Privacy Policy

1. Who we are

Mind Health Counselling is operated by Karyn Scott, a Specialist CBT Behavioural Therapist based at 23 Combermere, Hillsborough, BT26 6DQ, Northern Ireland. For the purposes of data protection law, Karyn Scott is the data controller for information collected through this website.

If you have any questions about how your data is used, please contact us at Mindhealth23@yahoo.co.uk.

2. What information we collect

We may collect the following personal information:

• Contact form submissions: Your name, email address, phone number (if provided), and message content when you complete the contact form on this website.
• Browser storage: We store your cookie consent preference in your browser’s local storage. This does not leave your device and is not transmitted to us. We do not set any tracking, advertising, or analytics cookies.
• Server logs: Like all websites, our hosting provider may automatically collect certain information such as your IP address, browser type, and pages visited for security and diagnostic purposes.

3. How we use your information

We use the information you provide to:

• Respond to your enquiries and booking requests
• Provide and administer counselling services
• Comply with our legal and professional obligations as a BACP-registered practitioner

We will never use your information for marketing purposes without your explicit consent, and we will never sell or share your personal data with third parties for commercial purposes.

4. Third-party services

Our contact form uses Web3Forms to process and deliver form submissions to us by email. When you submit a form, your data is processed by Web3Forms in accordance with their privacy policy. Web3Forms process form submissions to deliver them to us by email. We recommend reviewing their privacy policy for full details on how your data is handled.

Our contact page includes an embedded map provided by Google Maps. When the map loads, your browser connects directly to Google’s servers, which may allow Google to collect data such as your IP address in accordance with Google’s Privacy Policy. We do not control or receive any data collected by Google through this embed.

This website is hosted on Cloudflare Pages. Cloudflare may process certain technical data (such as IP addresses) as part of its infrastructure and security services. Please refer to Cloudflare’s Privacy Policy for details.

5. Confidentiality in therapy

All information shared during counselling sessions is treated with the highest degree of confidentiality, in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions. Confidentiality may only be broken in exceptional circumstances — for example, if there is serious risk of harm to you or others — and even then, Karyn would seek to discuss this with you first wherever possible.

Client records are stored securely and retained only for as long as necessary to fulfil professional obligations.

6. Cookies

This website does not set any cookies. Your cookie consent preference is stored in your browser’s local storage — it stays on your device and is never sent to us or any third party. We do not use analytics, advertising, or tracking cookies.

You can clear local storage at any time through your browser settings. This will reset your consent preference, but will not otherwise affect your use of this website.

7. Your rights

Under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018, you have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you
• Correct inaccurate personal data
• Request deletion of your personal data (subject to legal retention requirements)
• Object to or restrict processing of your personal data
• Data portability (where applicable)
• Withdraw consent at any time (where processing is based on consent)

To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at Mindhealth23@yahoo.co.uk. We will respond within one month.

You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you believe your data has been processed unlawfully. The ICO can be contacted at ico.org.uk.

8. Data retention

Enquiry data submitted through the contact form is retained only for as long as necessary to respond to your enquiry and, if you become a client, to fulfil our professional obligations. Client records are typically retained for 7 years following the end of therapy, in line with professional guidance.

9. Changes to this policy

We may update this privacy policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page with an updated date. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.