Privacy Policy

Ardolino Counselling is the trading name of Jolian Ardolino, a sole trader providing counselling and psychotherapy services.

• Data Controller: Jolian Ardolino trading as Ardolino Counselling
• Email: jolian@ardolinocounselling.com
• ICO registration number: ZC098478

For the purposes of UK data protection law, I am the Data Controller of the personal data you provide to Ardolino Counselling.

Ardolino Counselling is for adults aged 18 and over.

I do not knowingly offer counselling services to children or young people through this website.

Depending on how you interact with the practice, I may collect and process:

• your name
• contact details such as email address, phone number and address
• date of birth
• emergency contact details, where relevant
• booking and appointment information
• payment and invoice information
• information you share in an enquiry
• assessment information
• session notes and clinical records
• relevant health or wellbeing information
• risk-related information
• correspondence between us
• website usage data such as cookies or analytics data, where applicable

Some of this information may be special category data, including information relating to your health, mental health, or other sensitive personal matters.

I may collect your information when:

• you contact me through my website, email, phone or social media
• you book an appointment
• you complete forms before or during counselling
• you attend sessions
• you make a payment
• you browse my website
• information is provided by you or, where appropriate, by someone acting on your behalf

I use personal data for the following purposes:

• to respond to your enquiry
• to arrange and manage appointments
• to provide counselling and related support
• to maintain clinical records
• to communicate with you about the service
• to take payment and maintain financial records
• to meet professional, ethical and insurance requirements
• to manage risk or complaints
• to comply with legal and regulatory obligations
• to improve the website and practice administration where appropriate

If you choose to leave your name and email address via the "Not ready to book yet?" form on our website, we will use those details solely to send you one follow-up email reminder about booking a free initial consultation.

• What we collect: Your first name and email address.
• Why we collect it: To send you a single, requested reminder — nothing else.
• Legal basis: Your explicit consent, given at the point of submission.
• How long we keep it: Your details are automatically and permanently deleted 30 days after submission, whether or not you have booked a consultation by that point.
• Who sees it: Only Jolian Ardolino. Your details are never shared with third parties or added to any marketing list.
• Your rights: You can withdraw your consent and request immediate deletion of your details at any time by replying to the reminder email with the word STOP, or by emailing hello@ardolinocounselling.com.

Under UK GDPR, I rely on the following Article 6 lawful bases as relevant:

• Article 6(1)(b) Contract – where processing is necessary in order to take steps at your request before entering into a contract, or to provide counselling services to you
• Article 6(1)(c) Legal obligation – where I need to comply with legal obligations
• Article 6(1)(f) Legitimate interests – where it is necessary for the legitimate interests of running a safe, ethical and well-managed private practice, provided those interests are not overridden by your rights and freedoms

Where I process special category data, I rely on:

• Article 9(2)(h) – processing necessary for the provision of health or social care or treatment
• Article 9(2)(f) – processing necessary for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims
• Article 9(2)(c) – where necessary to protect someone's vital interests

I do not generally rely on consent as the main legal basis for holding routine counselling records. Where I do ask for consent for a specific purpose, I will make that clear.

What you share in counselling is treated with care and respect. However, confidentiality is not absolute.

I may need to share information where this is necessary for legal, ethical or serious risk reasons, including where:

• there is a serious risk of harm to you or another person
• I am legally required to disclose information
• disclosure is necessary for the prevention or detection of serious crime
• I need to obtain professional, legal or insurance advice in relation to the safe running of the practice

Where possible and appropriate, I will aim to discuss this with you first.

I will not sell your data.

I may share your data, where necessary and appropriate, with:

• professional supervisors
• clinical advisers or legal advisers
• your GP or another professional, where you have agreed or where there is another lawful reason to do so
• accountants, payment providers or software providers used to run the practice
• insurers or professional bodies where reasonably required
• regulatory or law enforcement bodies where legally required
• emergency services where urgently necessary

Any sharing will be limited to what is necessary.

I only keep personal data for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purpose it was collected. Unless there is a good reason to keep information for longer or shorter, I generally retain:

• clinical records and session notes for 7 years from the end of our work together
• financial records for the period required by HMRC or other legal obligations
• enquiry information for a limited period where counselling does not go ahead
• website analytics or cookie data in line with the relevant cookie settings and provider retention periods

After the relevant retention period, information will be securely deleted or destroyed.

I take reasonable technical and organisational steps to protect your personal data. These may include:

• password protection
• secure devices and accounts
• encrypted or access-controlled systems where available
• secure storage of records
• limiting access to information
• careful use of third-party platforms

No method of electronic transmission or storage can ever be guaranteed to be completely secure, and this is especially true for internet-based communication.

I may use third-party providers to support the running of the practice, such as:

• website hosting providers
• email providers
• booking systems
• online meeting platforms
• payment processors
• cloud storage or document systems

These providers may process data on my behalf. I aim to use reputable services and take reasonable steps to ensure they handle data appropriately. Where personal data is transferred outside the UK, I will take reasonable steps to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place.

Depending on the circumstances, you have the right to:

• ask for access to your personal data
• ask for inaccurate personal data to be corrected
• ask for your data to be erased
• ask for the processing of your data to be restricted
• object to certain processing
• ask for a copy of some of your data in a portable format
• complain to the ICO if you are unhappy with how your data has been handled

These rights are not absolute and may not apply in every situation. If you would like to exercise any of your rights, please contact me at jolian@ardolinocounselling.com.

If you have a concern about how your personal data has been handled, please contact me first at jolian@ardolinocounselling.com and I will do my best to respond fairly and promptly.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).