Privacy policy

Last updated: 3 October 2026

Your privacy matters, especially when you're reaching out for support. This policy explains what personal information I collect, why I collect it, how I keep it safe, and the rights you have over it.

Who I am

I'm Caitlin Zulu, a BACP-registered counsellor based in Norfolk, UK, and I run Olive Blossom Counselling. I'm the "data controller" for the personal information described here, which means I'm responsible for deciding how it's used and for keeping it safe.

What information I collect

When you get in touch

If you use either form on this website or email me, I'll receive the details you choose to share, such as your name, email address, phone number, how you'd prefer to talk, how you heard about me and your message.

Please keep first messages brief. There's no need to share detailed personal or health information before we speak.

When you visit this website

I count visits to this website using Cloudflare Web Analytics, which doesn't use cookies or try to identify you. See Cookies and visitor statistics for details.

If we work together

If you become a client, I will also keep:

Session notes may include information about your physical or mental health, relationships, sexuality or other sensitive matters. The law calls this "special category" information, and I treat it with extra care. Notes are kept brief and factual. If there's something you'd rather I didn't write down, tell me and we can talk about it.

Why I use your information

I will never sell your information or use it for marketing.

Confidentiality and its limits

What you share in counselling is confidential. I may discuss our work in anonymised form with my clinical supervisor. This is a professional requirement that helps me work safely and well, and I never share your name, or anything that could identify you, with my supervisor.

There are rare situations where I may need to share information without your agreement, for example:

Wherever possible, I would talk to you first. We'll go through all of this together in our first session.

Who helps me handle your information

I use a small number of trusted services to run my practice. They handle your information only on my instructions, apart from the technical and security logs some of them keep for their own purposes, as explained below:

Where these services handle your information outside the UK, it's protected by safeguards approved under UK law, such as the UK-US "data bridge" or the UK's approved contract terms. You can ask me for details.

How I keep your information safe

How long I keep it

After that, paper records are shredded and digital records are permanently deleted.

Who I work with

I work with adults aged 18 and over, so I don't knowingly collect information about children.

Your rights

Under UK data protection law, you have the right to:

To make any of these requests, just email me. I'll respond within one month, and there's no charge.

Cookies and visitor statistics

This website doesn't use cookies, advertising trackers or Google Analytics. Its fonts, icons and other files all come from this website itself. Your browser only contacts another service in two cases: to load Cloudflare's visitor statistics script, explained below, and if you send one of the forms, which goes to Google, my email provider, as explained above. The links to my Facebook and Instagram pages only take you to those sites if you choose to click them, and their own privacy policies then apply.

Visitor statistics

To understand how many people visit this website and how they find it, I use Cloudflare Web Analytics. When a page loads, a small script from Cloudflare sends a note of the visit, including:

Cloudflare Web Analytics doesn't use cookies or store anything on your device, and it doesn't use your IP address or other details to identify you or follow you across other websites. The statistics I can see are overall figures only, such as how many visits the site gets, which pages are read and which websites bring people here. They don't show IP addresses, and I don't use them to try to find out who you are or to build a profile of you. This helps me improve the website and see whether my advertising is working.

Cloudflare handles this information on my behalf under its data processing terms, and I don't share the statistics with anyone else. How long they're kept is explained in How long I keep it.

Your right to object

My lawful basis for the visitor statistics is legitimate interests: understanding how my website is used, keeping it working well and checking whether my advertising is worthwhile. I collect only what I need for this.

You have the right to object to this at any time. If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control signal (a privacy setting available in some browsers), the statistics script isn't loaded at all, so your visits aren't counted. Most ad and tracker blockers also stop it. Because the statistics don't include your name or IP address, I can't pick out the records of your own visits, but you're welcome to email me with any questions.

Concerns and complaints

If you're unhappy with how I've collected, used or looked after your personal information, you have the right to make a complaint to me. You don't need to use legal terms. Just tell me what happened and, if you can, what you'd like me to do to put it right.

How to make a complaint

If you'd prefer another way, such as by post, or you need any adjustments, just ask. Your first message can be brief. There's no need to include detailed personal or health information.

What happens next

If you're unhappy with my response, you can ask me to look at it again. I keep a secure record of each complaint and how it was resolved, and only for as long as I need it. Raising a concern won't count against you.

Complaining to the ICO

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commission's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator. You can do this at any time, although the ICO will usually ask you to raise it with me first.

If your concern is about my professional conduct as a counsellor, rather than how I've handled your information, you can contact the BACP professional conduct team.

Changes to this policy

I may update this policy from time to time. The date at the top shows when it was last changed.