Maia Mires Spiritual Counselling and Related Services
Effective date: 5 August 2026

1. About these Terms

These Terms and Conditions apply to services and materials supplied by Maia Mires through [website address], by email, through an online platform, or by another agreed method.

They apply to services including:

• spiritual counselling;
• spiritual accompaniment and personal enquiry;
• astrology consultations and chart-related services;
• meditation and contemplative practices;
• individual and group sessions;
• workshops, teaching groups and programmes;
• recorded teachings, courses and digital materials;
• written reports, guides and other educational resources.

Additional terms may apply to residential retreats, in-person events or particular programmes. Where additional terms apply, they will be provided before booking.

By booking, purchasing or participating in a service, you confirm that you have read and accepted these Terms.

2. Service provider

The service provider is:

Maia Mires
Spiritual Counselling
maiaannabalmires@gmail.com
Duffield, Woodcote rd, Forest Row, RH185AP

In these Terms, “I”, “me” and “my” refer to Maia Mires. “You” and “client” refer to the person booking, purchasing or participating in the service.

3. Nature and purpose of the services

My services support spiritual enquiry, personal understanding, reflection, orientation and development.

Sessions may include conversation, guided enquiry, symbolic and archetypal exploration, astrology, meditation, imagination, experiential exercises, attention to bodily experience, and other approaches within my training and experience.

The exact content of a session cannot always be predicted in advance. Your participation, responses, circumstances and aims will influence the direction of the session.

Spiritual counselling is the term used to describe the nature of my service. My services do not constitute psychotherapy, psychiatric care, clinical psychology, medical diagnosis, medical treatment, emergency intervention, legal advice, financial advice or any other regulated clinical service.

I am not registered with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, the UK Council for Psychotherapy, the Health and Care Professions Council, or another statutory or voluntary psychotherapy register. I do not represent myself as registered with those organisations.

My training, experience and approach may be described separately on my website. You are encouraged to read that information before booking and to ask any questions you consider important.

4. No diagnosis or medical treatment

I do not diagnose, assess or treat physical illnesses, psychiatric disorders or medical conditions.

Any discussion of health, emotions, bodily experience, family history, spiritual experience, dreams, altered states, astrology or personal history takes place within the context of spiritual counselling and personal enquiry.

Statements made during sessions must not be interpreted as medical diagnoses, clinical assessments, prescriptions or instructions to begin, stop or alter medical or psychiatric treatment.

You must not discontinue medication, therapy, medical treatment or professional support because of anything discussed during a session. Decisions about medication and treatment should be made with an appropriately qualified healthcare professional.

My services do not replace:

• a GP or other medical practitioner;
• a psychiatrist, psychologist or registered mental-health professional;
• emergency or crisis services;
• specialist trauma, addiction or eating-disorder treatment;
• safeguarding services;
• legal, financial or social-care advice.

No claim is made that spiritual counselling, astrology, meditation or any other service will cure, prevent or treat a medical or mental-health condition.

5. Medical and mental-health suitability

You are responsible for deciding whether the service is suitable for you and for providing information that could materially affect your safe participation.

Before or during the work, I may ask whether you are receiving medical, psychological or psychiatric support, taking prescribed medication, experiencing serious distress, or dealing with circumstances that require specialist care.

You are not required to disclose more than is reasonably relevant. However, withholding important information may affect my ability to decide whether I can provide the service safely and appropriately.

My services may be unsuitable as a sole form of support where a person is experiencing:

• an immediate risk of suicide or serious self-harm;
• an immediate risk of seriously harming another person;
• acute psychosis, severe mania or marked loss of contact with ordinary reality;
• an untreated medical or psychiatric emergency;
• severe substance dependence requiring specialist treatment;
• circumstances requiring urgent safeguarding intervention;
• a level of distress or impairment requiring clinical assessment or continuing clinical care.

This list is illustrative and is not a clinical screening tool.

I may decline, defer, pause or end services where I reasonably believe:

• the work falls outside my competence or agreed scope;
• a different form of professional support is needed;
• continuing would create an unacceptable risk;
• the client requires emergency, medical, psychiatric or specialist care;
• meaningful consent or participation is currently impaired;
• the professional relationship is no longer viable.

Where appropriate, I may suggest that you contact a GP, mental-health professional, emergency service or another suitable practitioner. I cannot guarantee the availability, suitability or outcome of any third-party service.

6. Emergencies and crisis support

I do not provide an emergency, crisis-response or on-call service.

Emails, messages, booking systems and voicemail are not monitored continuously and must not be used to seek urgent help.

Where there is an immediate danger to life or safety, contact the emergency services or attend the nearest accident and emergency department. Where the situation is urgent without immediate danger, contact your GP, NHS 111 or an appropriate local crisis service.

If you are outside the United Kingdom, use the emergency and crisis services available in your country.

7. Astrology and symbolic material

Astrology and other symbolic systems may be used as reflective and interpretive frameworks.

Astrological observations involve interpretation. They are not statements of scientifically established fact and do not predict events with certainty.

Astrology must not be used as the sole basis for medical, legal, financial, employment, relationship or other major life decisions.

Birth-chart accuracy depends on the accuracy of the information supplied by you. I am not responsible for errors arising from an incorrect birth date, birth time, birth location or other information supplied by you.

Where a birth time is uncertain, the interpretation may be limited or qualified.

8. Personal responsibility and possible effects

Spiritual counselling and personal enquiry may bring forward strong emotions, memories, bodily responses, questions, uncertainty or changes in perspective.

These possibilities do not mean that harm will occur. They do mean that meaningful personal enquiry can sometimes feel demanding or emotionally intense.

You remain responsible for:

• deciding whether and how to participate;
• communicating concerns, discomfort or relevant changes;
• deciding whether to pause or stop an exercise;
• seeking medical or specialist support when required;
• the decisions and actions you take following a session;
• using your own judgement in relation to interpretations and suggestions.

You may decline an exercise, question or area of enquiry. You may request a pause or end a session at any time.

No particular emotional, spiritual, physical, relational, professional or financial outcome is promised or guaranteed.

9. Age requirements and capacity

Unless expressly agreed otherwise, individual services are available only to people aged 18 or over.

You must have sufficient capacity to understand the nature of the service and make an informed decision about participation.

Services for anyone under 18 require a separate written arrangement, appropriate consent from a parent or legal guardian, and an assessment of whether the service is suitable. These Terms alone do not create such an arrangement.

10. Booking and formation of the contract

A booking request does not guarantee an appointment or place.

A contract is formed when:

1. I confirm the booking or purchase in writing; and
2. payment has been received, or an agreed payment arrangement has been confirmed.

Booking confirmations may be sent by email or through the relevant booking or payment platform.

I may decline a booking for reasonable professional, operational, ethical, safety or suitability reasons.

11. Information you provide

You agree to provide accurate booking, contact and payment information.

You must tell me promptly if your contact details change or if information relevant to the safe delivery of the service changes materially.

I am not responsible for delays, errors or reduced usefulness arising from materially incomplete or inaccurate information supplied by you.

12. Fees and payment

The applicable fee will be shown on the website, booking page, invoice or booking confirmation before you commit to the purchase.

Unless agreed otherwise:

• payment is required in advance;
• appointments are not secured until payment is received;
• payment must be made through the stated payment method;
• any payment-plan instalments must be paid on the agreed dates.

You are responsible for any bank, currency-conversion or payment-provider charges applied by your own provider.

If payment is overdue, I may suspend access to services or materials and cancel future appointments until the account is brought up to date.

Nothing in these Terms removes your statutory consumer rights.

13. Your statutory cancellation rights

Where you purchase a service online, by telephone or away from my business premises, you may have a statutory right to cancel the contract within 14 days without giving a reason.

The cancellation period usually begins on the day after the contract is made.

To exercise a statutory cancellation right, send a clear statement to:

maiaannabalmires@gmail.com

You may use the following wording:

I hereby give notice that I cancel my contract for the following service: [service]. Booked on: [date]. Name: [name]. Address: [address]. Date: [date].

You do not have to use this wording, provided your intention to cancel is clear.

The Consumer Contracts Regulations govern cancellation rights for many distance service contracts. They also provide that a service should not begin during the cancellation period unless the consumer expressly requests it.

14. Services beginning during the 14-day cancellation period

Where you book a service due to begin within 14 days of the contract being made, you expressly request that I begin supplying the service during the statutory cancellation period.

If you cancel after the service has begun but before it has been fully supplied, you may be required to pay a proportionate amount for the service already provided.

Where the service has been fully performed during the cancellation period, your statutory right to cancel may be lost once:

• you expressly requested that the service begin during the cancellation period; and
• you acknowledged that the cancellation right would be lost once the service had been fully performed.

The booking checkbox should therefore include the early-performance acknowledgement set out at the end of these documents.

15. Appointment cancellation and rescheduling

The following policy applies after any statutory cancellation right has expired or ceased to apply.

You may cancel or reschedule an individual appointment by giving at least 48 hours notice.

Where the required notice is given, you may:

• move the payment to another available appointment; or
• request a refund, subject to any disclosed payment-processing charge that cannot lawfully or reasonably be recovered.

Where less than 48 hours notice is given, the full fee may be retained because the appointment time was reserved and may not reasonably be filled at short notice.

A cancellation charge will never exceed a reasonable estimate of the loss arising from the cancellation. Consumer cancellation provisions must be fair and proportionate; a term is not automatically enforceable merely because it appears in a contract.

Missed appointments are normally charged in full.

If you arrive late, the session will usually end at the originally scheduled time. The full fee remains payable.

I may exercise discretion in exceptional circumstances. Doing so on one occasion does not create an entitlement to the same arrangement later.

16. Packages, groups, courses and programmes

Where you purchase a package, group, course or programme:

• the price, schedule and included services will be stated before purchase;
• places are personal and may not be transferred without written agreement;
• missed live sessions are not automatically replaced with individual sessions;
• access to recordings, where provided, will be for the period stated at purchase;
• your access may be removed if you seriously breach these Terms.

After any statutory cancellation period has ended, refunds for a programme that has begun are governed by the service-specific information provided before purchase.

Where I cancel an entire programme before it begins, you will receive a full refund of the amount paid for that programme.

Where I must discontinue a programme after it has begun, I will provide an appropriate refund for the part not supplied, or another reasonable remedy.

I am not responsible for incidental costs you incur, such as childcare, travel, accommodation, equipment or loss of earnings, except where the law provides otherwise.

17. Digital content, recordings and downloads

Digital materials may include recordings, PDFs, written guides, meditations, courses and other downloadable or streamed content.

Where the law requires it, digital content will not be supplied during the 14-day cancellation period unless you expressly consent to immediate supply and acknowledge that this may end your right to cancel once access or downloading begins.

Digital access is personal to you. Login details and private links must not be shared.

I do not guarantee that every digital product will remain available indefinitely. Any access period will be stated before purchase or within the product information.

You are responsible for ensuring that your device, software and internet connection can access the material.

18. Online sessions

Online sessions may be supplied through Zoom or another stated platform.

You are responsible for:

• having suitable equipment and internet access;
• joining from a reasonably private location;
• protecting your own device and accounts;
• using headphones where privacy requires them;
• ensuring you are not driving or undertaking another unsafe activity during the session.

No online system is entirely free from technical or privacy risks.

Where a significant technical failure prevents the session from taking place, I will use reasonable efforts to reconnect, continue by an agreed alternative method, or reschedule the remaining time.

Where the difficulty arises from your equipment, connection or failure to attend, the ordinary cancellation policy may apply.

19. Group confidentiality

In groups, workshops and programmes, participants may hear personal information shared by others.

You agree to respect the privacy of other participants and not to repeat, publish, record or disclose their personal contributions outside the group.

Although I will establish and communicate confidentiality expectations, I cannot guarantee that every participant will comply. This is an inherent limitation of group work.

You should use your judgement when deciding what to disclose in a group setting.

20. Confidentiality in individual services

Information shared in individual sessions will normally be treated as confidential.

Confidentiality may be limited where:

• you give permission for information to be shared;
• disclosure is required by law, court order or another binding legal obligation;
• there is a serious and credible concern about imminent or significant harm to you or another person;
• information indicates abuse, neglect or serious risk involving a child or vulnerable person;
• disclosure is reasonably necessary to obtain confidential professional consultation, legal advice or insurance advice;
• disclosure is necessary to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim;
• payment recovery or fraud prevention requires limited disclosure.

Where it is safe and lawful to do so, I will aim to discuss a proposed disclosure with you before making it.

Only information reasonably necessary for the relevant purpose will be disclosed.

21. Professional consultation

I may discuss aspects of my practice with a suitably experienced supervisor, consultant or professional adviser to support ethical and responsible practice.

Where possible, identifying information will be removed or minimised.

Any professional adviser receiving identifiable information will be expected to respect confidentiality and data-protection requirements.

22. Communication between sessions

Email and messaging are primarily for bookings, payment and brief administrative communication.

Unless expressly included in the purchased service, the fee does not include continuing counselling, detailed interpretation or emergency support between sessions.

I cannot guarantee an immediate response. My usual response period is [insert number] working days.

You must not send urgent, crisis-related or emergency communications by email, contact form, social media or messaging service.

23. Conduct and ending services

You agree to communicate respectfully and not engage in abusive, threatening, discriminatory, sexually inappropriate, harassing or seriously disruptive behaviour.

I may pause or end a session or service where:

• behaviour creates a safety concern;
• professional boundaries are repeatedly disregarded;
• payment obligations remain unmet;
• the service is being misused;
• the working relationship has become unviable;
• continuing would fall outside my competence or agreed scope.

Where services are ended, any refund will depend on the circumstances, the work already supplied and applicable consumer law.

24. Recordings

You may not audio-record, video-record, photograph, stream, transcribe by automated means or otherwise reproduce a private session without my prior written consent.

I will not record an individual private session without informing you and obtaining appropriate agreement.

Group or teaching sessions may be recorded where this has been disclosed in advance. I will explain whether participant names, voices, images or contributions may appear in the recording.

Where practical, recording will be limited to teaching portions. Participants should keep cameras off and avoid speaking during recorded portions if they do not wish to appear, where the format allows this.

25. Intellectual property

Unless expressly stated otherwise, all intellectual-property rights in my website, written materials, recordings, meditations, exercises, course content, diagrams, methods, teaching resources, reports and digital products belong to me or the relevant licensor.

Your purchase grants you a personal, limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use the material for your own private purposes.

You must not, without prior written permission:

• copy or reproduce the material beyond ordinary personal use;
• publish, sell, licence or distribute it;
• share private links or login details;
• teach or present the material as your own;
• upload it to an artificial-intelligence system or dataset;
• use it to create a competing product or service;
• remove copyright or authorship notices.

Nothing in this clause restricts rights granted by law.

26. Testimonials and case material

I will not publish your name, testimonial, image, identifiable story or private session material for promotional or educational use without appropriate permission.

Where you voluntarily provide a testimonial, I will explain how it may be used. You may withdraw permission for future use by contacting me, although I may be unable to retrieve material already lawfully printed or distributed.

Any anonymised examples used in teaching or writing will be altered or combined where necessary to reduce the likelihood of identification.

27. Third-party services and links

My services may involve third-party providers such as payment processors, video platforms, email services, website hosts, booking systems and course platforms.

Those providers operate under their own terms and privacy practices.

I am not responsible for the independent content, availability or conduct of third-party websites or services, although I remain responsible for selecting and using processors in accordance with applicable data-protection requirements.

External links are supplied for convenience and do not amount to an endorsement or guarantee.

28. Standard of service and statutory rights

I will provide services with reasonable care and skill.

Nothing in these Terms removes or reduces rights that cannot lawfully be excluded, including rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015.

The Consumer Rights Act requires services supplied to consumers to be performed with reasonable care and skill and provides remedies where statutory standards are not met.

29. Limitation of liability

Nothing in these Terms excludes or restricts liability for:

• death or personal injury caused by negligence;
• fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation;
• breach of statutory rights that cannot lawfully be excluded;
• any other liability that cannot lawfully be limited.

Subject to those protections, I am not responsible for loss arising solely from:

• reliance on astrology or symbolic interpretation as a guaranteed prediction;
• decisions you make without obtaining relevant medical, legal, financial or specialist advice;
• inaccurate information supplied by you;
• failure to seek appropriate emergency or clinical assistance;
• unauthorised sharing of your access details;
• third-party outages or failures outside my reasonable control;
• indirect or consequential losses that were not reasonably foreseeable when the contract was made.

Where the service is purchased wholly or mainly for business purposes, liability for loss of profit, revenue, opportunity, goodwill or business interruption is excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.

For consumer purchases, liability is not restricted where doing so would make the term unfair or conflict with mandatory law.

30. Insurance

I will maintain professional insurance appropriate to the services I provide, subject to the terms, exclusions and limits of the relevant policy.

You should not interpret the existence of insurance as a guarantee that every possible event or claim is covered.

Do not publish this clause until you have confirmed that your insurance explicitly covers every service named in these Terms, including spiritual counselling, astrology, meditation, groups, online work and any international clients.

31. Events beyond reasonable control

I am not responsible for delay or failure caused by circumstances beyond my reasonable control, including serious illness, bereavement, extreme weather, travel disruption, power or internet failure, platform failure, industrial action, government restrictions, civil emergency or natural disaster.

I will take reasonable steps to minimise disruption and, where appropriate, offer rescheduling, replacement access or a proportionate refund.

32. Complaints

Please raise any concern as soon as reasonably possible so that it can be considered properly.

Complaints should be sent to:

[email address]

Please include:

• your name;
• the relevant service and date;
• a clear description of the concern;
• the outcome you are seeking.

I will normally acknowledge a complaint within 5 working days and aim to provide a substantive response within 20 working days.

Complex matters may take longer. Where that occurs, I will explain the expected timescale.

As I am not a member of UKCP or BACP, complaints cannot be submitted to those organisations under their member complaint procedures.

Nothing in this clause prevents you from exercising legal or statutory rights.

33. Changes to services or these Terms

I may update these Terms where reasonably necessary to reflect legal, operational or service changes.

The version accepted when you booked will normally govern that booking.

Material changes affecting an existing programme will be communicated where reasonably practicable.

34. Transfer of rights

Your contract is personal to you. You may not transfer your booking, programme access or contractual rights to another person without written agreement.

I may transfer the administration of the contract where required for a legitimate business reason, provided this does not reduce your statutory rights.

35. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unlawful or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply.

36. No waiver

A delay or failure to enforce a provision does not waive the right to enforce it later.

37. Entire agreement

These Terms, the booking information, the service description and any additional written terms supplied before purchase form the agreement between us.

They do not exclude any statement or right that the law requires to form part of the contract.

38. Governing law and jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by the law of England and Wales.

If you are a consumer resident elsewhere, you may also benefit from mandatory protections available under the law of your country of residence.

The courts of England and Wales will have jurisdiction, subject to any consumer right to bring proceedings elsewhere.

39. Contact

Questions about these Terms should be sent to:

Maia Mires
Spiritual Counselling
maiaannabalmires@gmail.com
Duffield, Woodcote rd, Forest Row, RH185AP

---

PRIVACY POLICY

Maia Mires Spiritual Counselling and Related Services

Version 1.0
Effective date: [insert date]

1. Purpose of this Privacy Policy

This Privacy Policy explains how I collect, use, store and disclose personal information when you:

• visit my website;
• contact me;
• join my mailing list;
• book or purchase a service;
• participate in spiritual counselling, astrology, groups or courses;
• use digital materials or an online community;
• communicate with me before, during or after a service.

The ICO requires privacy information to explain matters including who controls the information, what is collected, why it is used, the lawful basis, recipients, retention periods and individual rights.

2. Data controller

The data controller is:

Maia Mires
Trading as: Spiritual Counselling
Address: Duffield, Woodcote rd, Forest Row, rh185ap
Email: maiaannabalmires@gmail.com
Telephone: 07779638858

I determine why and how personal information relating to my practice is used.

3. Personal information I may collect

Depending on your relationship with me, I may collect:

Identity and contact information

• name;
• email address;
• telephone number;
• postal or billing address;
• date of birth;
• preferred name or pronouns where voluntarily provided.

Booking and transaction information

• services booked or purchased;
• appointment dates and attendance;
• invoices, payment status and transaction references;
• cancellation and refund history;
• correspondence about bookings.

I do not normally receive or retain complete payment-card details. Those details are generally processed directly by the payment provider.

Service-related information

Where relevant and voluntarily provided, this may include:

• your reasons for seeking spiritual counselling;
• personal history and current circumstances;
• family and relationship information;
• spiritual, religious or philosophical beliefs;
• health or wellbeing information;
• information about medication or professional support;
• experiences described during sessions;
• personal reflections, dreams and symbolic material;
• session notes;
• safeguarding or risk-related information;
• birth date, birth time and birth location for astrology;
• correspondence connected with your sessions.

Website and technical information

This may include:

• IP address;
• browser and device information;
• approximate location derived from an IP address;
• pages visited;
• referral source;
• cookie identifiers;
• website interaction and error information.

Mailing-list and communication information

This may include:

• email address;
• subscription status;
• emails opened or links selected, where tracking is enabled;
• communication preferences;
• correspondence and enquiries.

Group and platform information

Where you join a group, course or community, this may include:

• profile name and profile image;
• posts, comments or reactions;
• attendance;
• messages sent through the platform;
• audio or video contributions where sessions are recorded with notice.

4. Special-category personal information

Information about health, religious or philosophical beliefs, racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, sexuality and certain other matters receives additional protection under UK data-protection law.

Spiritual counselling may involve health information or religious and philosophical beliefs. The ICO classifies these categories as special-category data and requires both an ordinary lawful basis and an additional Article 9 condition for processing them.

I will only collect special-category information where it is relevant and proportionate.

Where you choose to provide this information for the purpose of spiritual counselling or another service, I will generally rely on:

• your explicit consent under Article 9(2)(a) UK GDPR; and
• performance of the service contract or legitimate interests, as applicable, under Article 6 UK GDPR.

In limited circumstances, another lawful condition may apply, including where processing is necessary to protect vital interests, establish or defend legal claims, or comply with a legal obligation.

You may withdraw consent for future consent-based processing by contacting me. Withdrawal does not make earlier lawful processing unlawful. It may limit my ability to continue providing a service where the information is necessary for safe and appropriate work.

5. How I collect information

I may collect information:

• directly from you;
• through contact, booking or intake forms;
• during sessions;
• through email or messaging;
• through payment and booking providers;
• through website cookies and analytics;
• through an online course or community platform;
• from a parent or guardian where a separate service for a minor has been agreed;
• from another professional where you have authorised contact;
• where disclosure is required or authorised by law.

I will not knowingly obtain private medical records from a healthcare provider without an appropriate lawful basis and any required consent.

6. How and why I use personal information

Responding to enquiries

I use your contact details and enquiry information to respond to you and discuss possible services.

Lawful basis: legitimate interests and steps taken at your request before entering a contract.

Managing bookings and supplying services

I use identity, contact, booking, payment and relevant service information to arrange and provide services.

Lawful basis: performance of a contract and steps taken before entering a contract.

Providing spiritual counselling and related services

I use relevant personal information to understand the agreed context, prepare for sessions, provide continuity and work within appropriate professional limits.

Lawful basis: performance of a contract and legitimate interests.

Where special-category information is involved, I generally rely on explicit consent or another applicable Article 9 condition.

Astrology services

I use birth details and relevant background information to prepare and deliver astrology consultations or reports.

Lawful basis: performance of a contract.

Maintaining appropriate records

I may retain proportionate session, contact, safeguarding, consent and service notes to support continuity, professional accountability, insurance requirements and legal protection.

Lawful basis: legitimate interests, legal obligations and establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims where applicable.

Processing payments and maintaining accounts

I use transaction and invoice information for payment administration, bookkeeping, tax and financial records.

Lawful basis: performance of a contract and legal obligation.

Safety and safeguarding

I may use or disclose relevant information where reasonably necessary to respond to a serious safety or safeguarding concern.

Lawful basis: vital interests, legal obligation, legitimate interests or another applicable basis.

For special-category information, the applicable Article 9 condition will depend on the circumstances.

Complaints and legal claims

I may use relevant records to investigate complaints, obtain legal or insurance advice and establish, exercise or defend legal claims.

Lawful basis: legitimate interests, legal obligation and legal claims.

Website operation and security

I use technical information to operate the website, prevent abuse, investigate faults and maintain security.

Lawful basis: legitimate interests and, where required for non-essential cookies, consent.

Mailing list and marketing

I use your email address to send newsletters or information where:

• you have actively subscribed;
• you have otherwise given valid consent; or
• another lawful direct-marketing basis applies.

You may unsubscribe at any time through the email link or by contacting me.

Lawful basis: consent or legitimate interests where legally permitted.

7. Data minimisation

I aim to collect only information reasonably necessary for the stated purpose.

You do not need to disclose every aspect of your personal or medical history. You should provide information materially relevant to your participation, safety or the agreed service.

I do not use spiritual counselling sessions as a means of collecting information for unrelated marketing.

8. Who may receive your information

Information may be shared, where necessary, with:

• website and hosting providers;
• booking and scheduling providers;
• payment processors;
• accounting or bookkeeping providers;
• email and newsletter platforms;
• video-conferencing providers;
• course and community platforms;
• cloud-storage and productivity providers;
• professional supervisors or consultants;
• insurers, solicitors and other professional advisers;
• IT and cybersecurity support;
• courts, regulators, law-enforcement bodies or public authorities where legally required;
• emergency, medical or safeguarding services where a lawful disclosure is necessary.

I do not sell your personal information.

I require service providers acting as processors to use personal information only for the contracted purpose and to protect it appropriately.

9. Services currently used

Before publishing, complete this section with the services you actually use. Delete any that do not apply.

My current providers may include:

• WordPress and Divi — website content and functionality;
• Krystal — website hosting and server services;
• stripe — appointment scheduling;
• Stripe/PayPal — payment processing;
• Zoom — online sessions and group meetings;
• gmail and protonmail — email communication;
• Mailchimp— mailing-list management;
• Circle — online community, courses or member content;
• amazon — secure document or record storage;
• google analytics — website analytics;
• convertbox — website forms.

Each provider has its own privacy information describing its processing.

10. International transfers

Some service providers may store or process information outside the United Kingdom.

Where personal information is transferred internationally, I will use an applicable legal safeguard, which may include:

• a UK adequacy regulation;
• the UK International Data Transfer Agreement;
• the UK Addendum to approved standard contractual clauses;
• another lawful transfer mechanism.

The exact arrangements depend on the provider and destination.

11. Confidentiality and disclosures

Personal material shared during individual spiritual counselling will normally be treated as confidential.

Disclosure may occur where:

• you have authorised it;
• disclosure is legally required;
• there is a serious concern about significant harm;
• safeguarding obligations arise;
• disclosure is necessary for legal or insurance advice;
• disclosure is needed to establish, exercise or defend a legal claim;
• limited information is required for payment recovery, fraud prevention or regulatory compliance.

Where reasonably possible and safe, I will discuss a disclosure with you beforehand.

12. Session notes

I may keep concise notes concerning:

• session dates;
• principal themes;
• agreed actions or practical arrangements;
• relevant risk or safeguarding matters;
• referrals or recommendations;
• information needed for continuity and professional accountability.

Notes are not intended to be a verbatim transcript.

I will avoid including unnecessary detail and will protect notes using reasonable security measures.

13. Recordings

Individual sessions are not routinely recorded.

Where a session or group is to be recorded, you will be informed in advance and the purpose of the recording will be explained.

Recordings will be retained only for the stated purpose and period.

You should avoid disclosing information in a recorded group that you do not want included in that recording.

Automated meeting transcription or artificial-intelligence recording tools will not be used for private sessions without appropriate notice and a lawful basis.

14. Retention periods

I retain information only for as long as it is reasonably necessary for the purpose collected, legal obligations, insurance requirements and the establishment or defence of claims.

My intended retention periods are:

• enquiries that do not lead to a booking: [12 months];
• client contact details, agreements and session records: [seven years] after the final service;
• records concerning a client who was under 18: [insert period following legal advice and insurer requirements];
• invoices, payment and tax records: at least the period required by tax and accounting law;
• complaint, safeguarding or legal-claim records: for as long as reasonably required in view of the circumstances and applicable limitation periods;
• mailing-list information: until you unsubscribe, consent is withdrawn, or the list is cleaned following inactivity;
• website technical logs: according to the host or security provider’s retention period;
• recordings: for the period communicated before recording.

Retention may be extended where a legal hold, complaint, safeguarding issue, insurer requirement or continuing legal claim applies.

Confirm the seven-year client-record period with your insurer before publication. Your insurance policy may impose a different minimum.

15. Security

I use reasonable technical and organisational measures designed to protect personal information.

These may include:

• password-protected accounts and devices;
• multi-factor authentication where available;
• access controls;
• secure storage;
• software updates;
• encrypted connections provided by service platforms;
• limited access to client information;
• secure disposal or deletion practices.

No method of electronic storage or transmission can guarantee absolute security.

If a personal-data breach creates a legal reporting obligation, I will notify the ICO and affected individuals as required.

16. Emails and online communication

Ordinary email and messaging may not provide complete confidentiality.

You should avoid sending highly sensitive information through an insecure method unless necessary and accepted.

Emails may pass through third-party servers and may be retained in backups.

I will take reasonable care when addressing messages but cannot control access to your own email account, device or network.

17. Cookies

The website may use cookies and similar technologies.

Essential cookies may be used where necessary to:

• operate the website;
• maintain security;
• remember basic preferences;
• enable forms, payments or account access.

Non-essential analytics, advertising or tracking cookies should not be placed before the visitor has given the consent required by law.

Your cookie banner and Cookie Policy must accurately reflect the plugins and services installed on the website.

This Privacy Policy does not replace a functioning cookie-consent mechanism where one is required.

18. Your data-protection rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may have the right to:

• receive information about how your data is used;
• access your personal information;
• correct inaccurate or incomplete information;
• request deletion;
• restrict processing;
• object to processing based on legitimate interests;
• receive certain information in a portable format;
• withdraw consent;
• complain about the use of your information;
• request human review of certain automated decisions.

These rights are subject to legal conditions and exemptions. For example, information may need to be retained for legal obligations or the defence of a claim.

To exercise a right, contact:

maiaannabalmires@gmail.com

I may ask for reasonable evidence of identity before releasing personal information.

19. Access to session information

A data-access request may include personal information contained in session notes.

The right of access does not automatically entitle a person to receive information about another individual, privileged legal advice, or material covered by a lawful exemption.

I may provide relevant personal information in a suitable form instead of supplying an original document where the law permits.

20. Automated decision-making

I do not use solely automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects in relation to clients.

Website, email or payment platforms may use automated fraud, security or spam-detection tools as part of their services.

21. Children

My ordinary services and website purchasing arrangements are directed to adults.

I do not knowingly collect a child’s personal information for counselling or related services without a separately agreed lawful arrangement and appropriate consent.

If you believe a child has submitted personal information without proper authority, contact me so that I can review and, where appropriate, delete it.

22. Third-party websites

My website may link to external websites.

I do not control the privacy practices of those websites. You should read their privacy information before providing personal data.

23. Changes to this Privacy Policy

I may update this Privacy Policy to reflect legal, technological or service changes.

The current version and effective date will be published on the website.

Where a change materially affects existing clients, I may provide additional notice.

24. Complaints to the ICO

Please contact me first where possible so that I can consider your concern.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the UK supervisory authority for data protection.

Further information about privacy notices, individual rights and complaints is available from the ICO.

25. Contact

Questions, requests or concerns about personal information should be sent to:

Maia Mires
Spiritual Counselling
maiaannabalmires@gmail.com
Duffield, Woodcote rd, Forest Row, RH185AP