Legal & Data
Privacy Policy
Your privacy matters deeply to us at SENSE Counselling & Support is committed to handling your personal information with care, transparency, and respect — in line with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. This policy explains what information we collect, why we collect it, and your rights over it.
1. Who We Are
SENSE Counselling & Support is a private practice providing counselling and parent coaching services, with a specialism in supporting families of children with Autism and ADHD.
For the purposes of data protection law, SENSE Counselling & Support is the Data Controller — meaning we are responsible for deciding how and why your personal information is used.
Practice name: SENSE Counselling & Support
Contact: sensecounsellingsupport@gmail.com
Website: www.sensecounsellingandsupport.co.uk
If you have any questions about how we use your data, or wish to exercise your rights, please get in touch using the contact details above.
2. What Information We Collect
Contact & Enquiry Information
Your name, email address, and telephone number
Details you share when making an enquiry or booking
Client Information
Personal details (name, address, date of birth)
Emergency contact information
Information about your child(ren), including diagnosis, educational setting, and relevant history
Session notes and records of our work together
Correspondence (email, messages) relating to your sessions
Special Category Data
Some of the information we handle is classified as special category data under UK GDPR — this includes health information, mental health data, and neurodevelopmental diagnoses. We take extra care in how we handle and store this information.
Website & Technical Information
Basic analytics data (page visits, browser type) — collected anonymously where cookies are used
Any information you submit via a contact form on this website
3. Why We Use Your Information
To Provide Counselling & Coaching Services
We use your information to deliver sessions, keep appropriate clinical records, and communicate with you about your appointments. Our legal basis for this is contract (to fulfil our agreement with you) and, where health data is involved, the provision of mental health support services.
To Keep You Safe
As a qualified counsellor, we have professional and legal duties around safeguarding. In limited circumstances — where there is a serious risk of harm to you, your child, or others — we may need to share information with appropriate authorities. This is a legal obligation and/or vital interest basis under UK GDPR.
To Manage Our Practice
We use contact information to manage bookings, send appointment reminders, and handle invoicing. Our legal basis is legitimate interests in running the practice effectively.
To Respond to Enquiries
When you contact us via email or the website form, we use your information to respond to your questions. Our legal basis is legitimate interests.
4. How We Keep Your Information Safe
We take security seriously. Measures we have in place include:
Password-protected and encrypted devices
Secure, password-protected storage of digital records
Paper records stored in locked, secure storage
Secure, encrypted email where possible for sensitive correspondence
No sharing of client information via unsecured messaging apps
In the event of a data breach that is likely to result in a risk to your rights and freedoms, we are legally required to notify the ICO within 72 hours and, where appropriate, inform you directly.
5. Who We Share Your Information With
We do not sell, rent, or share your personal data with third parties for marketing purposes. We may share information only in the following circumstances:
Clinical Supervision
As part of our professional obligations, we discuss client work with a clinical supervisor. This is a requirement of our professional membership. Supervision is conducted under strict confidentiality; you will generally be referred to anonymously or by first name only.
Safeguarding & Legal Obligations
Where we have serious concerns about the safety of a child or adult, we may be required to share information with relevant statutory agencies (e.g. social services, the police) without your consent. We will inform you of this wherever it is safe and appropriate to do so.
Professional Bodies
In the event of a formal complaint, information may be reviewed by our professional accreditation body. This is a legitimate interest and legal obligation.
Third-Party Service Providers
We may use third-party tools (e.g. scheduling software, secure email, or video platforms for online sessions). Any such providers are carefully chosen for their data security standards, and we only share the minimum information necessary.
6. How Long We Keep Your Information
We retain records in line with professional guidance and legal requirements:
Adult client records: 7 years from the end of our work together
Records involving children: Until the child's 25th birthday (or 26th if they were 17 when work ended), or 8 years from the end of work — whichever is longer
Enquiry and contact data (non-clients): Deleted within 12 months if you do not become a client
Financial records: 6 years, in line with HMRC requirements
After the relevant retention period, records are securely destroyed.
7. Your Rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights in relation to your personal data:
Right of Access
Request a copy of the personal data we hold about you (a Subject Access Request).
Right to Rectification
Ask us to correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Right to Erasure
Request deletion of your data in certain circumstances ("the right to be forgotten").
Right to Restriction
Ask us to limit how we use your data in certain situations.
Right to Object
Object to processing based on legitimate interests.
Right to Portability
Receive your data in a portable format, where technically feasible.
Please note that some of these rights are limited where we have a legal or professional obligation to retain records (for example, clinical records held for safeguarding purposes).
To exercise any of these rights, please contact us using the details in Section 1. We will respond within one calendar month. There is no charge for most requests.
8. Cookies
Our website may use cookies — small text files stored on your device — to help it function and to understand how it is used. We do not use cookies to identify you personally.
Where we use analytics cookies (such as Google Analytics), these are set only with your consent via a cookie banner. You can withdraw consent at any time by adjusting your browser settings.
Essential cookies (required for the website to function) are used without consent, as permitted by UK law.
9. Online Sessions & Video Platforms
Where sessions are conducted online, we use a secure video platform. Please be aware that the platform provider will have their own privacy policy governing how they handle data. We recommend reviewing these before your first online session.
Sessions are never recorded without your explicit written consent.
10. Links to Other Websites
Our website may contain links to external sites (such as support organisations or professional bodies). We are not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites and encourage you to read their privacy policies.
11. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practice or in the law. The most current version will always be published on this page, along with the date it was last updated. Where changes are significant, we will notify active clients directly.
12. How to Make a Complaint
If you have concerns about how we have handled your personal data, please contact us in the first instance so we can try to resolve the matter.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK's data protection supervisory authority:
Information Commissioner's Office (ICO)
Website: ico.org.uk
Helpline: 0303 123 1113
Address: Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF
SENSE Counselling & Support
This policy was last reviewed May 2026. If you have questions, please get in touch.