Alison Lindsay Privacy Policy

GDPR (implemented by DPA2018 in the UK) brought in new legal protection for personal information from May 2018. This privacy policy sets out how Alison Lindsay gathers, uses and protects any information that you give us when using this website, or any of our services.

Alison is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. Whenever we ask you to provide your personal data, then you can be assured that it will only be used in accordance with this privacy statement.

Alison Lindsay may change or update this policy from time to time. In order to stay up to date, we suggest that you check back regularly, and let us know of any concerns you may have. This policy was last updated in April 2022.

Data Controller: Alison Lindsay

Contact Details: hello@alisonlindsay.co.uk, 35 Castle Oval Kendal LA9 7BD

Why do we collect your data?

In order to provide the range of services offered, I need to gather and retain potentially sensitive information about my clients and their health. I also take basic contact details and information via my website and external booking services to allow me to contact you and handle enquiries. During a reflexology treatment or fertility consultation I will take a full medical history, but will only use this information for the creation of treatment plans and the provision of relevant health and wellbeing recommendations.

As a full member of the Association of Reflexologists, I abide by the AoR Code of Practice and Ethics. I am also a fully qualified and insured Hypnobirthing Instructor (The Wise Hippo Ltd. and The Birth Uprising) and Registered Midwife. I am therefore also bound by the data storage regulations of my insurer as well as the Nursing and Midwifery Council Code of Conduct.

The lawful basis under which I hold and use your information includes my legal obligation to hold your information for the following reasons :

  1. My legitimate interest in providing classes and treatments to the standard that you would expect

  2. For ‘Claims occurring’ insurance

  3. With your consent

 As I hold special category data (i.e. health related information), the Additional Condition under which I hold and use this information is: for me to fulfil my role as a health care practitioner bound under both NMC and AoR Confidentiality as defined in the NMC Code of Conduct and AoR Code of Practice and Ethics.

What information do I collect?

I may ask for and collect the following information either in person, via email or via this website:

  • Your name and your partner's name (if applicable)

  • Contact information including email address and telephone number

  • Your address and postcode, where needed for delivering a private course or service

  • Details of your general health, including pregnancies where applicable, and any other classes or therapies you may have accessed

  • Your pregnancy/birth outcomes

  • Your detailed medical history (for reflexology treatments and fertility support only)

  • Treatment details and related notes (which I will take after each reflexology/fertility consultation)

What do I do with the information gathered?

I only gather information that is necessary to help me understand your needs and provide you with the best quality service.  In particular for the following reasons:

  • Internal record keeping

  • Communicating with you about your bookings

  • Understanding your needs so that we can tailor and improve the products and services offered

  • Creating a treatment plan for reflexology or fertility

  • Sending you emails/text messages to check on your progress or to follow up after you have used my services

  • Gathering statistical data

  • From time to time, we may also use your contact information to contact you for market research purposes. This would be via email, with the option to opt out.

I do not gather medical information or provide specific clinical or medical advice to hypnobirthing clients, with the exception of general health advice for pregnancy.

I will NOT share your personal or sensitive information with anyone else without explaining why it is necessary, and getting your explicit consent (except with clear legal obligation, for example where there are child safeguarding concerns). I may however share statistics or quotes on my pages (including social media). These will be anonymised unless you have given your consent to be named.

I am required to keep your information for a period of 5 years following the last class or treatment, in order to comply with my insurer’s record keeping requirements for ‘claims occurring’ . After this time your data will be erased, or in the case of birth surveys, anonymised and kept for statistical analysis purposes only.

What are my rights?

GDPR gives you the following rights:

  • The right to be informed:
    To know how your information will be held and used (this notice).

  • The right of access:
    To see your therapist’s records of your personal information, so you know what is held about you and can verify it.

  • The right to rectification:
    To tell your therapist to make changes to your personal information if it is incorrect or incomplete.

  • The right to erasure (also called “the right to be forgotten”):
    For you to request your therapist to erase any information they hold about you

  • The right to restrict processing of personal data:.
    You have the right to request limits on how your therapist uses your personal information

  • The right to data portability:

    Under certain circumstances you can request a copy of personal information held electronically so you can reuse it in other systems.

  • The right to object:
    To be able to tell your therapist you don’t want them to use certain parts of your information, or only to use it for certain purposes.

  • Rights in relation to automated decision-making and profiling.

  • The right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office:
    To be able to complain to the ICO if you feel your details are not correct, if they are not being used in a way that you have given permission for, or if they are being stored when they don’t have to be.

 Full details of your rights can be found at https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/individual-rights/.

 If you wish to exercise any of these rights, please use the contact details given above.

 If you are dissatisfied with the response you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office; their contact details are at:  www.ico.org.uk

 Finally, I ask you to note that:

  • If you don’t agree to me, as a therapist, keeping records of information about you and your treatments, or if you don’t allow me to use the information in the way that I need to for treatment planning and provision, I may not be able to treat you  

  • As a therapist, I am required to keep your records of treatment for a certain period  as described above, which may mean that even if you ask me to erase any details about you, I might have to keep these details until after that period has passed

  • I may move records between computers and IT systems, but your details will be protected from being seen by others without your permission.

Security

I am committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure, I have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information I collect online. All medical information is treated in the strictest confidence.

How I use cookies

A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer's hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs, likes and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.

This site is powered by Squarespace, who log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps me (and Squarespace) to analyse data about webpage traffic and improve my website by tailoring it to customer needs. A cookie in no way gives me access to your computer or any additional information about you, other than:

  • Information about your browser, network, and device

  • Web pages you visited prior to coming to this website

  • Your IP address

This information may also include details about your use of this website, including:

  • Clicks

  • Internal links

  • Pages visited

  • Scrolling

  • Searches

  • Timestamps

You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website but would not affect the quality of any service you receive from me.

Links to other websites

My website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave this site, you should note that I do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, I cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.

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