Privacy Policy

How confidential is it?

The counselling room is a place where children can speak freely about their feelings, knowing that what they say will not be repeated elsewhere except in very exceptional circumstances.

Counsellors do not make judgements about what the children tell them, whether thay are speaking about themselves or other people. They are there to help children to sort out their feelings, not to tell them what to feel or think. Therefore the children must know that they can safely say what is bothering them without fear of everyone knowing. The counsellor's task is to help children have better feelings, not to make things worse for them!

As a result, everything children tell us is totally confidential unless they specifically authorise the counsellor to tell someone else or the counsellor has reason to believe that the child, or someone else, is seriously at risk, in which case the counsellor may need to seek help from other agencies to keep them safe.

Evaluation and Data Protection

After counselling, your child will be asked whether s/he found it helpful, and what suggestions s/he would make for improving the service. Depending on children's ages, teachers will either talk to them about their experiences and write down the answers for them, or explain why we value their reactions and leave them to fill in their answers themselves. In either case, the children can add drawings to express their feelings if the wish.

These evaluations are anonymous: the children do not give their names, and the forms are returned to [the school's counselling contact person], who will analyse them and discuss any significant criticisms or suggestions with the school counsellor.

If there is any cause for complaint, you or your child are welcome to contact the school counsellor or Jigsaw CCC, who will try to resolve any issues of concern.