Privacy notice
How your information is handled
Last updated: October 2026
Counselling depends on trust, and that includes trusting that what you share is kept safe. This notice explains what information Hope Inspired Counselling collects, why, and what your rights are.
Who this notice covers
Hope Inspired Counselling is the counselling practice of Matthew Hardy, based in Sydney, New South Wales. As a provider of a health service, the practice handles personal information in line with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles, and the Health Records and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW).
What information is collected
- Your name, contact details and date of birth
- An emergency contact
- For clients under 16, the name and contact details of a parent or guardian, and their consent
- Information you share about your health, circumstances and reasons for seeking counselling
- Brief notes of our sessions
- Appointment and payment records
- For organisations, the contact details of the person arranging support
How it is collected
Most information comes directly from you: when you send an enquiry, during our first call, and in sessions. Occasionally it may come from someone else, such as a parent or guardian, or a referrer, and only with your knowledge wherever that is practical.
You can make a first enquiry without giving your full name. To begin counselling, I need enough information to provide a safe service.
Why it is collected
- To provide counselling and keep an accurate record of it
- To arrange appointments and contact you about them
- To take payment and keep required business records
- To meet legal, insurance and professional obligations
Your information is never sold or used for marketing.
Confidentiality and its limits
What you say in counselling is confidential. I will only share information about you without your consent in limited circumstances:
- Where there is a serious risk to your life, health or safety, or to someone else's
- Where the law requires it, for example a court order or a mandatory report about a child or young person at risk of significant harm
Like all counsellors registered with a professional body, I take part in clinical supervision. Client work discussed there is de-identified.
Young people. Sessions are a confidential space for the young person. Parents and carers are involved with the young person's consent, subject to the limits above.
Organisations. If your employer arranges or pays for your counselling, they are not told what you discuss. Nothing beyond attendance, where that has been agreed, is shared without your consent.
Telehealth sessions
Video sessions take place on Microsoft Teams, and phone sessions by ordinary phone call. Sessions are not recorded. I take sessions from a private space, and I ask that you do the same where you can.
This website
If you send a message through the enquiry form, your name, contact details and message are delivered to the practice by email through Netlify, the company that hosts this website. Netlify keeps a copy of form submissions on its servers, which may be outside Australia. Please keep enquiries brief and avoid including detailed personal or medical information.
This website does not use advertising or tracking cookies. Its fonts are loaded from Google Fonts, which means your browser makes a request to Google when you visit.
How it is stored and protected
[Describe where client records are kept, for example: in a password-protected practice management system, with any paper notes in a locked cabinet.] Access is limited to me.
Some of the services the practice relies on, such as email and Microsoft Teams, may store data on servers outside Australia. I choose providers that take reasonable steps to protect it.
Health records are kept for at least seven years after your last session. For clients who were under 18 when the information was collected, records are kept until they turn 25. After that they are securely destroyed.
If a data breach is likely to result in serious harm to you, I will tell you and notify the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, as the law requires.
Seeing or correcting your information
You can ask to see the information held about you, or ask for it to be corrected, by emailing connect@hopeinspiredcounselling.com.au. I will respond within 30 days. In rare cases access can be refused, for example where it would pose a serious threat to someone's safety. If that happens I will explain why in writing.
Questions and complaints
If you have a concern about how your information has been handled, please contact me first so I can try to put it right: connect@hopeinspiredcounselling.com.au or 0498 750 994.
If you are not satisfied with the response, you can contact:
- The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner: oaic.gov.au or 1300 363 992
- The Information and Privacy Commission NSW: ipc.nsw.gov.au or 1800 472 679
Changes to this notice
This notice may be updated from time to time. The current version will always be on this page.