Terms of Service
Counselling Services
Fees and Payment - Fees are payable in advance of each session via bank transfer or PayPal.
I reserve the right to suspend service should payment fall into arrears .
Terminiating service - I work in an client centred way offering both long and short term therapy and as such do not contract for a maximum/minimum number of session. Clients can choose to end their sessions whenever they wish, though a closing session is seen as therapeutically beneficial to review and close off
I reserve the right to terminate service if you:
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default on payment for session fees
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fail to attend two consecutive sessions without any contact or communication
Late Cancellations and "no shows" - sessions cancelled within 24 hours of the scheduled time will be chargeable at the full fee. Sessions missed without any notice are also charged the full fee.
If I need to cancel for any reason, I will give as much notice as possible and offer an alternative session if at all possible.
Confidentiality
I aim to provide the highest levels of confidentiality possible while following the guidelines for the BACP ethical framework and UK law.
However, confidentiality does have limitations:
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In line with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions, if I believe that you are likely to harm yourself or another seriously, I may have to break confidentiality. I will always make efforts to discuss this with you before taking any action, except in the most extreme cases.
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If you tell me that you have committed or intend to commit a serious criminal offence, such as terrorism or drug trafficking, I am legally obligated to inform the appropriate authorities.
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Should I be summoned by a court of law, I may be required to answer questions about you as a client I am working with.
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Should anything happen to me, I have appointed a colleague as an Executor. They would have access to your contact details and would be under instruction to appropriately dispose of any confidential information.
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All BACP registered counsellors are required to monitor their practice through regular supervision. This is a formal arrangement where I discuss my work anonymously with someone who is experienced in counselling and supervision. No identifying information is disclosed in supervision, except in exceptional circumstances.
I keep electronic records and paper files in line with the Data Protection Act (2018; the UK’s implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation, or GDPR). I am registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). I keep brief, factual notes to document the therapeutic process – these contain no identifiable information. All records are stored securely and retained for a maximum of seven years after we finish our work together.
Complaints and feedback
If for any reason you are unhappy with the service provided, I encourage you to talk through your concerns with me if possible so that I can try to resolve your issue.
If however you feel that the problem is unresolved you can submit a complaint with the BACP on their website, as a member I am subject to their professional misconduct procedures.
Social Media Policy
In respect of your privacy, I will not engage with you or anyone relevant to your therapy on social media. I have personal and professional profiles on various social media platforms, I will not accept friend requests or reply to messages on my personal profiles.
Any comments on my professional social media pages or comments on this website are viewable by other members of the public, please consider your own feelings about your confidentiality before posting publicly.
Reviews & testimonials
I will never solicit client testimonials for the purpose of promoting my services.
My practice is listed on various websites which might allow reviews, please note that this is not a personal request from me for a review.
Should you wish to leave a review you are welcome to do so, however, I do encourage you to consider your confidentiality when doing so, as reviews are often visible to the general public.
If you want me personally to be aware of your feedback it is possible I might never see a review on a third party website, you are welcome to message me directly with any feedback on our work together.