Hello - my name is Nicola Priestman. I am an experienced integrative psychotherapist, counsellor. I am 39 years old, I live in Lancashire. This page is an introduction to myself and the services that I offer. I hope that it will answer any questions that you may have. However, please contact me, should you have any further questions - I will be happy to answer them for you. 

I have over 10  years experience of  working in the mental health care industry in various roles - both in education, health and charitable settings. Prior to becoming a psychotherapist I was a residential social worker and a community, family support worker. 

I initially trained as a counsellor and throughout my journey I became aware of my growing interest in psychoanalysis, I recognised the limitations that I had within my current level of training. At this stage, I decided to return to university to do my clinical training to become a psychotherapist. 

I will be honest, entering therapy can be a difficult decision to make. Equally, it can be an enriching experience that has the capacity to change not just your life, but also of those around you!  

Your therapy is completely led at your pace. I do not set a number of sessions for you. Please be rest assured that I will be with you every step of the way!

Thank you for your visit

Emotional Wellness Psychotherapy, consider that every one of us is a unique human being, we all have different styles of relating to certain types of/ or methods of therapy. 

Therefore, by combining an array of  techniques, within integrative psychotherapy, it can be tailored around an individual client, covering a wide spectrum of needs and concerns offering greater, flexibility, adaptability and the promotion of wellness.

 All of our clients new and old are at the heart of what we do. You will always be given the upmost respect, be listened to and accepted . We want you to feel valued, understood, safe and secure, in a non - judgemental and confidential space from the offset, on your journey with us.

Psychotherapy and counselling can liberate you from the isolation and loneliness of living with what can often seem unbearable by providing an opportunity to explore those feelings with someone, who is completely on the outside looking in, rather than with a friend family, work colleague or other. It  also offers you safe, non judgemental and confidential space to promote your personal growth.

People seek psychotherapy and counselling for a variety of reasons. They may be  experiencing difficulties or may want to discover more about them self. 

Self-referrals
Simply contact me by email or telephone to discuss your needs.

Referral by your GP

I  am not an NHS clinic, however you can be referred privately to us by your GP. We have close links with GPs across the region who regularly refer their patients to us.

Business / Corporate Referrals
I work locally with various local companies who refer staff to us via Occupational Health or Human Resources departments. 

Other Professional Referrals
You may be referred by  your insurance company or workplace perhaps and they may  be funding your therapy. Please call to discuss this option. 

Whats happens next ?

To ensure your your needs are being met appropriately, and you find the right therapist for you. I prefer to undertake an initial clinical assessment at  your first consultation appointment. 

The assessment enables me to assemble information about you, your background, your medical history, your current and past difficulties and how you have manged your needs to date. 

I would like to know what your expectations are  from your treatment and to understand your goals. It may also be helpful to you to consider your needs and the different options that may be  available to you. 

* I aim to respond to any  enquiries with a telephone call or an email within two working days.

No - a therapists role is to  facilitate your awareness, growth and psychological development - by listening, reflecting, offering clarity, perspective. The uniqueness and strength of  working together forms a vehicle for therapeutic inquiry and growth.

I do not set a number of sessions for you, therapy is run completely at your pace, and we will work together on deciding how many sessions you may need. However, ultimately it is your choice, as to how many sessions you have.

All new clients are offered a  face to face consultation 

Free (30 - 60 minutes)

Subsequent sessions -

£50 per session (50 minutes)

Counsellors or therapists in training a fee reduction is offered -

£40 per session (50 minutes)

EAPs  & Insurance Companies -  by negotiation.

Cancellation 

When an appointment is made, this time is reserved exclusively for you. A full 48 hours is required for cancellation. 

Cancellations less than 48 hours will incur the full cost. This is because 48 hours may allow me to reschedule my diary.  

The General Data Protection Regulation 

This privacy policy governs the manner in which Nicola Priestman uses, maintains and discloses information collected from clients using Emotional Wellness Psychotherapy. This privacy policy applies to the practice, website and services offered by Nicola Priestman online, by telephone or within her private practice.

All clients seeking therapy will be issued with a paper copy of the Privacy Policy at their Initial Assessment which contains the following information. They will be asked to sign that they understand and agree with how information is collected, stored and held before therapy can commence.

Gaining your consent

When you contact Emotional Wellness Psychotherapy, I will tell you how your information will be used, and that it may be necessary to share this with other services and organisations.  If you do not want me to share your information, you should let me know. However, there are times when I may still need to share it, for example:

- any stated purposes I tell you about when you supply me with information

- as part of my duty to protect a child, a vulnerable adult, yourself or the public, for the prevention and detection of a crime if I am required to do so by any court or law.

What information do I record?

The information I request from you may include personal or sensitive information, such as:

Personal information

· First name or given name

· Family name or surname

· Address

· Preferred telephone numbers

· Date of birth

· Email address

· Occupation

· Therapy / Counselling history

· Medical conditions relevant to therapy

· Medications 

· Client expectations from therapy

Sensitive personal information

· Gender, ethnicity and marital status

· Religious or other cultural beliefs

· Physical or mental health or condition

· Sexuality

· Offences (including alleged offences)

· Financial information

· General practitioners information

· Emergency contacts details

What do I use it for?

I  may also use some of the information you provide me with for other reasons, such as to:

- help me plan services for your future

- maintain records

- respond to any enquiries you make

- contact you about EWP events, offers available from EWP by post, online or phone (where you have indicated you are happy to hear about these)

-  account for my decisions and investigate complaints

- meet my statutory obligations, for example visits by my own regulators

- identify and protect those at risk of harm

- ensure the accuracy of my records

- prevent and detect crime

- protect you and other people

How I store information:

Handwritten notes: pertaining to sessional content and personal details are kept separate in a locked cabinet.

Smart phone: My smart phone is locked and is only accessible using a password. I store your contact number but I do not save any names to numbers.

Email /Texts: Email addresses are stored in my Outlook account. Text messages are only assigned to numbers not names.

Website: No personal information is stored on my website other than to momentarily collect and send enquiries to my outlook account for initial contact purposes.

Third party websites: Clients may find content on my website that link to the sites of other third parties. I do not control these sites which have a link to mine and I am not responsible for how they collect, store or use information.

Documents Held:

Contract/Agreement  form (client is issued with  a copy at commencement of therapy & copy held by the therapist for reference)

Privacy   statement signed by client (client is issued with a copy at commencement of therapy & copy held by the therapist for reference

- Assessment form

- Contact card

- Client code

- Client sessional notes (kept for 5 years to comply with Insurance policy terms)

How I may share your personal information:

Supervision: I attend monthly clinical supervision to ensure my practice remains safe & ethical. Session details and client codes may be shared with my Supervisor.

Therapeutic Will: Your name and contact details will be shared with my Therapeutic Executor so that in the unlikely event of my sudden death you can be contacted should you still be in therapy with me. My Therapeutic Executor will sign a confidentiality agreement document.

Emergencies: If your health is in jeopardy I may share your details with a healthcare service such as your GP or Mental Health Crisis Team.     

Withdrawing consent

Even if you sign the consent form, you still have the right to withdraw your consent. You should inform us of this in writing. Once you withdraw your consent, we cannot use the relevant information again, but we will not usually be able to recall any documents in which your information has already appeared.

Information security

I recognise that the information you provide may be sensitive and I will respect your confidentiality. I keep information about you confidential. This means I store it securely and control who has access to it. I will not share any information where I am not legally required to do so.

I will only share such information as necessary, and where I am satisfied that the other organisation is entitled to receive it and will keep your information secure.

Corrections and concerns

If you believe that information I hold about you is incorrect or out of date, or if you have concerns about how I am  handling your personal information, please contact me and I will try to resolve those concerns.

If you wish to have your personal information deleted, please let me know and I will take reasonable steps to delete it (unless I need to keep it for legal, auditing or internal risk management reasons).

If I become aware of any ongoing concerns or problems concerning our privacy practices, I will take these issues seriously and work to address them.

Erasing your information: 

All electronic enquiries are erased after 3 months. All texts and contact numbers are erased 3 months following the cessation of therapy. I hold your written information for up to 5 years following the cessation of therapy. This is so I have a reference should you decide to return to therapy in the future.  

Your Rights:

Right to Access: You have the right to ask for a copy of your personal information, free of charge, in an electronic or paper format. You also have the right to ask me to amend or change any incorrect information about you.  Right to be Forgotten: You have the right to ask me to erase any information that I hold about you. This includes your personal information that is no longer relevant to original purposes, or if you wish to withdraw consent. In all cases and when considering such requests, these rights are obligatory unless it’s information that I have a legal obligation to retain.

Data Portability: As the client, you have the right to receive your personal information which you previously provided, also you have the right to transfer that information to another party. For the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) 2018, the data “controller” is Nicola Priestman (Emotional Wellness Psychotherapy)   May 2018