Privacy Policy & Cookies

Privacy Notice: How your information is stored and used.

1. This Privacy Notice explains:

What information I may hold about you, the legal basis for the processing, the duration for which I keep your information and (if applicable) who your information will be shared with and where those recipients are based. It applies to you, if you use my services as a Private Psychotherapist, Counsellor or Supervisor, if you make an enquiry vie email and telephone and use my website www.mariehoward.co.uk.

2. Why I collect personal data:

  • As a UKCP Psychotherapist, I collect, store and process information about individuals undertaking Psychotherapy, counselling and supervision with me, to enable me to run my Psychotherapy and Supervision Practice and to provide an ethical service to the public.
  • I am able to collect this information upon the legal basis of "Legitimate Interests" for the purposes of healthcare, as per General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR). 

3. Regarding individual ‘clients’ or ‘supervisees’, undertaking psychotherapy, counselling or supervision, with me and who have formally completed and signed a Therapy Agreement consenting to this service and agreeing to the defined limits of confidentiality;

  • this information includes your contact details, and can also include information about your age, health (mental and physical), sexuality, domestic and financial arrangements and other special category data.
  • Your information is stored anonymously, under lock and key and/or password protected. 
  • I will keep this information for up to 6 years, at which point it will be deleted.
  • I may use this information to track the progress of our work together or in discussion with my UKCP Supervisor for reflection and guidance – to ensure good practice. 
  • Your contact information will also be passed on to my appointed Therapeutic Executor 9A UKCP Accredited Psychotherapist) so that you are informed should anything happen to me that prevents me from attending a session and from communicating with you directly - such as illness or death.

4. With regards to individuals who contact me with an enquiry about my professional services, via email or phone, but do not use my services, I will collect information about you which could include:

  • Your contact details; such as email and phone number.
  • Your information is stored anonymously, under lock and key and/or password protected. 
  • I will keep this information for up to 6 months, at which point it will be deleted.
  • Your information will not be shared or passed on to any third party.

5. With regards to individuals who attend a free ‘Introductory Session’ with me, to explore the possibility of working together, but do not undertake the use of my services, I will collect information about you which could include:

  • Your contact details; such as email and phone number.
  • This information includes your contact details, and can also include information about your age, health (mental and physical), sexuality, domestic and financial arrangements and other special category data.
  • Your information is stored anonymously, under lock and key and/or password protected. 
  • I will keep this information for up to 6 months, at which point it will be deleted.
  • Your information will not be shared or passed on to any third party.

6. What Personal data do I collect? - Information collected about you.

When you visit the website, it will automatically collect the following information:

  • Technical information, including the Internet protocol (IP) address used to connect your computer to the internet, your login information, browser type and version, time zone setting, browser plug-in types and versions, and operating system and platform; and
  • Information about your visit, including the full Uniform Resource Locators (URL), through and from our site (including date and time), pages you viewed or searched for, page response times, download errors, length of visits to certain pages, page interaction information (such as scrolling, clicks, and mouse-overs), methods used to browse away from the page, and any phone number used.

COOKIES

Information about the use of cookies

A cookie is a small file of letters and numbers that are stored on your browser or the hard drive of your device if you agree. Cookies contain information that is transferred to your device's hard drive.

Websites use cookies to distinguish you from other users. This ensures that an optimal user experience is provided and allows improvements to be made to the site. By continuing to browse the site, you are agreeing to the use of cookies.

The following cookies may be used:

  • Strictly necessary cookies.
These are cookies that are required for the operation of the site. They include, for example, cookies that enable you to log into secure areas of the site, use a shopping cart or make use of e-billing services.
  • Analytical/performance cookies. 
These allow the recognition and counting of visitors and to see how visitors move around the site when they are using it.  This helps to improve the way the site works, for example, by ensuring that users are finding what they are looking for easily.
  • Functionality cookies.
 These are used to recognise you when you return to the site. This enables content to be personalised for you, to greet you by name and organisation and remember your preferences (for example, your choice of language or region).
  • Targeting cookies. 
These cookies record your visit to our site, the pages you have visited and the links you have followed. This information may be used to make the site more relevant to your interests. This information may be shared with third parties for this purpose. Except for essential cookies, all cookies will expire after 30 [thirty days].
  • Third party cookies. 
Please note that third parties (including, for example, advertising networks and providers of external services like web traffic analysis services and payment processing services) may also use cookies over which I have no control. These cookies are likely to be analytical/performance cookies or targeting cookies.
  • Blocking cookies. 
You can block cookies by activating the setting on your browser that allows you to refuse the setting of all or some cookies. Please note that if you use your browser settings to block all cookies (including essential cookies) then you may not be able to access all or parts of the site.

Your Rights:

You have the following rights to have information; deleted, have inaccuracies. corrected, the right to access information about you  - free of charge - within 1 month, the right not to receive any unsolicited marketing, the right to determine how information about you is processed and the right to complain if you are unhappy about any of the above by contacting the Information Commissioners Office here: https://ico.org.uk/concerns/, although I trust that you will try to discuss this with me in the first instance. I am contactable via www.mariehoward.co.uk.