Privacy Statement

 

Here at The Blissful Fox Counselling, I Sophie Hunt, am compliant and committed to the terms of the General Data Protection Regulation Act (GDPR) 2018. This includes being responsible for securing your personal data, once collected by myself. I am registered with the ICO, (Information Commissioners Office), reference number: ZB391380.

This privacy statement governs the manner in which The Blissful Fox Counselling, uses, discloses and maintains the personal information collected from clients using it’s counselling services. The privacy statement applies to the private practice, online, telephone and face to face services offered and practiced by The Blissful Fox Counselling.

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 Due to the nature of my counselling service, it is necessary I process personal data in my role. For more information on the personal information I collect please read the following:

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Use of your information and confidentiality
The personal information that I collect from you is used to provide a service structured to your requirements. I will not share your personal information without your knowledge and permission. However there may be a legal and ethical requirement to share your information, such instances could be: a safeguarding issue, a possible risk of harm to yourself or others, or a legal requirement. I would attempt to consult you first in these circumstances. I am required to attend clinical supervision, which may involve sharing your session details with my supervisor, who is also committed to confidentiality. This is to ensure that my practice and my work as a counsellor remains ethical and safe.

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I first collect information from you once you enquire about having counselling. This information helps me to set up an initial telephone appointment. I will ask for information such as: your contact details, weekly availability for appointments, and information that tells me your reasons for coming to counselling.

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If we agree to continue after an initial telephone call, I will invite you to a follow up appointment where I will deliver an assessment. This will also provide me with further information from you: including items such as date of birth, gender, ethnicity and cultural background, supporting others, current support networks, occupation, GP details, alcohol/drug in take, current/ past medication, any serious health issues/ allergies, or mental health diagnosis/ past treatment, risk factors, current/ongoing legal court involvement, past experience of counselling, and further details on what presenting issues you would like to explore in counselling. If we establish that we would like to work together therapeutically, I will require you to sign a copy of a contract as well as a copy of this privacy statement, both will be kept separately from your personal information, and securely locked in a filing cabinet, or securely stored electronically in some cases.

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Further security information
I take the protection of your personal information and data very seriously and will do my very best to take all precautions to prevent your information becoming lost, misused, or altered, by managing and storing it responsibly.

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Communications from myself to you will be sent via email. These emails will not be encrypted unless you ask and give permission that emails be encrypted. I could also at times contact you via phone or text, but I will check your permission to contact you in this way beforehand. Emails are not 100% completely fully secure, unless they are encrypted. I will always endeavour to keep my communications and software protected and updated. However if my systems/ communications became effected by viruses/ harmful software, or hacking, I cannot bear responsibility for all my communications with you to be virus free/ confidential. I am also not responsible for how third party websites collect, store, or use information that may or may not have a link to my website. This also applies to the of using PayPal, or online banking, full names of individuals receiving or sending money do appear on both of these platforms. PayPal’s privacy & data policy can be found on their website.

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I will keep brief notes on our sessions and am required to keep these notes for the duration of 7 years once you end counselling. Your contact details however will be erased 3 months after your counselling officially ends. Your identity will be protected and anonymised in my notes, (as well as on my work phone), names will be replaced with letters, numbers or symbols. Any contact details held will be stored separately from your client notes, to protect your identity further. Any notes/ information which are stored electronically are double password protected to ensure their protection, with additional password to access the electronical device.

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In the event of my sudden death, you would need to be notified of the situation. Your name and phone number would be shared with my therapeutic executor, who would then proceed to contact you and inform you of the situation. An agreement would be signed by my therapeutic executor.

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Working online
It is important that counselling takes place in a private and confidential space, and so I ask that you attend online sessions on your own even when held via a video software platform or via telephone. Recording sessions in any way will be considered a breach of the counselling agreement contract.

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I use the secure and confidential platform Zoom to provide sessions to my clients who choose to attend counselling online. However confidentiality cannot be guaranteed under all circumstances, and I cannot be responsible if monitoring is performed by computer service providers or state agencies, this could pose a threat to confidentiality.

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Your rights over personal data
If you wish to view the information I hold about you, you are welcome to discuss this with me and we can arrange an appropriate time to do so. At your request you may also update, or delete parts of the information, however not including information which I am legally required to keep.

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I am committed to resolving any concerns you may have over how I hold your personal information and data, but you may wish to contact the ICO if you feel your concerns are not resolved.