Your privacy
Privacy Notice
This notice explains how Talk to the Rainbow collects, uses, shares, stores and disposes of personal information across enquiries, assessment and matching, Low Cost Therapy, Bridging and Private Practice referrals, and therapist-development activities.
Last updated: October 2026
1. Who we are
Talk to the Rainbow provides LGBTQ+ informed assessment and therapist matching, Low Cost Therapy, therapist-development pathways and professional community activities. Talk to the Rainbow acts as a data controller where it decides why and how personal information is processed.
When a client begins work with an independent Bridging or Private Practice therapist, that therapist is responsible for the therapy records created within that independent therapeutic relationship.
2. Information we collect
When you contact us, we may collect your name, preferred name, email address, telephone number, correspondence, availability, preferred therapy format, fee range and a brief description of your financial circumstances where relevant to the fee level, and information needed to deal with your enquiry.
For assessment and matching, we may ask for information about therapy history, mental and emotional health, sexuality, gender identity, relationships, personal circumstances, support needs and matters relevant to risk or safeguarding. Some of this is special category personal data and is treated with additional care.
For student, Bridging and therapist-community enquiries or applications, we may collect contact details, training and qualification information, insurance and professional membership details, supervision arrangements, availability and information needed to assess suitability and administer the pathway.
3. Why we use personal information
- To respond to enquiries and provide service information.
- To arrange and administer assessment appointments.
- To understand needs and recommend an appropriate therapist or therapy pathway.
- To make agreed introductions to proposed therapists.
- To operate Low Cost Therapy and associated supervision and governance.
- To administer student, Bridging and therapist-community pathways.
- To manage relevant payments, room use and organisational records.
- To meet safeguarding, professional, insurance, accounting and legal obligations.
- To protect the safety, integrity and security of our services.
4. Lawful basis and special category information
We use personal information only where we have a lawful basis under UK data-protection law. Depending on the purpose, this may include taking steps at your request before providing a service, performing a contract, complying with a legal obligation, or our legitimate interests in operating and safeguarding our services where those interests do not override your rights.
Special category information
Some information we use in assessment, matching and therapy-related services may be special category personal data. This can include information about physical or mental health, sexual orientation, and other particularly sensitive personal information.
Special category personal data receives additional protection under data-protection law. Where we need to use this information, we must have both a lawful basis for processing personal data and an applicable condition for processing special category data.
Where we rely on explicit consent, we will ask for it clearly and separately and explain what information it covers and why it is needed. Where consent is the basis relied upon, you may withdraw that consent without affecting processing that was lawful before it was withdrawn.
In some circumstances, different legal conditions may apply, including where processing is necessary for safeguarding or another purpose recognised by data-protection law.
5. Assessment and matching
Assessment information is used to understand what has brought a client to therapy, consider affordability and practical preferences, assess the appropriate level of therapist experience and identify a potential match.
Before sharing information with a proposed therapist, we will explain the proposed introduction. Only information relevant to considering suitability and arranging the introduction will be shared.
Temporary paper assessment records are securely destroyed when matching and any immediate follow-up have concluded and the paperwork is no longer needed.
6. Therapy records
Low Cost Therapy
Low Cost Therapy operates within the Talk to the Rainbow therapist-development, supervision and governance framework. Talk to the Rainbow retains relevant Low Cost client, session, student, supervision and governance records.
Bridging and Private Practice
When therapy begins with an independent Bridging or Private Practice therapist, that therapist is responsible for therapy notes and clinical records created within that therapeutic relationship. Talk to the Rainbow does not routinely retain those therapy notes.
7. Sharing information
We do not sell personal information. We may share limited information with a proposed therapist, with the client's knowledge, for suitability and introduction; within Low Cost supervision and governance arrangements where required for safe and ethical practice; with service providers supporting our website, email, payment or business administration; where disclosure is required by law; or where safeguarding responsibilities or serious safety concerns require appropriate action.
We share only information reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose.
8. Service providers
- Krystal: website and domain hosting.
- Proton Mail: email correspondence.
- SumUp: payment processing where used. Talk to the Rainbow does not need to store full payment-card details where payment is processed by SumUp.
- Starling: business banking and financial administration.
9. How long we keep information
| Record type | Retention period |
|---|---|
| Unmatched enquiries, assessment requests and associated correspondence | 6 months |
| Temporary paper assessment records for matched clients | Until matching and immediate follow-up are complete |
| Low Cost client and associated service records | 5 years after the client leaves the Low Cost service |
| Low Cost client email correspondence | Up to 12 months after the client leaves, unless required as part of the five-year Low Cost record |
| Bridging client records held by Talk to the Rainbow | 12 months after the client leaves |
| Private Practice client records held by Talk to the Rainbow | 12 months after the client leaves |
| Unsuccessful student or therapist applications | 6 months |
| Successful student and therapist pathway records | For the period of involvement and any applicable documented governance period afterwards |
| Unsolicited, irrelevant, spam or misdirected emails | Deleted automatically or as soon as reasonably practicable |
10. Security
We use proportionate measures intended to protect personal information, including secure hosting, encrypted transmission where available, access controls, password-protected systems, privacy-focused email, data minimisation, restricted sharing and secure paper destruction. No method of transmission or storage can be guaranteed to be completely secure.
11. Your data-protection rights
Depending on the circumstances and applicable law, you may have rights to ask whether we hold personal information about you, request a copy, correct inaccurate information, request erasure or restriction, object to certain processing, request data portability where applicable, and withdraw consent where consent is the basis relied upon.
Some rights are not absolute. Information may need to be retained where professional, safeguarding, insurance, accounting or legal obligations apply. Where an independent Bridging or Private Practice therapist controls the records concerned, we may direct you to that therapist.
12. Contact and complaints
If you have a privacy question, want to exercise a data-protection right, or wish to raise a concern about how your information has been handled, contact Talk to the Rainbow at contact@talktotherainbow.co.uk.
You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data-protection regulator.
13. Changes to this notice
We may update this notice when our services, suppliers, legal obligations or ways of working change. The date at the top of this page shows when it was last updated.