and provide them with your personal data. Please note, where possible, we will always seek to get your consent prior to contacting the emergency services. |
- Name and contact details – to help the emergency services identify you. - Details relating to your safety or a serious crime that you have disclosed, should it be our legal requirement to do so. |
| Other therapists | Should counselling@unit12 not be able to provide the help needed, we may ask for your consent to refer your contact information to another therapist. | - Name and contact information. - General information relating to the reason you are seeking counselling. |
If you are a therapist who works with counselling@unit12 the following also applies:
| Recipient of data | Reason for sharing data | Type of data shared |
|---|---|---|
| Room booking software | To manage the availability of the counselling rooms at our location. Please note, no client information will be added to any booking made in the Room Booking system. |
Name and contact information. |
How long counselling@unit12 retains your personal data
Following your initial contact with counselling@unit12, we will retain your contact information for the period of up to one (1) calendar month, to enable communication prior to your first therapy session.
Should you, at that stage, decide not to proceed with attending counselling with one of our counsellors, or should there not be availability to offer you an appointment at the time, your personal data will be deleted after the above stated calendar month has elapsed.
Other instances of personal data that is handled through our website includes:
| What data |
Retention period |
|---|---|
| Referral list of other therapists displayed on the counselling@unit12 website, including name and contact information. |
Until such a time as the therapist withdraws consent for their details to be displayed in this manner. |
Your rights relating to your personal data
Your personal data belongs to you. As a client of counselling@unit12 you entrust your personal data to us, so that we can provide you with the therapeutic help that you are seeking, but you retain certain rights over your data and how it is used.
Below are a list of your rights and how you can exercise them.
The right to be informed
In a nutshell, this is your right to know how and why your data is being collected and used by counselling@unit12. We hope that this privacy Notice provides you with that information. Should anything be unclear though, please do not hesitate to contact us by email on administrator@cau12.com.
The right of access
You have a right to know what data we hold on you. As the controller of your data, counselling@unit12 is required to respond to any request that you make to see the data we hold within 30 days of you making such a request. This is commonly referred to as a Data Subject Access Request. If you would like to see the data we hold on you, please either email administrator@cau12.com or speak to your counsellor if you have started your counselling work with us already.
Please note, while it may sound contradictory, to properly protect your privacy, we may be required to request additional personal data to verify your identity before providing the personal data to you if you email us with a data subject access request. This is in an effort to stop other people claiming to be you from getting access to your personal data.
The right to rectification
You have the right to ensure that any personal data that you have provided counselling@unit12 with is correct. As such, if your circumstances change, for example you get a new contact telephone number, or wish to change your preferred method of contact from telephone to email, please do provide us with the up-to-date information and we will correct our records immediately.
Please note, there may be circumstances when we are not required to follow up on you exercising your right for rectification. Full details about this right can be found here:
www.ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/your-right-to-get-your-data-corrected
The right to erasure
This right allows you to ask counselling@unit12 to delete the personal data we hold on you. However, there are certain instances when we would not be able to honour your request, including those were we are under legal obligations to retain the data, for instance the HMRC requirement for our financial records to be held for 5 financial years.
Also, please note, while you are actively engaged with the counselling work, we would not be able to delete the personal data that we hold on you, as this is required by us to fulfil our side of the working agreement.
The right to restrict processing
Related to your right to erasure, you have a right to restricting how we use the personal data that you have provided us with. This right is closely linked to your right to erasure, and also has some restrictions as to when it can be exercised.
If you would like more information about this right, you can find some here:
https://ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/your-right-to-limit-how-organisations-use-your-data
The right to data portability
Should you wish to move from using counselling@unit12 to another therapist, you have the right to request that we make the personal data we hold on you available in a format that easily accessible and machine-readable. Specifically, this right applies to data we hold electronically.
Should you wish to exercise this right, please do contact us via email at administrator@cau12.com.
The right to object
Another right that is similar to both the ‘right to erasure’ and the ‘right to restrict processing’ is your right to ask us to stop using your data at any time.
This again does only apply in certain circumstances, so please do contact us at administrator@cau12.com to discuss this exercising right. Also, you can find additional information here:
https://ico.org.uk/your-data-matters/the-right-to-object-to-the-use-of-your-data
Rights in relation to automated decision making and profiling
Here at counselling@unit12, we do not profile you or make any automated decisions regarding you in any way. As such, while this is a right you have, it does not apply to the services we provide.
How to contact the authority if you have concerns
If you have any concerns around the use of your personal data, we would prefer it is you would address these with us first. You can either contact us by email at administrator@cau12.com or, if you are a current client, you can speak to your counsellor.
However, if you do not feel that we are providing you with a satisfactory response, you are also entitled to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), which is the UK’s independent authority set up to uphold information rights in the public interest, promoting openness by public bodies and data privacy for individuals.
You can contact the ICO via their website: https://ico.org.uk