Privacy Notice

This notice explains what personal information I collect, why I collect it, how I look after it and what your rights are.

I am Marina Vishnevskaya, a psychotherapeutic counsellor in private practice. I am the data controller for the personal information I hold about you.

What information I collect

When you contact me, I may collect your name, email address, telephone number and any information you choose to share about why you are considering therapy.

If we decide to work together, I may also collect information needed for our work together, including your contact details, relevant personal information and brief clinical notes.

Because of the nature of therapy, some of the information you share with me may include sensitive information such as information about your health. This is known under data protection law as special category data.

How I use your information

I use your information to respond to enquiries, arrange and provide therapy, communicate with you about appointments, maintain appropriate clinical and administrative records, manage payments and meet my professional, ethical and legal responsibilities.

I only collect and use information that is relevant to these purposes.

My legal basis for using your information

I process your personal information where it is necessary to take steps at your request before we begin working together and to provide therapy under our agreement.

If our work together has ended, I may continue to hold some information where this is necessary for the legitimate interests of running and protecting my professional practice.

Some of the information you share with me may be classed as special category data. I process this information where it is necessary for the provision of health care or treatment, including counselling and psychotherapy.

Confidentiality and supervision

What you share with me in therapy is treated as confidential.

I discuss my clinical work in professional supervision as part of responsible therapeutic practice and share only the information needed for that purpose.

There may be limited circumstances in which I need to share information without your consent, for example where there is a serious risk of harm or where I am required to do so by law. Where possible and appropriate, I would discuss this with you first.

Professional executor

I have appointed a professional executor who has access to essential client contact information so that clients can be contacted if I become unexpectedly unable to practise.

How your information is stored

Client information is stored securely using password-protected cloud-based services. Clinical notes are stored separately from names and other identifying information.

Access to client information is limited to those who need it for the purposes described in this notice.

Payments are made by bank transfer. I do not collect or store your bank or card details myself, although my bank records will contain information associated with payments you make to me.

How long I keep your information

I keep client records for seven years after our work together ends, after which they are securely deleted.

If you contact me but we do not go on to work together, I will normally delete your enquiry and contact details within six months of our last contact.

Your rights

You have rights in relation to your personal information. Depending on the circumstances, these may include the right to ask for a copy of the information I hold about you, to have inaccurate information corrected, and to ask for information to be deleted or its use restricted.

Some of these rights depend on the circumstances and the legal basis on which your information is being processed.

If you would like to ask about the information I hold about you or exercise any of your rights, please contact me.

If you have any questions about this notice or how I use your personal information, you can contact me using the contact form on this website.You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO).

This website

If you contact me using the form on this website, the information you provide will be processed so that I can receive and respond to your enquiry.

This website also uses cookies and similar technologies needed for it to function and may use analytics to help me understand how the website is used. Where consent is required for non-essential cookies, you will be given the opportunity to accept or decline them.

Third-party services

I use third-party service providers to support the running of my practice, including cloud storage, video sessions and website hosting. Where these providers process personal information on my behalf, I take reasonable steps to use services with appropriate data-protection and security arrangements.

Some service providers may process information outside the UK. Where this happens, I rely on the safeguards required under UK data protection law.

Changes to this notice

I may update this Privacy Notice from time to time. The most recent version will be available on this website.

Last updated: September 2026