Last updated: October 2026
Privacy notice
Your privacy matters to me, especially when you’re trusting me with personal and sensitive information. This notice explains what information I collect, why I collect it, how I keep it safe and what your rights are.
Who I am
A ‘Lis’ of Life Counselling Service is run by me, Lisa Mckeever, a counsellor and psychotherapist and member of the National Counselling & Psychotherapy Society (NCPS). I am the “data controller” for the personal information described in this notice, which means I decide how it is used and I am responsible for protecting it.
- Email: info@alisoflife.co.uk
- Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) registration number: [ICO registration number]
Information I collect
When you make an enquiry
If you contact me through the website form or by email, I collect your name, email address, phone number (if you give it), how and when you’d like me to contact you, and anything you choose to tell me in your message.
If you become a client
If we go on to work together, I will also collect:
- your phone number and home address
- your GP’s details
- the name and phone number of your next of kin, which I would only use in an emergency
- details of any medication you take, particularly for your mental health
- your answers to the CORE-10, a short questionnaire that helps me understand how you’re feeling and track your progress
- session notes, which are brief, precise and accurate
- information about your physical or mental health and other personal matters you share in sessions
- records of appointments and payments
Information about your health is known as “special category” data. It is treated with extra care, as explained below.
When you visit this website
This website does not use cookies, analytics or tracking tools, and does not load content from other companies. Like all websites, the hosting company’s servers keep standard technical logs (such as IP addresses) for security and to keep the site running.
How I use your information and my legal reasons
Data protection law requires me to have a lawful reason for using your information. I rely on:
- Taking steps at your request before a contract to respond to your enquiry and arrange your free consultation.
- Contract to provide counselling, arrange appointments and take payment once we agree to work together.
- Legal obligation to keep financial records for tax purposes and to comply with the law.
- Legitimate interests to keep proper professional records, take part in clinical supervision and respond to any complaint or claim.
For health and other special category information, I rely on your explicit consent, which you give in writing when you sign my client contract before our first session. If you mention anything about your health in an enquiry or during your free consultation, I only use it to reply to you and to decide together whether I can help. You can withdraw your consent at any time, although I may need to keep some records for the reasons explained below.
Confidentiality and its limits
What you share in sessions is confidential. There are a small number of situations where I may need to share information without your consent:
- if I believe you are at risk of harming yourself or someone else, I may contact your GP or the relevant public services
- if a court of law orders me to provide my notes, I am legally required to do so
Wherever possible and safe, I will talk to you first. I will explain these limits clearly before we begin working together.
As required by my professional body, I attend regular clinical supervision. I discuss my work with my supervisor without sharing your name or anything that could identify you.
Who I share information with
I never sell your information or use it for marketing. I only share it where necessary with:
- Fasthosts, who host this website and my email
- Zoom or Microsoft, who provide the video call service for sessions
- my bank, when you pay by bank transfer
- my insurer, the NCPS or legal advisers, only if needed to deal with a complaint or legal claim
- your GP, emergency services or other public services, or a court, only in the situations described under “Confidentiality and its limits”
- your next of kin, only in an emergency
Some of these providers may process data outside the UK. Where they do, they must use safeguards approved under UK data protection law.
How long I keep your information
- Enquiries that don’t lead to counselling are deleted within 6 months.
- Client records and session notes are kept for 7 years after our last session, then securely destroyed.
- Financial records are kept for 6 years to meet tax requirements.
How I keep your information safe
I keep records to a minimum and store them securely. Client records are kept in password-protected files on a password-protected computer that I use for my business. I don’t keep any paper notes. Sessions take place over video call from a private room where we cannot be overheard, and I never record sessions.
Your rights
You have the right to:
- ask for a copy of the information I hold about you
- ask me to correct anything that is wrong or incomplete
- ask me to delete your information, where I don’t need to keep it for legal reasons
- ask me to limit how I use your information, or object to it being used
- ask for your information in a format you can take elsewhere
- withdraw your consent at any time
To use any of these rights, email me at info@alisoflife.co.uk. There is no charge, and I will respond within one month.
Making a complaint
If you are unhappy with how I have handled your personal information, please tell me first by emailing info@alisoflife.co.uk. I will acknowledge your complaint within 30 days and let you know the outcome.
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint or by calling 0303 123 1113.
Changes to this notice
I may update this notice from time to time. The latest version will always be on this page, with the date it was last changed at the top.