Terms & Conditions of Business

JS Therapy Counselling & Wellbeing Ltd offers professional counselling services to individuals seeking emotional and psychological support. Sessions are conducted in person, online, or via telephone, depending on availability and client preference.

2.1. All sessions are confidential. However, confidentiality may be breached in the following circumstances:

• If there is a risk of harm to yourself or others.
• If there is a legal obligation to disclose information (e.g., safeguarding concerns, court orders).
• If you provide explicit consent for information to be shared with relevant third parties.
• Confidentiality would also be broken in the event of threats of terrorism, animal harm, or money laundering.

2.2. Counsellors adhere to the ethical guidelines set by the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) or other relevant regulatory bodies.

3.1. Sessions are by appointment only and must be booked in advance.

3.2. Cancellations or rescheduling requests must be made at least 24 hours in advance. Failure to provide sufficient notice may result in a cancellation fee equivalent to the full session cost.

3.3. If the counsellor needs to cancel a session, every effort will be made to reschedule at a mutually convenient time.

4.1. Fees are payable before or at the time of each session. Payment methods accepted include bank transfer, or cash.

4.2. Fees may be subject to periodic review, and clients will be notified in advance of any changes.

4.3. If payment is not received, the session may not proceed, and future appointments may be suspended until the balance is settled.

5.1. Clients are expected to attend sessions sober and in a respectful manner. Any behaviour deemed inappropriate or threatening may result in termination of services.

5.2. Counsellors reserve the right to discontinue services if professional boundaries are not maintained.

6.1. Counselling is not a substitute for medical treatment. If you are experiencing a crisis or require emergency support, please contact emergency services (999), your GP, or a crisis helpline such as Samaritans (116 123).

6.2. Counsellors do not provide medical diagnoses or prescribe medication.

7.1. Personal data collected will be stored securely and used only for the purpose of providing counselling services, in compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR). Please see our Privacy Policy.

7.2. Clients have the right to request access to their data and request corrections or deletions where applicable.

7.3. Session notes are kept confidential and retained for a period of up to [Insert Retention Period], after which they are securely disposed of.

7.4. GDPR states that we must have a lawful basis for processing your personal data. There are different lawful bases depending on the stage at which we are processing your data. We have explained these below:

• If you have had therapy with me and it has now ended, We will use legitimate interest as my lawful basis for holding and using your personal information.
• If you are currently having therapy or if you are in contact with me to consider therapy, we will process your personal data where it is necessary for the performance of our contract.
• GDPR also makes sure that we look after any sensitive personal information that you may disclose to me appropriately.

7.5. How we use your information

• Initial contact. When you contact me with an enquiry about my counselling services we will collect information to help me satisfy your enquiry. This will include name, contact details, age, next of kin and doctors details. Alternatively, your GP or other health professional may send me your details when making a referral or a parent or trusted individual may give me your details when making an enquiry on your behalf.
• If you decide not to proceed we will ensure all your personal data is deleted within 28 days. If you would like me to delete this information sooner, just let me know.
• We are committed to offering good and safe practices, and by the BACP Ethical Framework. We will keep a record of your personal details to help the counselling services run smoothly. These details are kept securely and are not shared with any third party.
• We will keep written notes of each session, these are kept in written form in a notebook which is kept securely.
• For security reasons we do not retain text messages from clients for more than 28 days. If there is relevant information contained in a text message we will copy this to my laptop or notes and delete the text.
• Any email correspondence will be deleted after 28 days, if it is not important. If necessary we will transfer anything that is important to a coded file.
• After counselling has ended. Once counselling has ended your records will be kept for 5 years from: the end of our contact with each other, or from your 18th birthday if the counselling was before that. They will then be securely destroyed. If you want us to delete your information sooner than this, please let us know.

7.6. We try to be as open as we can be in terms of giving people access to their personal information. You have a right to ask me to delete your personal information, to limit how we use your personal information, or to stop processing your personal information. You also have a right to ask for a copy of any information that we hold about you and to object to the use of your personal data in some circumstances. You can read more about your rights at ico.org.uk/your-data-matters.

If we do hold information about you, we will:

• give you a description of it and where it came from;
• explain why we are holding its, how long we will store your data and how we made this decision;
• tell you who it could be disclosed to;
• let you have a copy of the information in an intelligible form.

You can also ask me at any time to correct any mistakes there may be in the personal information we hold about you. To make a request for any personal information we may hold, please put the request in writing addressing it to admin@js-therapy.co.uk.

If you have any complaint about how we handle your personal data please do not hesitate to get in touch with me by writing or emailing to the contact details given above. We would welcome any suggestions for improving my data protection procedures. If you want to make a formal complaint about the way we have processed your personal information you can contact the ICO which is the statutory body that oversees data protection law in the UK. For more information go to ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint.

8.1. If you have any concerns about the service provided, you are encouraged to discuss them with your counsellor directly.

8.2. If the matter is not resolved, a formal complaint can be submitted in writing to.

8.3. Clients may also contact the BACP or another regulatory body if they feel ethical standards have not been met.

9.1. We reserve the right to update these terms and conditions as necessary. Clients will be notified of any significant changes.

9.2. Continued use of our services following changes to these terms constitutes acceptance of the revised terms.

For any queries regarding these terms, please contact:

JS Therapy Counselling & Wellbeing Ltd
admin@js-therapy.co.uk
07508 477603