Your Counselling Agreement
Information about your therapist
David (MBACP, Adv. Dip., BSc) is a qualified and experienced psychotherapist, working in an integrative capacity. David is a full member of the British Association of Counsellor and Psychotherapists (BACP) and complies with their code of ethics. As required by BACP, David engages in regular supervision to ensure provision of the highest quality service to his clients.
David maintains regular training and CPD to stay at the forefront of current research and understanding in mental health therapy.
The Therapy Agreement
The therapy agreement is between you and your therapist. Please read through this carefully as it provides information about the practical side of coming to therapy. Upon your signature or by attending the sessions, the document will constitute a binding agreement between you and your practitioner. This document covers anytime you are engaged in sessions with your therapist. Including returning to therapy for top up sessions or reengagement with weekly sessions.
Confidentiality, supervision and note keeping
Therapy often involves the disclosure by the client of sensitive personal information, so confidentiality is paramount. In order to protect your right to privacy the things you disclose to your therapist will remain confidential between you and them. All practitioners are bound by their professional codes of conduct as defined by their accrediting organisation, which includes responsibility to manage your information confidentially and in line with GDPR. There are situations in which your therapist can break confidentiality without your consent: 1) Where you the client give consent for confidentiality to be broken and information to be shared. 2) Where the therapist is compelled by a court of law. 3) Where the information is of such gravity that confidentiality cannot be maintained. This includes instances in which the therapist considers the client or others to be in imminent danger. Your therapist will always attempt to speak to you before breaking confidentiality.
Supervision
Therapists are required by their profession to have regular supervision sessions where they discuss aspects of their clinical work. Your individual identity is protected during these sessions and supervision itself is confidential between therapist and supervisor.
I may find it useful to keep some notes on your sessions. These tend to be brief and help to keep track of topics and themes covered in therapy. Notes are stored securely in password protected documents on your therapist’s computer, in accordance with the data protection act and GDPR.
Social Media Disclaimer, Communication and Session Privacy
David Pringle and Better to Talk maintain professional social media accounts. These accounts are intended for educational and promotional purposes only. Instagram is not a substitute for therapy. Any information shared is general and not in reference to any individual. While anyone is welcome to follow these accounts, Better to Talk will not be able to follow you back, answer any private DMs or comments. This is in keeping with client/counsellor confidentiality and professional boundaries. Should you need to communicate with your therapist outside of sessions please make contact via email.
Under no circumstances will your therapist ever record any of your sessions as this would be a violation of your privacy and therapeutic work. Better to Talk ask the same in return from clients. Under no circumstances are you permitted to record Zoom sessions on any device such as a mobile phone, voice recorder or through a laptop or tablet. This would breach this contractual agreement.
Therapy sessions and cancellations
Sessions take place remotely, over Zoom. Each session lasts 50 mins and normally takes place weekly. If you arrive late for a session, your time can not be extended, therefore please be ready to start your session on time to benefit from your full session. If the therapist is late, they will try to extend the session if possible, or make up the time in future sessions. At the beginning of starting counselling it is helpful to schedule ahead times when you may not be able to attend. Your therapist will also make you aware of any dates when they will be unavailable. Your therapist will aim to give you good notice of any holidays and the same is appreciated in return. If for any reason you are unable to attend a scheduled session it is important that you make your therapist aware in good time. If the therapist has to cancel a session, they will give you as much notice as possible, and will also try to reschedule with you for a different time. You will not be charged for the session.
Clients under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or those who become physically threatening in sessions will need to have their session terminated. Children are not permitted in your session with you. For Zoom sessions it is your responsibility to ensure that you are technically competent in the use of Zoom and that you are alone in the room that you take your session in with no interruptions for the full 50-minute duration.
Sessions cancelled less than 48hrs in advance and missed sessions will still be charged the full fee.
Endings
Endings are an important part of the therapeutic process. Usually, it is most beneficial for an ending to be mutually decided and not be one sided, sudden and impulsive. If either of us feel it’s time to end the process, it’s good to talk about it and agree on a time frame to bring the work to a close. Once work has gone beyond 12 weeks together, I would suggest at least two sessions for us to have a proper conclusion. For work of 4 months or more I require four sessions notice prior to ending therapy. This allows you to round off deep work and gently ease into whatever comes next for you. Scheduling an ending is a way to honour your progress, explore other endings in your life and make sure you are aware of how to best to keep taking care of yourself going forward.
Fees and payments
Fees have been agreed at £80 per session. Payment can be made by BACS or PayPal prior to the session. If payment has not been made for the previous sessions, the next session will not be able to be secured unless payment is made in advance.
Complaints
As it is the therapist’s intention to heal and not harm, in the first instance please try to talk to your therapist about any concerns. They will welcome your feedback, and try to alleviate any issues that may be occurring due to the therapeutic process. If you feel as though you cannot address it directly with your practitioner, please contact their professional body. David is registered with the BACP.
Acknowledgment and Consent
By attending your sessions, you are acknowledging that:
You understand and agree to abide by the policies detailed in this client contract
We have discussed and clarified any questions you may have about this document.