Privacy Policy

Last updated: 13 August 2026

This policy explains what personal information Harley Street Addiction Specialist collects, why it is collected, how it is kept, and what rights you have over it. It is written to meet the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

Therapy involves telling someone private things about your life. This policy is meant to be read and understood, not skimmed past — so if anything here is unclear, please ask before you book.

Who is responsible for your information

Stuart Downing, trading as Harley Street Addiction Specialist, is the data controller for the information described in this policy.

• Address: 1 Harley Street, London, W1G 9QD
• Email: stuart@harleystreetaddictionspecialist.co.uk
• Telephone: +44 7825 599340
• ICO registration number: [CONFIRM — add your ICO registration number, or delete this line if not registered]

What information is collected

When you enquire

Your name, telephone number, email address, and whatever you choose to tell about your situation in your enquiry or during the free 30-minute consultation.

When you become a client

Contact and billing details, appointment records, session notes, and the information you give during assessment and sessions. This will normally include information about your health — for example substance use, mental health, sleep, trauma history, or medication. Where relevant it may include your GP’s details or details of other professionals involved in your care.

When you use this website

Technical information such as your IP address, browser type, pages visited and time on page, collected through cookies and similar technologies. This is covered in detail in the Cookie Policy.

Health information gets extra protection

Information about your physical or mental health is “special category” data under the UK GDPR and is treated more strictly than ordinary contact details.

The lawful bases relied on are:

• Article 6(1)(b) — contract: processing needed to provide the therapy you have engaged.
• Article 6(1)(f) — legitimate interests: running the practice, keeping records, and responding to enquiries.
• Article 9(2)(h) — provision of health or social care: the additional condition for handling health information, subject to the duty of confidentiality that applies to therapeutic work.
• Article 6(1)(a) / 9(2)(a) — consent: for anything optional, such as marketing emails or using your feedback as a testimonial. Consent can be withdrawn at any time.

What your information is used for

• Responding to your enquiry and arranging the free consultation
• Assessing whether the approach is appropriate for you
• Planning and delivering your sessions, and providing aftercare
• Keeping the clinical and appointment records expected of a practitioner
• Taking payment and meeting accounting obligations
• Meeting the requirements of professional bodies and insurers

Your information is never sold. It is not used for automated decision-making or profiling.

Confidentiality and when it can be broken

What you discuss in sessions is confidential. There are narrow and well-established exceptions where information may be disclosed without your consent:

• Where there is a serious and immediate risk of harm to you or to another person
• Where disclosure is required by law or by a court order
• Where a child or vulnerable adult may be at risk
• Where required under legislation covering terrorism, money laundering or drug trafficking

Wherever it is safe and practical to do so, you will be told before any disclosure is made.

Anonymised case material may be discussed in clinical supervision, which is a professional requirement. Supervision never uses your name or identifying details.

Who your information is shared with

• Clinical supervisor — anonymised discussion only, as a condition of professional registration
• Your GP or another healthcare professional — only with your explicit consent, or in the risk situations above
• Service providers — email, video-call, scheduling, payment and website hosting providers, who process data on instruction under written agreements
• Professional or regulatory bodies — where required as part of a complaint or investigation

Where a provider stores data outside the UK, the transfer is covered by UK adequacy regulations or by standard contractual clauses.

How long information is kept

Records are securely destroyed once the retention period ends.

How your information is kept safe

• Electronic records are held on password-protected, encrypted devices
• Any paper notes are stored in a locked cabinet
• Client identifiers are kept separate from session notes where practical
• Access is limited to Stuart Downing
• This website is served over HTTPS

Your rights

You have the right to:

• Be told what information is held about you and receive a copy (a subject access request)
• Have inaccurate information corrected
• Ask for information to be deleted, where no legal or professional duty requires it to be kept
• Ask for processing to be restricted, or object to it
• Receive your data in a portable format
• Withdraw consent at any time, where consent is the basis being relied on

To exercise any of these, email stuart@harleystreetaddictionspecialist.co.uk. There is no charge, and you will receive a response within one month.

Clinical records are one area where the right to erasure is limited — professional and insurance obligations usually require notes to be retained for a set period even after therapy ends. If that applies to your request, it will be explained to you.

Complaints

If you are unhappy with how your information has been handled, please raise it directly first — most things are resolved quickly that way. You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office:

• Website: ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint
• Helpline: 0303 123 1113

Changes to this policy

This policy may be updated from time to time. The “last updated” date at the top shows when it last changed. Material changes affecting current clients will be communicated directly.