For our clients

Privacy notice

How we collect, use and keep your personal information safe.

Belonging Therapy

Belonging Therapy is the trading name of Fayola Edmunds, based in Bristol, UK.

Last updated: July 2026

Data Controller
Belonging Therapy — the trading name of Fayola Edmunds
Contact
Fayola Edmunds · hello@belongingtherapy.org
ICO Registration No.
ZC177105
Website
belongingtherapy.org

Who we are

Belonging Therapy is a counselling platform and practitioner development hub, based in Bristol, UK.

Under UK data protection law, we are what is called a Data Controller — we are responsible for how your personal information is collected, used and kept safe.

What information we collect

When you get in touch or use our platform as a client, we may collect:

  • Your name
  • Your age
  • A brief description of what has brought you to seek support
  • Information about your identity and context that you choose to share — such as ethnicity, culture, faith, language, gender, sexual orientation, disability and neurodivergence — so we can match you with an aligned counsellor
  • Your email address, so we can respond to you and confirm your bookings
  • Payment information, handled securely by Stripe. We never see or store your card details.

What we do not collect

We do not ask for your home address when you first make an enquiry. We do not store any therapy notes — your therapist holds their own clinical records separately and is independently responsible for them.

Why we collect this — and our legal basis

For your contact details, age and booking information: We need this to provide the service you have asked for. Legal basis: performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b) UK GDPR).

For waitlist and launch updates by email or text message: We use your consent (Article 6(1)(a) UK GDPR and PECR). You choose email, text message or both, and you can withdraw your consent from either channel at any time.

For your reason for seeking support and the identity and context information you choose to provide: These are called special category data under UK GDPR, because they relate to your health. Legal basis: your explicit consent (Article 9(2)(a) UK GDPR).

We will ask for your clear agreement before you complete the intake form. You can withdraw that agreement at any time — just get in touch.

For payment processing: Legal basis: performance of a contract (Article 6(1)(b)). Payments are handled by Stripe. Read Stripe’s privacy policy.

How long we keep your information

What we holdHow long we keep it
Enquiry and contact details12 months from last contact
Intake form (reason for support and identity/context information)24 months, then securely deleted
Booking and payment records7 years — required by law
Records of your consentDuration of our relationship, plus 3 years

Who we share your information with

We share some of your intake information with the therapist you are matched with, so they can prepare well for your first session. Your therapist is an independent practitioner and is separately responsible for their own clinical records.

We also use trusted third-party services, all of whom have signed data agreements with us:

  • Amazon Web Services (AWS) — platform hosting
  • Stripe — payment processing
  • Microsoft 365 — booking confirmations and correspondence
  • Our chosen email and SMS delivery providers — waitlist and launch updates. We will name these providers here before the service goes live.

We do not sell your information. We do not share it for marketing purposes.

Your rights

Under UK GDPR, you have the right to see, correct, delete, restrict, receive and object to the use of your information — and to withdraw consent at any time.

To use any of these rights, email hello@belongingtherapy.org. We will respond within one calendar month.

Complaints

If you are not happy with how we have handled your information, you can complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk or call 0303 123 1113.