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Privacy Policy & Terms and Conditions
Symphony Therapy Ltd. Privacy Policy
Contact information:
Lovena Vencatakistnen
71-75 Shelton Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2H 9JQ, UK
[Note: In-person sessions are held at this address: Greenwich 15A Nelson Rd London SE10 9JB.]
Email: lovena@symphonytherapy.com
I, Lovena Vencatakistnen, am the Data Controller and Processor of Symphony Therapy Ltd.
The basis on which I keep client data is that of “Legitimate Interests”. This means that the data is necessary for me to fulfil the contract that we have together (i.e. to provide therapy) and that it is data that you would reasonably expect me to hold and use.
For those who enquire about therapy, the data I hold includes any information you have sent me by email/text/message.
For those who book and attend at least one session, the data I hold includes:
Basic information such as name, email address, phone number
Information that you give me as part of the work we do together
Records of what interventions that I use (or potentially do not use) in our sessions
Emails, texts and/or messages that are sent between us
Information sent from any third party, e.g., GP, insurance company, EAP, occupational health provider.
Some of the information that you give me may fall under the definition of special category of data as defined by the General Data Protection Regulation. The condition for processing this special data is “processing is necessary for medical diagnosis, the provision of health care or treatment pursuant to contract with a health professional”.
Data is not shared with anyone, except possibly your GP, and for any reasons covered by the Requirements for Disclosure which are detailed and discussed when we first meet. My accountant will see bank, credit card and PayPal records which will contain any information that you submit when making payment. If you would like me to redact your identifiable data before sending to the accountants, then please let me know.
The data is primarily used to enable me to provide therapy for you. It may also be used scientific research purposes and statistical purposes.
Details of where data is held:
Any emails sent between us are held either on my computer’s hard drive or exchange server or if archived, in Dropbox which is secure cloud-based storage which is itself GDPR and UK-GDPR compliant. Any that may be held on my mobile phone are fingerprint/code protected.
Any texts/WhatsApp messages/Messenger messages sent between us (see Social Media and Electronic Information section) are held on my mobile phone which is fingerprint/code protected.
Your notes are handwritten and are kept in a locked filing cabinet. A coding system enables the therapist to know whose notes are whose, but a stranger seeing the notes would not be able to identify who they referred to.
Credit card information is shredded as soon as processed.
If you use PayPal or online banking, then clearly these systems will hold your data. I will download from these systems for accounting purposes and the resulting spreadsheets are held in Dropbox. When sent to my accountants, they will be password protected.
Your data is kept for 7 years. The length of time is based on the stipulation of my insurer. After this time any paper records are shredded, and computer records permanently deleted.
Symphony Therapy Ltd takes the security of data seriously and as such:
All data is held securely (see details of where data is held above)
Any data transmitted is sent encrypted where possible
For accounting purposes Excel spreadsheets are used.
However:
I am not in control of data (including emails and texts) which you send me.
Apps such as Facebook routinely access any information held and this is beyond my control.
If there is any breach of data security Symphony Therapy Ltd. will give full details to the Information Commissioners Office and any person affected within 72 hours of the breach and do all possible to minimise any potential impact.
You have rights with regards to the data held:
The right of access. I will provide you with all data I hold on you as soon as I can following a request (and definitely within 30 days, unless this is impossible due to holidays or illness).
The right to rectification. If any data I hold is incorrect, just let me know and I will correct it as soon as I can following a request (and definitely within 30 days, unless this is impossible due to holidays or illness).
The right to erasure. If you wish me to erase your data just let me know and I will delete any computer records and shred any paper records as soon as I can following a request (and definitely within 30 days, unless this is impossible due to holidays or illness). NB: data may be retained for scientific research, historical research or statistical purposes where erasure is likely to render impossible or seriously impair the achievement of that processing, but this would never include case notes or data such as address/email/phone.
The right to restrict processing. This would usually be a stop-gap measure before correction of any errors or before erasure.
The right to data portability. This might apply if you want your notes sent to another therapist for example, but it is likely that the easiest solution would come under the right to access, i.e. I would send the data to you.
The right to object to:
Processing based on legitimate interests or the performance of a task in the public interest/exercise of official authority (including profiling). Symphony Therapy Ltd does not engage in these things.
Direct marketing.
§ Processing for purposes of scientific/historical research and statistics. For this, you must provide grounds for your objection.
§ Automated decision making and profiling. Symphony Therapy Ltd does not engage in automated decision making or profiling.
Cookies
Like many website managers, I use cookies. A cookie is a small amount of data that is sent to your computer or mobile phone browser from a website’s computer and is stored on your device’s hard drive.
Cookies record information about your online preferences. They help me understand how visitors engage with my sites so that I can improve your online experience with me at Symphony Therapy Ltd. I do not use cookies to collect personally identifiable information about you.
Each website you visit can send its own cookie to your browser if your browser’s preferences allow it. To protect your privacy, your browser only permits a website to access the cookies it has already sent to you, not the cookies sent to you by other websites.
How to control and delete cookies
You may restrict or block the cookies which are set by our website, or any other website, through your browser settings. You can also ask your browser to alert you when a cookie is issued.
For more information about cookies and how to manage them is available at www.aboutcookies.org
I use Google Analytics to understand how visitors engage with my websites. It collects information anonymously and reports website trends without identifying individual visitors. For more information visit Google Analytics privacy and security information. I also use Google signals, which associates visitation information from this site with Google information from accounts of signed-in Google users who have already consented to this association for the purpose of ads personalization. This data is used by Google signals to provide aggregated and anonymized insights into site users' cross-device behaviours. If you do not want Google to use your information in this way, even in anonymized aggregate form, you can review your own Google settings via My Activity.
Social Media and Electronic Information
This outlines the policy of Symphony Therapy Ltd regarding the use of social media and electronic information. If you, as a client, have questions about any aspect please do ask. As the world of technology is constantly changing this document is likely to be updated regularly.
Friending
I do not accept friend or contact requests from former or current clients on any social networking site as this can not only compromise your confidentiality (e.g., if another of my friends saw that you were a friend, they may wonder how we know each other) but would also blur the boundary of the therapeutic relationship.
Following
I tweet on a very occasional basis as a business. I also have a personal account. I would suggest not following my personal account and if I notice that you have, I suggest we discuss this. I will not follow you on Twitter as this can cause confusion around the purpose of this: would it be part of your therapy, or would I just be being curious?
Interacting
Please do not use public ways of contact (e.g., @replies or tagging) again because of the potential for this to compromise your confidentiality. You may use Facebook messenger, WhatsApp, or text to discuss appointment times or other logistics but not therapeutic issues. The latter cannot be kept secure.
Use of search engines
I do not routinely Google my clients but may very occasionally in a time of crisis. For example, if you had failed to attend a session and I was concerned for your safety I may try to find out about you this way. If I did so, I would tell you about it the next time we met.
Business review sites
You may find my name on business review sites, but I have not asked to be on these. Businesses do not get a choice. Clients are free to post whatever they choose and due to confidentiality, I cannot comment on anything that is posted. Indeed, anyone (including a competitor) can post anything so it is advisable to be aware that reviews (good or bad) may not be representative of the views of real clients.
It is considered unethical by some of my professional bodies (the National Society for Hypnosis, Psychotherapy & Mindfulness) to publish testimonials and so you will not find any traditional testimonials coming from me, although it is always nice to receive private messages from clients who have completed their therapy. I do, however, sometimes publish anonymized client case studies with prior client consent.
Location-based services
If you use location-based services on your phone you should be aware that others may surmise that you are a therapy client if you are seen as “checking in” at my address.
It is preferable to use email only for logistical contact (e.g., to get a reminder of an appointment time) due to the inherent insecurity of email. If you wish to engage in “email therapy” then please use a password protected word document to contain what you wish to say. I can set this up for you if you need it.
Phone
As above, texting may be used for contact about appointment times. This is preferable to making a phone call as it is easier to respond as I cannot answer the phone if I am with another client. Whether phoning or texting, please only do so between the hours of 9am and 8pm.
Terms and Conditions
PAYMENT METHODS
Options:
PayPal
Bank transfer to UK account.
Cash (for in-person sessions).
Debit card or credit card.
Please note: I use SumUp and have gone paperless, which means that your receipt will be texted or emailed following the transaction.
CANCELLATION POLICY
Your appointment time is reserved just for you. A late cancellation or missed visit leaves a hole in the therapist’s day that could have been filled by another patient. For in-person appointments, we also need to cover the costs of venue rental in advance. We therefore require 24-hour notice (and appreciate as much notice as possible) for any cancellations or changes to your appointment.
Patients who provide less than 24 hours’ notice will be charged a cancellation fee of £30 for in-person appointments and £15 for online appointments. Thank you for your understanding.
Registered hypnotherapist and psychotherapist in London, UK.
Still have questions?
Call us at +44 7585 974384 or email us at Lovena@SymphonyTherapy.com
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