Privacy & Policies

Your privacy and confidentiality are central to my practice. This page explains how I handle personal information and sets out the policies that support our work together.

Last updated: 8 October 2026

1. About my practice and how to contact me

I am Kate Walker, an Integrative Psychotherapist and registered member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). I work in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework, attend regular clinical supervision and hold professional indemnity insurance.

I am the data controller responsible for personal information used in connection with Kate Walker Psychotherapy.

For enquiries, privacy questions or requests concerning your information, please contact:

Email: hello@katewalkerpsychotherapy.co.uk
Practice address: The Rutland Therapy Centre, 40 Melton Road, Oakham, LE15 6AY
Website: www.katewalkerpsychotherapy.co.uk

2. Confidentiality

Information you share in psychotherapy or an autism and ADHD consultation is treated as confidential.

There are limited circumstances in which information may need to be shared, including:

A serious risk of harm to you or another person.
Safeguarding concerns involving a child or an adult at risk.
Disclosure required by law or a valid court order, including applicable obligations relating to terrorism.
Necessary and lawful disclosure in connection with a complaint, insurance claim or legal proceedings.

A disclosure about criminal activity does not automatically mean that all information must be reported. I consider the circumstances and applicable responsibilities, seeking appropriate advice where needed.

Where possible and appropriate, I will discuss any proposed disclosure with you beforehand. Information shared will be limited to what is necessary and proportionate.

3. Clinical supervision

I attend regular supervision with a qualified clinical supervisor to support safe and ethical practice.

I may discuss aspects of our work in supervision. I omit identifying details wherever practicable and share only information relevant to the supervision process. My supervisor is subject to professional confidentiality obligations.

4. Information I collect

The information collected depends on the service you use. It may include:

Your name, contact details and relevant emergency contact information.
Information you provide in enquiries, assessments and questionnaires.
Relevant personal, developmental, psychological and medical history.
Information about mental health, neurodivergence and therapeutic needs.
Appointment dates, attendance, invoices and payment records.
Relevant correspondence, consent and essential clinical notes.
Consultation summaries and relevant reflective observations.
Course account, purchase and participation information where you access an online course.

Most information comes directly from you. If information is obtained from another person, such as a referrer or emergency contact, I will explain its source where appropriate and lawful.

Please provide only information relevant to your enquiry or service. You do not need to include a detailed clinical history in an initial website message.

Some information is necessary to arrange appointments, administer payment or provide a service safely. If you choose not to provide it, I will explain whether and how this affects my ability to work with you.

5. Why I use your information

I use personal information to respond to enquiries, arrange and deliver services, maintain appropriate records, communicate about appointments, administer payments and courses, and meet relevant legal responsibilities.

For ordinary personal information, the lawful basis depends on the purpose:

Contract: arranging and providing the service you request, including appointment administration and payment.
Legal obligation: meeting applicable tax, accounting and other legal requirements.
Legitimate interests: necessary and proportionate practice administration, professional accountability and managing complaints or claims, after considering your rights and interests.

Health information and some other sensitive information require an additional condition under Article 9 of UK GDPR, alongside an ordinary lawful basis.

I am currently confirming the applicable Article 9 condition for my psychotherapy and non-diagnostic consultation services. This section will be updated to identify the confirmed condition and any associated legal requirements.

Where processing relies on consent, you may withdraw that consent by contacting me. Withdrawal does not affect processing already carried out lawfully and may affect whether a particular service can continue.

I do not sell client information or use confidential clinical material for marketing.

6. Clinical records and temporary notes

I maintain concise records relevant to safe practice, continuity of care and professional accountability. These may include significant clinical developments, decisions, consent, risk assessments, safeguarding matters and referrals.

I may make reflective observations to support my clinical thinking and supervision. These are treated as confidential personal information where they relate to an identifiable client.

I do not routinely keep detailed transcripts of therapeutic conversations. Temporary prompts, duplicate paperwork and working notes are reviewed for continuing necessity. Information needed to explain a clinical decision is preserved in the essential clinical record.

7. Autism and ADHD consultations

These consultations support exploration, understanding and clinical formulation. They are not formal diagnostic assessments and do not provide a medical diagnosis of autism or ADHD.

You may be invited to complete a pre-consultation questionnaire. Relevant information is used to prepare for the consultation and any agreed written clinical summary.

Once the consultation and summary are complete and checked, questionnaires and temporary working notes that no longer serve a justified purpose are securely disposed of, unless there is an applicable reason to preserve them.

The completed clinical summary and other essential information form part of the retained professional record.

Consultation fees, duration and arrangements for any written summary are confirmed separately before booking.

8. Storage and third-party services

I use password-protected devices and accounts and take reasonable measures to prevent unauthorised access, loss or disclosure. No electronic system can be guaranteed completely secure.

The services used include:

QuickBooks
Used for client administration, invoicing and financial records. Clinical session notes are maintained separately.

Numbers
Used to maintain clinical notes and relevant reflective records.

Dropbox
Used for electronic storage and backup of professional records.

Google Forms
Used for pre-consultation questionnaires. Disposal reviews include responses, linked response sheets and downloaded copies where relevant.

Thinkific
Used to host educational courses. Course administration may involve account details, purchases, access and participation information. Thinkific also provides its own privacy information.

Email, website services and the video platform used for online appointments may also process information necessary to provide those services.

Providers may process information outside the UK. The applicable locations and transfer arrangements depend on the provider and account configuration. You can contact me for further information about the arrangements relevant to your information. Any restricted transfer requires a lawful transfer mechanism and appropriate protections.

9. Who may receive information

Access to identifiable clinical information is restricted to those who need it for a legitimate and lawful purpose.

Recipients may include my clinical supervisor, the service providers described above, my nominated professional representative, and relevant safeguarding or emergency services where disclosure is necessary.

An accountant, insurer, professional adviser, complaints body or legal authority may receive limited information where necessary and lawful. Financial administration does not ordinarily require access to clinical notes.

Where appropriate, referrals or sharing with another practitioner will be discussed with you and your agreement sought.

10. How long I keep information

I retain information only for as long as its purpose and any applicable obligations justify.

Essential clinical records
Essential records may need to be retained after therapy or a consultation ends to support professional accountability, continuity of care and the handling of potential complaints or claims.

I am confirming the minimum retention period, its starting point and any exceptions with my supervisor and insurer. Pending that advice, essential records are preserved and reviewed for continuing necessity. This does not mean that every document is retained indefinitely.

Questionnaires and temporary working notes
These are retained only while needed for their purpose. Necessary information is incorporated into the essential clinical record before unnecessary originals or working copies are disposed of.

Enquiries and correspondence
These are reviewed according to whether they are needed to respond to an enquiry, provide a service or document relevant decisions.

Administrative, financial and course records
These are retained according to ongoing service needs and applicable accounting, tax and other legal requirements.

Annual review
Every April, alongside my accounting review, I review the information I hold, record retention decisions and securely dispose of material that is no longer necessary.

Routine disposal may happen sooner. The April review is not a reason to retain unnecessary information until the following year.

Disposal may be postponed where relevant records are needed for an ongoing complaint, claim, safeguarding matter, information request or other justified obligation.

Backups
Deletion reviews include duplicate and backup copies. Some services retain recoverable copies for a limited period. Where immediate deletion is unavailable, those copies remain protected and are addressed through the provider’s retention or expiry arrangements. Previous deletions are reapplied if a backup is restored.

11. Your data protection rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to:

Access your personal information.
Correct inaccurate or incomplete information.
Request erasure.
Request restriction of processing.
Receive or transfer certain information in a portable format.
Withdraw consent where processing relies on consent.

Your right to object: You may object to processing based on legitimate interests. You also have an absolute right to object to the use of your information for direct marketing.

These rights are subject to applicable conditions and exemptions. An erasure request does not always require deletion of records needed for a lawful obligation or legal claim.

Please contact me to make a request. I will respond within the applicable statutory timescale, normally one month, and explain any lawful extension or limitation.

You may raise concerns with me or complain directly to the Information Commissioner’s Office:

ICO complaints information
Telephone: 0303 123 1113

12. Professional will and continuity of care

My professional-will arrangements address circumstances in which serious illness, incapacity or death prevents me from continuing to practise.

A nominated professional representative may access the limited information necessary to contact clients, support continuity of care and arrange the lawful management of records.

Access is restricted to the responsibilities of that role and remains subject to confidentiality and data protection obligations.

13. Psychotherapy appointments and payment

Individual psychotherapy sessions last 50 minutes and cost £70 per session. Sessions usually take place at the same agreed time each week.

Payment is required in advance by bank transfer or another agreed method. If payment has not been received before the appointment, the session will not go ahead.

If you arrive late, the session will still finish at the scheduled time.

14. Cancellations and missed appointments

Please cancel or rearrange appointments by email.

More than 48 hours’ notice is required to cancel or rearrange without charge. If 48 hours’ notice or less is given, or an appointment is missed, the full session fee is retained.

This applies regardless of the reason for cancellation, as the reserved time cannot usually be offered to someone else at short notice.

If I cancel an appointment, you will not be charged for it. Any advance payment will be refunded or transferred to another appointment by agreement.

15. Planned breaks and ending therapy

A regular weekly appointment can be held for up to three consecutive weeks without charge, provided the break is arranged with the required notice.

For a longer break, the full weekly session fee is payable from the fourth consecutive week if you wish to retain the agreed slot. Alternatively, the slot can be released, and we can consider resuming therapy when availability allows.

You are free to end therapy at any time. Where possible, I encourage us to discuss endings in advance. The cancellation policy continues to apply to appointments already booked.

16. Working together safely

Therapy is a collaborative process. It can support understanding and change, but outcomes cannot be guaranteed. You remain responsible for your choices and actions.

Please tell me about significant changes in your circumstances that may affect our work.

Please do not attend under the influence of alcohol or other mind-altering substances. If a session cannot safely or usefully proceed for this reason, I may end it; the session fee remains payable.

Session recording in any format, including audio or video, is not permitted.

For online appointments, please use a private space and a secure connection wherever possible.

17. Communication and urgent support

Communication outside sessions is primarily for administration, including scheduling, cancellations and arrangements for our work.

Email and electronic messages may not be read immediately and should not be used for urgent clinical support. Please avoid sending unnecessary sensitive information electronically.

I do not provide an emergency or crisis service. If there is immediate danger, call 999 or attend your nearest emergency department. For other urgent concerns, contact an appropriate local NHS urgent-care service. Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123.

18. Concerns and complaints

If you have concerns about our work, please raise them with me where you feel able. I will take them seriously and seek to respond fairly and thoughtfully.

You may also be able to use the BACP’s professional conduct procedures, subject to its eligibility requirements. Information is available at www.bacp.co.uk.

Data protection complaints can be made to the ICO as described above.

19. Review and updates

This page will be updated when my services, record-handling arrangements or relevant requirements change, including when the clinical retention schedule and Article 9 condition have been confirmed.