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Data Protection Policy

Your personal information and the purposes for which it is used

As soon as you contact the Institute of Counselling we will create a record of your enquiry. Personal information is used to reply to this enquiry and to provide you with information about our services. Once you return a registration form we will create a student record to record necessary information relevant to your studies with us. The Institute holds general information about learners, such as name, address, courses/units/awards registered for, fee payments, equal opportunities information and data to do with your assessment and progress. The data controller for your personal data is The Institute.

We use personal information to:

  • Provide information for enquiries. This includes sending you information about the qualifications we offer.
  • Process registrations and certifications
  • Track your assessment progress and to provide services to you
  • Produce statistical information which will help us to plan and improve our services
Your information may be accessible by the providers of our computer Customer Relationship Management system. This provider will not use your information in any way that could affect you personally. They may need to access your data if there is a system query. They will never disclose your specific data and information to third parties without prior written agreement. Information held on this system may be analysed for general statistical purposes.

If you are in debt to us, we may give other people information for the purposes of recovering debt.

If you have been sponsored, signing your registration agreement will give us permission to send workshop and assessment feedback reports, which you will have already seen and signed, to representatives of your sponsoring organisation.

Our principles

The Institute of Counselling is committed to the data protection principles of good information handling practises.  All personal information is held in secure computer and limited manual files and transfers of data within the Institute are made on a 'need to know' basis.

Overseas Students

The Data Protection Act 1998 limits the transfer of personal data outside the European Economic Area, but information may be transferred over the internet to any country in the world. So whenever you use the internet, you agree to your information being transferred to any other country if necessary.

Security

We take security very seriously. All staff are made aware of the security procedures they must follow when handling personal data.

Please note that internet email is never a 100% secure way of communicating. By using it, you agree that you will send any information by email at your own risk.

Whilst we take reasonable precautions to make sure that other organisations who we deal with have good security practices, we are not responsible for the privacy practices of those organisations whose websites may be linked to our services.

Access to your data

We offer limited computer access to you only to your personal student account. From this you are able to give us simple updates e.g. phone and telephone number. You will also be able to access your course and assessment records. A password is provided to you via e-mail on successful registration.

Additionally under the Data Protection Act, you have the right to receive a copy of the personal data we have about you.

If you want a copy, please write to:
The Institute of Counselling 
40 St Enoch Square
Glasgow G1 4DH

Processing personal data as part of your assessment

You are not usually expected to process personal data as part of your assessment.  We recommend you follow the guidelines below:
  • you should remove client names from all written evidence such as case notes or evaluative commentaries
  • where you are being questioned by your assessor, you should ensure that your client remains anonymous
  • where observation of work is required, you should get your client's permission to be observed in a way which clarifies and respects their right to refuse
  • where tape recordings are used, you should get your client's permission for taping a session, and for the use to be made of the tape, in a way which clarifies and respects their right to refuse.  You must make it clear to the client that they can stop the recording at any time; ask for the tape to be destroyed immediately after the session and/or not to be forwarded to the assessor.  If you have used a tape for assessment purposes, you should destroy it afterwards.

Institute of Counselling
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Diploma in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (Credit rated at SCQF level 8)
I enjoyed the course and look forward to moving into the next section and learning more. The online aspect very convenient give I work. My tutor Dr Murphy was prompt and gave good feedback. I would recommend a more concise and clear 1-2 page document on expectations for assessments, assignments and dates, with clear documentation and labelling, separate to other materials, as I found this information a little disjointed to find. Otherwise very enjoyable module.
Christopher C, 9 days ago
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Certificate in Christian Counselling
Fabulous course! Thank you!
Pavlina S, 10 days ago
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Certificate in CBT 2 (Credit rated at SCQF level 8)
I have just completed the certificate and diploma in CBT. The resources, support and information I received along the way was fantastic. I would highly recommend the the Institute of Counselling and I will hopefully be back soon for some more studying.
Simon A, 26 days ago
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Diploma in Grief and Bereavement Counselling
Thoroughly enjoyed the course, so much so I wish to continue with further modules to gain professional qualification
Joanne O, 33 days ago
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Certificate in Grief and Bereavement
The course was very insightful. It gave me all the tools i needed to understand the reasoning behind how and why you take the approach to help the bereaved. Maria was informative with her comments.
Sarah O, 54 days ago
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Certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
The course was excellent I thought.
Robert P, 61 days ago
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Certificate in Christian Counselling
The Certificate in Christian Counselling has been a deeply enriching and formative experience. The course content was well-structured and thoughtfully integrated Christian principles with core counselling approaches like Carl Rogers’ person-centred model, Egan’s framework, and Gerkin’s pastoral method. Each assignment encouraged meaningful reflection and personal growth, and I felt the course struck a strong balance between theory and application. The distance learning format offered excellent flexibility, allowing me to engage with the material at my own pace while still feeling supported. Marie Murphy has been a consistently encouraging and insightful tutor. Her feedback was clear, constructive, and respectful, always delivered in a way that fostered confidence and deepened my understanding. I truly appreciated her presence throughout the course. One suggestion would be to include brief recorded introductions for each module or a short recommended reading list to support further learning. Overall, I’m very grateful for this experience and would gladly recommend it to others seeking a spiritually grounded approach to counselling.
Sebastian S, 68 days ago
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Certificate in Counselling
Really insightful course that's provided some foundational knowledge surrounding counselling skills in practice. Dr Marie Murphy was an incredibly helpful marker who always provided great feedback and insight (while always answering any questions I had). Highly recommend.
Paul W, 78 days ago
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Certificate in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (Credit rated at SCQF level 8)
I really appreciate the support and guidance Dr Marie Murphy has given me during my studies. I really appreciated her patience and kindness since English is not my first language. She was always there to help me with assignments and gave clear and thoughtful feedback, which made the learning process so much easier and more enjoyable. Her quick responses and support kept me focused and feeling confident during the course. I’m super grateful for her help and would definitely recommend her to anyone in need of a friendly and supportive tutor!
Gabriele G, 81 days ago
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Certificate in CBT 2 (Credit rated at SCQF level 8)
I really enjoyed this course even though I became very ill half way through but I was very kindly given a extra 3 months to finished the course which I’m very grateful for ,I’m really enjoying the courses and really looking forward to moving on to the next one
Rebecca R, 81 days ago