Havers Counselling
mental Health and counselling support in Ascot, Binfield, warfield and the surrounding Berkshire area
Privacy Statement
Confidentiality
Our counselling sessions are strictly confidential. The details of the counselling will always be protected and I will provide the highest level of confidentiality in accordance to the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) Code of Ethics for safe, respectful, and trustworthy practice. There may however be occasions when I will be required to break confidentiality because of the risk of death, serious injury, serious criminal activity, or serious harm to yourself or others.
In the rare event of breaking confidentiality only those persons who absolutely need to know will be informed and I will endeavour to consult with you beforehand, as long as this will not compromise your safety or the safety of others. No data is passed onto a third party unless for legal or safeguarding reasons and your prior consent will always be obtained and all note-taking will be coded.
In line with good practice, all confidential records will be kept in a locked filing cabinet, or password protected if they are kept electronically, and your contact information is kept separate to the session notes. These password protected notes are kept together with the dates of your session, which enables me to review them and ensure that I am aware of your ongoing safety, wellbeing, and therapeutic progress. Havers Counselling is a secure website and all communication generated from it is protected.
Protecting your data
I am required by the BACP to record your details and maintain notes of my sessions with you. I aim to keep such records in line with the General Data Protection Regulation of Europe May 2018.
I will not share your information for marketing purposes and you can access your records at any time. I will resist all requests to share your personal details and will do my upmost to secure against any unauthorised attempt to access your counselling records. Phone numbers and email addresses will be deleted when you stop using my services and I will never contact you through social media. Any correspondence we may have through texts or emails will be deleted on a monthly basis, and in line with good practice, all confidential records will be kept for two years after sessions have ended.
If you have any concerns regarding your data security, please feel free to email me.
Counselling Sessions
Whilst I am happy to work with what you choose to bring to the sessions, it can be helpful to know your reason for seeking counselling and any areas you would like to work on, plus any specific aims you may have in mind so that these can be taken into account. These may change as your therapy progresses, so we will review our work together using wellbeing measures.
Supervision
All professional counsellors are required by the BACP to attend regular supervision, in order to support ethical and safe practice. All cases are discussed using a pseudonym, and as no identifying details are used, your privacy is therefore always maintained. All supervision records are held in wrtten form and in hard copy only. Handwritten notes are identified in code and strored separately from any contact details.
Counselling Contract
Following the initial assessment, and once we have made the commitment to work together, a written contract will be agreed collaboratively, and a start date and time will be confirmed. Each session will last for 50 minutes and take place at the same time and location every week. No counselling will begin until you feel comfortable and ready to do so. The duration of therapy is client led, however, it is also beneficial to have a minimum of three sessions notice to enable us to work towards a safe ending.
Fees are payable online up to 24hours before each session. Advance notice will be given of any increase in fees. All records pertaining to payment of my services are code protected - I am obliged legally to hold these details for accounting purposes, however they will be destroyed after the obligatory period of time.
Cancellations
Any missed sessions by the client must be paid for unless due to mitigating circumstances or an alternative slot can be arranged. Sessions cancelled by the therapist will not be chargeable. Reasonable notice of any cancellations will be given by both client and therapist.