​Welcome!  The purpose of this document is to outline our working relationship and what you can expect from our sessions together.  For online psychotherapy and counselling please refer to the relevant contract here.      

 

Psychotherapy and counselling provide a space for you to express yourself and work through your concerns with a professional.  Whilst I won’t give advice or tell you what to do, I will encourage you to speak, listen to what you say, and support you in achieving the changes you seek.  As a relational integrative practitioner, I draw on various psychotherapeutic approaches to provide you with a therapeutic relationship that fosters your healing and growth.  Further information about how I work is available at angharadthomas.co.uk. If you need a printed copy, please ask.

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Sessions

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• Each session lasts 60 minutes and begins at the agreed start time.

• Please arrive as close to the start time as possible, as I am unable to accommodate early arrivals.

• If you arrive late, the session will still end at the appointed time, and the full fee will apply.

• If you are more than 10 minutes late without prior notice, the session will be cancelled and the full fee will apply. I will contact you via text or email to reschedule.

• I recommend beginning with six sessions to allow our work to evolve.  If we decide to continue beyond this, sessions will become open-ended unless we agree otherwise.

 

Fees

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• The fee is £45 per 60 minute session, payable by cash at the end of each session.  I do not accept card payments.  

• Fees are reviewed annually in September, with any changes taking effect in January.

 

Cancellation

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• Cancellations within 24 hours of an agreed session that cannot be rescheduled within the same week will incur the full fee, except in exceptional circumstances.

• If I need to cancel a session, I will give you as much notice as possible and try to arrange an alternative time. You will not be charged if I am unable to attend.

• I will notify you in advance of any breaks, such as holidays or dates I am unavailable, and ask that you do the same. 

 

Attendance

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• Please keep absences to a minimum and commit to regular attendance, as this is crucial for effective psychotherapy and counselling.

• Therapy can sometimes feel challenging and emotional, and you may feel reluctant to attend.  This can be part of the therapeutic process, and I encourage you to discuss these feelings with me.

• If you are under the influence of non-prescribed drugs or alcohol at your appointment, I will be unable to offer you a session. Abusive behaviour will also result in the immediate end of the session.

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Ending

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• You are free to end the sessions at any time, and I will always respect your decision to end therapy.  

• In psychotherapy and counselling, endings are important and it is best not to end abruptly.  If you are finding therapy difficult, or wish to end sessions, please discuss this with me first so we have the opportunity to resolve any issues and end our work together safely.

• I reserve the right to end our sessions if I am unable to continue, or believe you will not benefit from ongoing therapy with me.  If I end the sessions, I will offer you a final session if appropriate.

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Contact between sessions

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• To arrange, reschedule or cancel appointments, please email hello@angharadthomas.co.uk or send a text or WhatsApp message to 07765 300 800. I will respond during normal business hours as time permits. 

• I do not operate a crisis or emergency service.  For urgent emotional support, please contact your GP, NHS 111 or the Samaritans on 116 123.  In an emergency, call 999 or visit your nearest hospital A&E.

• Contact between sessions is best kept to scheduling and administrative matters.  If you choose to contact me between sessions regarding non-scheduling issues, I will read your message but will not respond or discuss it with you until our next session, unless it is an urgent safeguarding matter.  

• Please be aware that emails and texts are not completely secure so if you send me content related to your therapy sessions, it is vulnerable to unauthorised access.  As such, I recommend that you use a password protected document to communicate sensitive information.

• To protect your confidentiality, I won’t initiate contact if we cross paths outside sessions.

• Please visit angharadthomas.co.uk for my social media policy, which details how you can expect me to respond to interactions between us online. If you need a printed copy, please ask.

 

Confidentiality

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Both your attendance at counselling and psychotherapy sessions, and everything we discuss, will remain strictly confidential. However, there are some exceptions:

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• To ensure ethical practice, I attend regular clinical supervision to discuss my work.  My supervisor is bound by the same ethical standards as me, and your details will always be anonymised.

• I must report disclosures about acts of terrorism, drug trafficking, or money laundering.

• I must report risks or threats of harm to others, and reserve the right to breach confidentiality if I believe you are at significant risk of causing serious harm to yourself.

• I must report any information you reveal about children or vulnerable adults at serious risk of harm.

• I must comply if subpoenaed to give evidence in court.

• If you ask me to breach your confidentiality.

 

Where possible, I will discuss any breaches of confidentiality with you first before taking further action.

 

Notes, Record Keeping, Data Protection & Therapeutic Executor

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• I am registered with the Information Commissioner's Office and follow General Data Protection Regulation guidelines. My full privacy policy is on my website (angharadthomas.co.uk).  If you need a printed copy please ask.

• I keep brief, anonymised notes which are stored in accordance with data protection legislation.

• Besides your notes, I only store your phone number, email address and any electronic messages that you send.

• Records are kept securely for a period of 72 months after counselling has ended and are then destroyed.

• No one except me has access to your records.  However, in the event of my death or incapacitation secure access to the contact details of current clients will be transferred to a therapeutic executor.  This is a qualified psychotherapist bound by the same ethical code as myself, who will ensure current clients are informed and supported and confidentially destroy any notes and records.

 

Agreement Review

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This agreement can be re-negotiated at any time at the request of either party.

 

Ethics and Professional Practice

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I abide by the BACP Ethical Framework for the counselling professions and the UKCP Code of Ethics and Professional Practice, and am subject to their complaints process.  If you are dissatisfied with the service provided please discuss your concerns with me as a first step and I will attempt to address them constructively. If we are unable to come to a satisfactory conclusion then you can contact the BACP (www.bacp.co.uk) or UKCP (www.psychotherapy.org) who will further advise you.

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Agreement to Terms

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The information set out above are the terms and conditions to which you agree if you begin psychotherapy or counselling with me.