Sharon McAulay Counselling
Person-Centred Counselling for individuals
Privacy Statement - your rights, your information and how we use it
Sharon McAulay Counselling is committed to protecting your personal information. Our Privacy Statement contains important information about what personal details we collect; what we do with that information; who we may share it with and why; and your choices and rights when it comes to the personal information you have given us. We may need to make changes to our Privacy Statement; so please check our website for updates from time to time. This version of our Privacy Statement was last updated May 2018.
How to contact us If you have any questions about our Privacy Statement or the information we collect or use about you, please contact;
Information we collect and use
Information about you that we may collect and use includes: ·
Information about who you are e.g. your name, date and contact details ·
Information about your employer/employment if you’re referred via an EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) service
Information about when you engage with our counselling service e.g. diary appointments
Information about your contact with us e.g. phone messages or texts, emails/letters
Information classified as ‘sensitive’ personal information e.g. relating to your health, marital or civil partnership status. This information will only be collected where it’s needed to provide the service you have requested or to comply with our legal obligations, and only with your explicit consent
Information on children e.g. where a child is named by a parent or guardian in lieu of an appointment. In these cases, we will collect and use only the information required to identify the child (such as their name, age, gender)
Where we collect your information
We may collect your personal information directly from you, from a variety of sources, including:
Referral forms or details from your employer
Phone conversations
Emails or letters you send
Attendance appointments
Social media messages
What we collect and use your information for
We take your privacy seriously and we will only ever collect and use information which is personal to you where it is necessary, fair and lawful to do so. We will collect and use your information only where:
You have given us your permission [consent] to contact you
It’s necessary to provide the service e.g. if you wish to arrange appointments It’s in the legitimate interests of Sharon McAulay Counselling e.g. so we can carry out our obligations arising from any contractual agreements with you and trusted referrers.
If you do not wish us to collect and use your personal information in these ways, it may mean that we will be unable to provide you with our service
Who we may share your information with
We may share some of your information with third parties for the reasons outlined in 'What we collect and use your information for.' These third parties include:
Organisations that provide an EAP service to your employer
Other referrers e.g. GP’s
We will never sell your details to someone else. Whenever we share your personal information, we will do so in line with our obligations to keep your information safe and secure.
Where your information is processed
All of your information is processed in the UK.
How we protect your information
We take information and system security very seriously and we strive to comply with our obligations at all times. Any personal information which is collected, recorded or used in any way, whether on paper, online or any other media, will have appropriate safeguards applied in line with our data protection obligations.
Your information is protected by controls designed to minimise loss or damage through accident, negligence or deliberate actions. We also protect sensitive or confidential information when storing or transmitting information electronically.
Our security controls are aligned to good practice; providing a control environment that effectively manages risks to the confidentiality, integrity and availability of your information.
How long we keep your information
We will keep your personal information only where it is necessary to provide you with our service.
We may also keep your information after this period but only where required to meet our regulatory obligations.
The length of time we keep your information for these purposes will vary depending on the obligations we need to meet.
Your individual rights
You have several rights in relation to how we use your information. They are: Right to be informed
You have a right to receive clear and easy to understand information on what personal information we have, why and who we share it with – we do this through our Privacy Statement.
Right of access
You have the right of access to your personal information. If you wish to receive a copy of the personal information we hold on you, you may make a data subject access request (DSAR). This can be done in writing or verbally.
Right to request that your personal information be rectified
If your personal information is inaccurate or incomplete, you can request that it is corrected.
Right to request erasure
You can ask for your information to be deleted or removed if there is not a compelling reason for us to continue to have it.
Right to object
You can object to us processing your personal information where: it’s based on our legitimate interests; for direct marketing; and if we were using it for scientific/historical research and statistics.
How to make a complaint
We will always strive to collect, use and safeguard your personal information in line with data protection laws. If you do not believe we have handled your information as set out in our Privacy Statement, please contact us at the contact details above. If you are still unhappy, you can complain to the Information Commissioner https://ico.org.uk/concerns/
