Your privacy matters to us

1.Who we are

Help Ariseth (Counselling & Psychotherapy Services) is a counselling practice based in the United Kingdom. It is run by Sakirat Funmilola Sonubi as a sole trader.

For data protection purposes, Sakirat Funmilola Sonubi, trading as Help Ariseth, is the data controller. This means she decides how and why your personal information is used, and is responsible for keeping it safe. In this policy, "we", "us" and "our" mean Help Ariseth.

Sakirat Funmilola Sonubi, trading as Help Ariseth, is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) as a data controller. Registration number: ICO_NUMBER_HERE. You can check this on the ICO public register.

You can contact us about anything in this policy at admin@helpariseth.com.

2.Information we collect

Information you give us

• Contact details: your name, email address, phone number and, where needed, your address.
• Booking information: the service you book, appointment times, and answers you give on booking or intake forms.
• Counselling information: what you share with us before, during and between sessions, and the notes your counsellor keeps.
• Pre-marital counselling forms: your agreement form and your answers to the Marriage Preparation Inventory.
• Payment information: what you bought and when. Card details are handled by our payment provider, Stripe. We never see or store your full card number.
• Account information: your login details and progress if you join a membership or online course.
• Emails and messages: anything you send us by email, contact form or social media.
• Supervision information: if you are a counsellor receiving clinical supervision from us, information about you and your practice.

Information collected automatically

• Website usage: pages visited, device type, browser, approximate location and IP address, collected through cookies and similar tools. Non-essential cookies are only used if you agree. See Cookies and tracking.
• Email activity: whether our emails are opened or links clicked, so we can improve what we send.

3.How we use it and why

The law requires us to have a valid reason, called a "lawful basis", for each way we use your information. Here is what we do and why.

We do not use your information for automated decision-making or profiling that has legal or similarly significant effects on you.

4.Sensitive information

Some of what you share with us is "special category" information under UK data protection law. This can include information about your mental and physical health, your religious or spiritual beliefs, your sex life or sexual orientation, and your ethnic background.

We use this information only to provide and manage your care. We rely on the condition that allows health and social care to be provided by a professional who owes a duty of confidentiality (UK GDPR Article 9(2)(h), with the Data Protection Act 2018, Schedule 1). Where appropriate, for example with some faith-based services, we also ask for your explicit consent.

Where someone is at serious risk of harm, we may rely on the conditions that allow information to be used to protect life or to safeguard children and adults at risk.

5.Confidentiality and its limits

What you share in counselling stays confidential. We will not share it without your permission, except in these limited situations:

• where there is a serious risk of harm to you or someone else;
• where there is a safeguarding concern about a child or an adult at risk;
• where the law requires it, for example a court order, or information about terrorism or serious crime.

Where it is safe and appropriate, we will talk with you first before sharing anything.

6.Children and young people

We sometimes work with people under 18, for example in family counselling.

• For younger children, we ask for the consent of a parent or guardian before counselling begins.
• A young person who is mature enough to understand what counselling involves may be able to agree to it themselves. Their confidentiality is then respected in the same way as an adult's, within the safeguarding limits in section 5.
• Young people can use the rights in section 12 themselves when they are mature enough to understand them. Otherwise a parent or guardian may act for them, where this is in the young person's best interests.

Our website, online courses and memberships are intended for adults.

7.Who we share it with

We never sell your personal information. We use trusted service providers to run parts of our practice. They act on our instructions and must keep your information secure.

We may also share information, only where necessary, with:

• our clinical supervisor, without details that identify you (see section 5);
• professional advisers such as an accountant, insurer or solicitor;
• the police, courts, social services or other authorities where the law requires it or someone is at serious risk;
• your GP or another professional, only with your permission, or in an emergency.

8.International transfers

Some of our providers, including Stripe, Zoom, Cal.com, Google and Meta, may store or access information outside the UK, particularly in the United States.

When this happens, we make sure your information is protected by safeguards recognised under UK law. Examples are the UK-US data bridge, the UK International Data Transfer Agreement, or the UK Addendum to the EU standard contractual clauses. You can ask us for more details.

9.How long we keep it

We keep information only for as long as we need it, then delete or securely destroy it.

10.How we protect it

• Our website uses encrypted connections (HTTPS).
• Counselling records and session notes are kept on paper in a locked cabinet, and only your counsellor can access them. When they are no longer needed, they are securely shredded.
• Access to our systems is protected by strong passwords and, where available, two-factor authentication.
• Our website is monitored for security threats and backed up regularly.
• Our service providers are chosen for their security standards.

No system is completely secure. If a data breach is likely to put your rights at risk, we will tell you and, where required, report it to the Information Commissioner's Office.

11.Cookies and tracking

Our website uses cookies. Essential cookies make the site work, for example keeping you logged in or remembering your basket. We only use analytics and advertising cookies, such as Google Analytics and the Meta Pixel, if you agree through our cookie banner. You can change your choice at any time.

Our Cookie Policy explains each cookie in detail.

12.Your rights

Under UK data protection law, you have the right to:

• Access your information and receive a copy of it;
• Correct information that is wrong or incomplete;
• Delete your information in certain situations;
• Restrict how we use your information in certain situations;
• Object to how we use your information, including for marketing;
• Move information you gave us to another provider (data portability);
• Withdraw your consent at any time, where we rely on it.

To use any of these rights, email admin@helpariseth.com. It is usually free, and we will reply within one month. We may need to confirm your identity first.

Some rights have limits. For example, we may need to keep counselling or financial records for the periods in section 9, even if you ask us to delete them. If so, we will explain why.

13.How to complain

If you are unhappy with how we have handled your information, please contact us first at admin@helpariseth.com so we can try to put things right.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator, at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.

14.Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last changed. If we make important changes, we will let current clients know.