Privacy policy

Vernet & Co ("we", "us", "our") is a private psychotherapy practice led by Marine Vernet. We are committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information with the care it deserves — particularly because much of the information we hold relates to your health, which the law treats as especially sensitive.

This Privacy Policy explains what personal data we collect, why we collect it, how we use and protect it, who we share it with, and the rights you have. It applies to visitors to our website (vernetpsychologylondon.uk), to people who contact us to enquire about therapy, and to our clients.

Please note: the confidentiality of your therapy, and the specific circumstances in which it may need to be broken, are explained separately in the therapy agreement we provide before work begins. This Privacy Policy sits alongside that agreement.

1. Who we are (Data Controller)

Vernet & Co is the "data controller" responsible for your personal data.

• Practitioner / Data Controller: Marine Vernet, MBACP (Registered Member 413758)
• Website: vernetpsychologylondon.uk
• Email: contact@vernetpsychologylondon.uk
• Telephone: 020 4572 4812 / +44 7523 462214
• Consulting locations: Chelsea, Clapham, King's Cross, London Bridge and Soho, and online
• ICO registration number: ZB875927

We are registered with the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator.

2. The personal data we collect

Depending on how you interact with us, we may collect:

3. Special category (health) data

Information about your mental or physical health is "special category data" under the UK GDPR and receives a higher level of protection. Because therapy cannot be provided without it, we take particular care over how this information is stored, used and shared. We hold an internal policy document governing how we handle this data, as required by UK law.

4. How we collect your data

We collect personal data:

• Directly from you — when you contact us, attend an introductory call, complete intake forms, or during sessions
• Automatically — through cookies and similar technologies when you use our website (see section 10)
• Occasionally from third parties — for example, a referral from another professional or a directory such as Psychology Today, where you have contacted us through it

5. Why we use your data, and our lawful bases

Under the UK GDPR we must have a "lawful basis" for using your data. Where the data concerns your health, we must also meet an additional "special category" condition. Our bases are:

You can withdraw consent at any time where we rely on it. Withdrawing consent does not affect our ability to keep clinical records we are professionally required to retain.

6. Who we share your data with

We do not sell your data or share it for advertising. We share it only where necessary, with:

• Service providers ("processors") who help us run the practice, for example our website host, email provider, and payment provider. These providers act on our instructions under contract.
• Our clinical supervisor, as required by our professional body. Supervision is itself confidential, and clients are generally discussed without identifying details.
• Your insurer (e.g. Vitality), only where you are using insurance to fund sessions and only to the extent needed to process your claim.
• Your GP or another healthcare professional, only with your consent, or without it where there is a risk of serious harm to you or others.
• Professional or legal advisors, and regulators, where we are legally required or permitted to disclose.

We do not use AI tools to process client information.

Any disclosure of your therapy beyond the above is governed by the confidentiality terms in your therapy agreement.

7. International transfers

Some of our service providers (for example, our email provider) may store data outside the UK. Where this happens, we ensure appropriate safeguards are in place — such as a UK adequacy decision, an International Data Transfer Agreement, or equivalent contractual protections — so your data receives the same level of protection as it would in the UK.

8. How long we keep your data

• Enquiries that do not become therapy: we keep these for up to 6 months and then delete them.
• Client clinical records: we keep these for 7 years after the end of therapy, in line with our professional and insurance obligations. For clients who were under 18, we keep records until their 25th birthday.
• Financial records: kept for 6 years to meet accounting and tax obligations.

When records reach the end of their retention period, we securely destroy them and keep a brief note that we have done so.

9. How we keep your data secure

We take appropriate technical and organisational measures to protect your data, including secure, encrypted storage; password protection; limiting access to Marine Vernet only; and secure disposal of paper records. We keep clinical records separate from routine website enquiry data. If a data breach occurs that is likely to affect your rights, we will act promptly and, where required, notify the ICO within 72 hours and inform you.

10. Cookies

Our website uses cookies and similar technologies. Strictly necessary cookies keep the site working; other cookies (for example, analytics) are only used with your consent, which you can give or refuse through our cookie banner and change at any time. Full details are set out in our Cookie Policy.

11. Your rights

Under UK data protection law you have the right to:

• Access the personal data we hold about you
• Rectification of inaccurate or incomplete data
• Erasure of your data ("right to be forgotten"), subject to our need to retain certain clinical and financial records
• Restriction of how we use your data in certain circumstances
• Object to certain uses, including any direct marketing
• Data portability in certain circumstances
• Withdraw consent where we rely on it

We do not use your data for automated decision-making or profiling. To exercise any right, contact us using the details in section 1. We will respond within one month. There is normally no charge, and we may need to verify your identity first.

12. Changes to this policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The current version is always available on this page, with the "last updated" date shown at the top.

13. How to complain

If you have any concern about how we handle your data, please contact us first — we will do our best to put things right. You can also complain to the ICO:

• Website: ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint
• Helpline: 0303 123 1113
• Post: Information Commissioner's Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF