Therapy for Trauma, PTSD, Anxiety and Depression
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is new legislation that comes into effect on 25th May 2018. Under this law, you have a right to know what information I collect, how I use it and the circumstances in which it may be shared.
The personal information you provide to Calm the Chaos Counselling will be used for legitimate business interests, that is, to provide you with a professional counselling service.
At your initial appointment you will be given a copy of this privacy notice along with the Counselling Contract.
Your Personal Data
Information kept includes:
Sensitive Personal Data (Special Category Data)
Some of the information collected may be sensitive personal data including ethnic origin, religious beliefs and physical and mental health. Such data will only be used to provide a counselling service in accordance with legal obligations. Sensitive personal data is stored as part of, but separate to, your clinical notes. Your clinical notes are anonymised with a unique code. All documents are password protected.
Why I need it
| Data | Why it is kept |
| Name, date of birth, occupation | Basic information about yourself that helps me to get to know you. |
| Address, email address and telephone number | I use this as a way of contacting you about our sessions. Address is also kept in case I felt you were at risk and needed to request a police safety check. |
| Emergency contact | In case anything happens to you within our session, for instance if you become suddenly ill and I needed to contact someone. |
| GP Details | If I felt you were at risk than I may need to contact your GP. Where possible, and if appropriate, I will discuss this with you first. |
| Session Notes | Standard professional procedure requires summary notes to be made of each session which refreshes your counsellor's memory of what was discussed in sessions. |
| Sensitive Personal Data ("Special Category Data") | This information helps me to get to know you and make an initial assessment of your circumstances including any history of depression and anxiety |
Data I have a legal obligation to keep
I am required by my insurance company to keep session notes for a period of 5 years after the end of therapy, after which they are destroyed by either deletion or shredding.
You have a right to request to see or have amended any personal information I may keep about you. You also have the right to request that I delete information that I hold about you. You also have the right to object to the processing and use of your personal data.
We will not share any information about you with other organisations or people, except in the following situations:
Consent – I may share your information with other professionals whom you have requested or agreed I should contact.
Serious harm – I may share your information with the relevant authorities if I have reason to believe that this may prevent serious harm being caused to you or another person.
Clinical Executor – If for any reason I become incapacitated and unable to work your information will be passed onto my Clinical Executor so they can contact you and make suitable arrangements.
Compliance with the law – for instance if I am required by a court of law
I operate a paperless storage system. In addition to password protection of any document containing sensitive personal data, the electronic storage of this information is via accounts that require two-factor authentication. Your telephone number may be kept in my mobile phone which is also password protected.
Your identifiable information is kept separately from any session notes and are linked by a unique code.
For legal reasons I keep your personal information record and session notes for 5 years after the end of therapy, which is the time frame my insurance company requires. After this they are destroyed by deletion.
The following will be shredded or deleted within 3 months of our work finishing:
If you wish to complain about how your data is handled, in the first instance contact, Janine McCorry, who is the Data Controller at Calm the Chaos Counselling.
Tel: 07392 766305
Email: calmthechaoscounselling@gmail.com
If your complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction you can contact the Information Commissions Office at https://ico.org.uk/concerns/handling/ or call 0303 123 1113.
