Effective Date: July 2025
Equanimity Counselling North East respects your privacy and is committed to protecting your personal information. This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, and safeguard your data when you use our website www.equanimitycounsellingnortheast.co.uk or our counselling services.
1. Who We Are
We are a counselling practice based in the UK. If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or how your data is handled, please contact us:
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Phone: 07704784581
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Address: Regents Farm Road, Gosforth, Newcastle, NE3 3PF
We are the Data Controller for your personal data.
2. What Information We Collect
We may collect and process the following personal information:
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Contact details (name, email, phone number, address)
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Booking information (session dates, payment details)
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Health information (relevant to counselling, provided voluntarily by you)
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Website usage data (cookies, IP address, browsing behaviour)
3. How We Use Your Information
We process your data for the following purposes:
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To provide counselling services and communicate with you
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To manage bookings, payments, and administration
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To ensure compliance with legal and professional obligations
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To improve our website and services
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For safeguarding purposes, if necessary
4. Lawful Basis for Processing
We process your personal data under the following lawful bases (as defined by the UK GDPR):
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Contract: to provide the counselling services you request
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Consent: where you have given explicit consent (e.g., for processing special category health data)
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Legal obligation: where we must comply with applicable laws or regulations
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Legitimate interests: to manage and improve our business operations
5. Confidentiality in Counselling
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Information shared in counselling sessions is confidential.
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Exceptions apply where:
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There is a risk of serious harm to you or others
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Disclosure is required by law (e.g., court order, safeguarding concerns)
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In such cases, we will, where possible, discuss this with you before sharing information.
6. Data Sharing
We do not sell or share your personal data with third parties for marketing purposes.
We may share data only with:
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Professional supervisors (in anonymised form, as part of professional practice)
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Service providers who support our business (e.g., secure payment processors, IT systems)
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Legal or regulatory authorities, where required by law
7. Data Retention
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Client records are kept securely for 7 years after your last session, in line with professional guidelines and legal requirements.
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After this period, records will be securely deleted or destroyed.
8. Your Rights
Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights:
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Right to access – request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
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Right to rectification – request correction of inaccurate or incomplete data
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Right to erasure – request deletion of your data (subject to legal obligations)
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Right to restrict processing – limit how we use your data
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Right to data portability – request transfer of your data to another provider
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Right to object – object to certain types of processing
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Right to withdraw consent – where processing is based on consent
To exercise your rights, contact us at equanimitycounsellingnortheast@gmail.com. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) (www.ico.org.uk).
9. Website and Cookies
Our website may use cookies and similar technologies to improve functionality and analyse usage. You can adjust your browser settings to refuse cookies, though some features may not work as intended.
10. Data Security
We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your data against loss, misuse, or unauthorised access.
11. Changes to this Policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Any updates will be published on this page with an updated effective date.