Privacy Notice for Absolute Counselling

Last updated: September 2026

At Absolute Counselling, I respect your privacy and understand how important it is that you feel confident about how your personal information is collected, used and stored.

This Privacy Notice explains how I collect, use, store and protect your personal information when you contact me, use my counselling services, visit my website or receive counselling through a workplace or EAP referral.

I am committed to handling your personal information responsibly and in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation.

1. Who I am

The data controller responsible for your personal information is:

Claire Goodwin trading as Absolute Counselling

Website: www.absolutecounselling.com
Email: claire@absolutecounselling.com
Telephone: 07875 485416 or 01952 677222

If you have any questions about how your personal information is used, please contact me using the details above.

2. The information I may collect

Depending on the service you use and how you contact me, I may collect some or all of the following information:

Customer Data

• Your name
• Telephone number
• Email address
• Address, where necessary
• Date of birth, where relevant

 

Counselling information

• Service type (individual, relationship, workplace)
• Date and time of service.
• Session information: brief notes and relevant personal information you choose to share.

This information may constitute special category personal data, including information concerning your physical or mental health.

I only collect and retain information that is relevant and necessary for providing counselling and managing your therapeutic relationship with me.

Emergency and healthcare information

Where appropriate, I may ask for limited information such as your GP details or an emergency contact. This information is used only where necessary to support your safety, provide appropriate care or respond to an emergency.

Payment and financial information

I may collect information necessary to administer payments, invoices and financial records, including details of payments made and outstanding.

I do not need to retain full payment card details where these are processed through a third-party payment provider.

Workplace and EAP referrals

If you access counselling through your employer, an EAP provider or another organisation, I may receive information about you from that organisation, such as your name, contact details and referral information.

The information I receive and the way it is used will depend on the arrangements in place between the relevant organisation and Absolute Counselling.

I will explain any limits to confidentiality and any information that may be shared with the referring organisation before counselling begins.

Website enquiries

If you contact me through my website, I may collect your name, email address, telephone number and the information you choose to include in your enquiry.

Please avoid including highly sensitive or detailed personal information in a website enquiry form unless it is necessary.

3. How I use your information

I use your personal information to:

• Respond to enquiries
• Arrange and manage counselling appointments
• Provide counselling and therapeutic support
• Maintain appropriate counselling records
• Communicate with you about appointments
• Process payments and maintain financial records
• Respond appropriately to safeguarding or safety concerns
• Meet legal and professional obligations
• Manage workplace and EAP counselling referrals
• Respond to requests relating to your personal information
• Maintain the security and appropriate operation of my website and business

I will only use your information for purposes that are relevant to the services I provide and in accordance with applicable data protection law.

4. My lawful basis for using your information

Data protection law requires me to have a lawful basis for processing personal information.

Depending on the circumstances, I may rely on:

• Contract – where processing is necessary to arrange and provide the counselling service you have requested.
• Legitimate interests – where necessary to operate and administer my counselling practice, communicate with clients and maintain appropriate business records, provided these interests do not override your rights and freedoms.
• Legal obligation – where I am required by law to retain or disclose information.
• Consent – where I specifically ask for your consent for a particular use of your information and consent is the appropriate legal basis.

Where I process information about your health or other special category information, I will also rely on an appropriate additional condition under UK data protection law.

Counselling information is subject to additional protections because information concerning mental or physical health is special category data. The ICO identifies specific conditions within the legislation that can apply to counselling and health or social care processing.

5. Confidentiality

Confidentiality is an important part of counselling and I will treat the information you share with me respectfully and sensitively.

I will not normally disclose information about you to another person or organisation without your knowledge and, where appropriate, your consent.

There are circumstances where information may need to be disclosed without your consent, for example:

• Where there is a serious and immediate concern about your safety or the safety of another person
• Where safeguarding concerns arise
• Where disclosure is required or permitted by law
• Where I am required to comply with a court order or other legal obligation
• Where disclosure is necessary to obtain appropriate professional, legal or regulatory advice

Where possible and appropriate, I will discuss any proposed disclosure with you first.

I will only share information that is necessary and proportionate to the circumstances.

6. Sharing information with other organisations

I do not sell your personal information.

I may share limited information with third parties where this is necessary to provide my services, operate my business or comply with legal obligations.

These may include:

• Website and hosting providers
• Email and communication providers
• Payment or accounting providers
• EAP providers or organisations arranging workplace counselling
• Professional or clinical supervisors, where applicable
• Professional advisers, where necessary
• Government, regulatory or law-enforcement bodies where legally required or permitted

Where another organisation processes personal information on my behalf, I will take appropriate steps to ensure that your information is handled securely and in accordance with data protection requirements.

7. Workplace and EAP counselling

Where counselling is arranged through an employer or EAP provider, the organisation making the referral may act as a separate data controller for information it holds about you.

Absolute Counselling will be responsible for the counselling information that I collect and hold as part of providing your counselling service, subject to the particular arrangements applying to the referral.

I will not normally provide your employer with details of what you discuss during counselling.

Where information is shared with an employer or EAP provider, I will explain what information may be shared and why.

8. How I store and protect your information

I take reasonable and appropriate steps to protect your personal information against loss, misuse, unauthorised access, alteration or disclosure.

Information may be held in:

• Secure electronic systems
• Email systems
• Password-protected devices
• Secure physical records
• Locked storage where paper records are used

Paper counselling records are stored securely and separately from general business information where appropriate.

I regularly review the way information is stored and handled to ensure that it remains appropriate for the nature and sensitivity of the information involved.

9. Emails, telephone and electronic communication

If you contact me by email, telephone or another electronic communication method, I may retain the relevant correspondence where it is necessary for managing your enquiry, appointment or counselling service.

I ask you to be aware that ordinary email and electronic communications can carry some security risks.

Where possible, avoid including detailed or highly sensitive counselling information in ordinary emails or messages.

10. International transfers

Some of the technology or service providers I use to operate my business may store or process information outside the UK.
Where personal information is transferred outside the UK, I will ensure that the transfer is made in accordance with applicable UK data protection requirements and that appropriate safeguards are in place where required.

11. How long I keep your information

I do not keep personal information for longer than is necessary for the purpose for which it was collected, unless I have a legal, professional or other legitimate reason to retain it for longer.

Counselling records are currently retained for seven years following the end of counselling, after which they are securely destroyed, unless there is a specific reason why a longer retention period is required.

Different types of information may be retained for different periods. For example, financial and accounting records may need to be retained for a period required by tax or other legislation.

I periodically review the information I hold and securely dispose of information that is no longer required.

12. Your rights

Depending on the circumstances and the lawful basis for processing your information, you may have rights under UK data protection law including:

• The right to ask for access to your personal information
• The right to ask for inaccurate information to be corrected
• The right to ask for processing to be restricted in certain circumstances
• The right to object to certain types of processing
• The right to request deletion of your information in certain circumstances
• The right to data portability in certain circumstances
• The right to withdraw consent where I am relying on consent as the lawful basis for processing

These rights are not absolute and there are circumstances where I may be legally entitled or required to retain or continue processing information.

For example, I may need to retain certain information to comply with a legal obligation or to establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

13. Making a request

If you would like to exercise any of your data protection rights, please contact me:

Claire Goodwin – Absolute Counselling
Email: claire@absolutecounselling.com
Telephone: 01952 677 222 or 07875 485416

I may need to confirm your identity before providing personal information or making changes to your records.

I will deal with requests in accordance with the applicable legal time limits.

14. Data protection complaints

If you have a concern about how I have handled your personal information, I would encourage you to contact me first so that I have an opportunity to understand and resolve your concern.

You can contact me using the details above.

I will acknowledge a data protection complaint and investigate it appropriately in accordance with the requirements that apply to data protection complaints.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you remain unhappy with how your personal information has been handled.

Information about making a complaint can be found at:

Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Website: ico.org.uk

The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 introduced new requirements for organisations to have a clear data protection complaints process, including acknowledging complaints within 30 days and responding without undue delay. These requirements came into force on 19 June 2026.

15. Cookies and website information

My website may use cookies and similar technologies to ensure that the website works properly and, where applicable, to understand how visitors use the website.

Where cookies or similar technologies require consent under applicable law, you will be given an appropriate choice.

The website may also collect information that you voluntarily provide through an enquiry or contact form.

The specific cookies and technologies used on the website may change as the website develops. Any required cookie information will be provided separately where appropriate.

16. Automated decision-making

I do not use your personal information to make decisions about you based solely on automated processing or profiling that has legal or similarly significant effects on you.

17. Keeping this Privacy Notice up to date

I may update this Privacy Notice from time to time to reflect changes to my services, the way I process personal information or changes in data protection legislation.

The latest version will be available on my website.