Counselling agreement
Please read through the Information for Counselling Clients and the Privacy Notice below, then if you’re happy with those, please complete this form before our first session.
Thank you and I look forward to speaking with you.
Information for Counselling Clients
I work as a counsellor within the Code of Ethics of the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS), of which I am a Professional Accredited member (Membership no. NCS23-00122). You can read more about this at www.nationalcounsellingsociety.org.
At our first session, we will usually discuss your reasons for coming to counselling and how we might work together, then you can decide if you are happy to start counselling. If we do go ahead, we will review our work every six sessions or so, although many people find they only need a few sessions.
Our conversations are confidential except in certain situations: I may discuss some of our conversations and our work together (but not your identity) with my supervisor as required by the NCPS Code of Ethics.
If I was seriously concerned for your safety or someone else’s, I may contact your GP or another appropriate person/organisation; I would always try to talk to you first and agree a way forward if possible.
There may be a legal requirement to disclose certain information, eg a serious crime.
I keep brief notes of each session as an aide memoire. These are stored securely, and separately from your name and contact details, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation 2018. You may see these notes if you wish. They are destroyed approximately a year after our work together is completed and after any relevant insurance company time frames have elapsed. More detail is in my Privacy Notice (below).
Each session usually lasts for one hour, and times will be as arranged between us. For phone sessions, I will usually call you at the agreed time but if you’d rather call me, that’s fine, just let me know in advance. If the call doesn’t connect, or connects and then fails, I will call you back (if you’ve called me, I’ll wait for you to call me back). If we can’t reconnect again within 10 minutes, I’ll text you to rearrange. Also if you don’t have a safe private space to talk when I call, please let me know and we can rearrange.
If you have to postpone or cancel a session, please give at least 24 hours’ notice, otherwise the fee for that session will normally be payable. This is because that time is set aside for you, and cannot usually be offered to someone else at very short notice. I will usually email/text a confirmation the day before, but please do not wait for me to if you already know that you won’t be able to make the session.
If you need to contact me between sessions, please text on 07581 069877, or email cm@counsellorcrewe.co.uk. I will reply as soon as possible but please be aware that it may not be immediate. I do not offer support between sessions, but will arrange another appointment as soon as possible, if you wish. If you decide you no longer want counselling, please let me know this, you don’t have to say why unless you want to; if anything is getting in the way of you coming, we may be able to find a way round it. If you have any concerns about our work together, please do talk to me about them, I’m always keen to hear any feedback and adapt our work to best meet your needs. If there’s a serious issue which we can’t resolve together, and you want advice about it, you can contact the NCPS by email conduct@nationalcounsellingsociety.org or on 01903 213683.
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Privacy notice
This privacy notice explains what to expect when Caroline Midmore Counselling collects and uses your personal information. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which came into effect on 25th May 2018, requires that clients are given this information. You can find out more from Caroline Midmore on 07581 069877 or by email cm@counsellorcrewe.co.uk.
Security
I am committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorised access, I have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard the information I collect and generate. Information is kept for between 1 and 2 years after completion of counselling (except in the case of an exceptional ongoing need to retain it eg legal proceedings) and is then deleted/destroyed securely.
The personal information I collect may include:
Personal identifiers such as your name and date of birth (including to verify whether you are 18 or over).
Contact details such as postal address, postcode, email and phone number(s).
Financial information such as bank account and payment card details, depending on how you pay.
Medical information such as GP details and medication (this is classified as ‘special category’ data, see below).
Notes of the content of counselling sessions (also classified as ‘special category’ data).
I collect and hold personal information for these purposes:
Record keeping, arranging appointments, arranging payments and similar administrative tasks.
Maintaining the quality of services to clients, including compliance with National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society’s Code of Ethics.
Improving communications with potential clients, eg identifying websites used by clients to find me.
Lawful basis for processing personal data
I process your data on the basis of legitimate interests in order to comply with National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society’s Code of Ethics and to enable me to share your personal information should I consider this necessary for your safety or that of another person, or for legal reasons – see below. Special category data is processed under condition (h) relating to provision of health care.
Sharing your personal information
Personal information will only be shared:
During supervision as required by NCS; your identity will not be disclosed.
Where relevant, with the organisation referring you, eg a health insurer or occupational health provider; you will be specifically informed if this applies to you.
If there is a serious risk of harm to you or another person, in order to enlist other services to help keep you/the other person safe. Wherever possible this is done with your prior consent but where deemed necessary after appropriate consideration, may be done regardless of consent.
If there is a need to disclose information about possible criminal acts or security threats to the authorities, or if instructed by a court or other legal entity.
Access to your data
You have the right to have your personal data returned to you in a paper or electronic format and may then pass this on to another counsellor/data controller. There is no charge for this. You also have the right to ask for your personal data to be deleted, however this may mean the counselling relationship cannot continue.
Version dated 1 February 2023.
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