Who I am

I am Marinella Valeri, a BACP Registered Member (00974054) offering counselling for children and young people in northwest London, and clinical supervision for counsellors.

Data Controller: Marinella Valeri
Contact: counselling@marinellavaleri.co.uk
ICO Registration Number: ZC186555

What information I collect

I collect and hold the following personal information:

• Name, date of birth and contact details (yours and, where relevant, a parent or carer's)
• GP details and relevant medical or mental health history
• Brief session notes
• Any information you or your child shares during sessions that is relevant to their care
• Payment records (not card details)

Why I hold this information

I hold this information to:

• Provide safe and effective counselling
• Maintain appropriate clinical records
• Fulfil my professional and ethical obligations as a BACP member
• Contact you about appointments

The legal basis for processing your data is legitimate interests (providing counselling) and, where relevant, vital interests (safeguarding).

Who I may share information with

Your information is treated as confidential. I will not share it without your consent except in the following circumstances:

• Clinical supervision: I discuss my work with a qualified supervisor for the purposes of professional development and safe practice. This is done without using identifying details wherever possible.
• Safeguarding: If I have reason to believe that a child is at risk of harm, I have a legal and professional duty to share relevant information with appropriate authorities, regardless of consent.
• Risk to life: If there is serious and immediate risk to life — yours, your child's, or another person's — I may need to contact emergency services or other relevant parties.
• Legal requirement: If required by law or court order.
• Where possible, I will discuss any disclosure with you first.

How long I keep your information

• Adult client records: 7 years after the end of therapy
• Child and young person records: until the young person reaches the age of 25, or 7 years after the end of therapy if this is later
• After this period, records are securely destroyed

How I store your information

Paper records are kept in a locked filing cabinet. Any digital records are stored securely with password protection and encryption. I do not use cloud storage for client records without appropriate security measures in place.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR you have the right to:

• Access the personal information I hold about you
• Request correction of inaccurate information
• Request deletion of your data (subject to legal and professional obligations)
• Object to or restrict processing of your data
• Withdraw consent where consent is the basis for processing

To exercise any of these rights, please contact me at counselling@marinellavaleri.co.uk.

If you have a concern about how I handle your data that I am unable to resolve, you have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk or by calling 0303 123 1113.

Changes to this policy

I may update this policy from time to time. The current version will always be available at marinellavaleri.co.uk. I will notify you of any significant changes.