This article will inform you about confidentiality and data protection at the University of Portsmouth Student Wellbeing Service.

When you register with our service you agree to these terms and conditions about confidentiality and data protection, as well as the other terms and conditions listed below:

 

Summary

  • We ask for your student ID because you have to be a current student of the University of Portsmouth to use the Student Wellbeing Service.
  • We need your email address and phone number to communicate with you.
  • We store your details and records in a secure electronic system.
  • We keep everything confidential except where there is a serious risk or under certain legal circumstances.
  • We ask you to give us notice when you can't attend and we keep a record of missed sessions.

 

Communication

We ask for your phone number and email address as we will communicate with you about appointments via phone, text and email. You do not have to use your University of Portsmouth email address - please provide the email address you would like us to use to communicate with you. If you have any concerns about any of these methods of communicating with you, please let us know when you register.

 

Data Protection

Your registration form and notes about your use of the service are retained on a secure electronic management system that is only accessed by Student Wellbeing Service staff. The record includes standardised questionnaires that we ask you to complete when you register and before each appointment. We use data from these records to evaluate the service we provide. The record is kept for six years and then deleted. You have the right to access your record if you want to; you can discuss this with the person you see.

We ask you about ‘sensitive data’ such as ethnicity, gender and sexual orientation in order to help us ensure that our service is accessible and welcoming. You do not have to give us this information if you prefer not to.

 

Confidentiality

The Student Wellbeing Service offers confidential help with a wide range of personal and emotional concerns. Maintaining confidentiality is a top priority for us, so that you can feel free to explore your concerns fully.

What you say is not normally disclosed to anyone outside the Student Wellbeing Service without your permission and no ­one will know that you have contacted us unless you decide to tell them. Your Student Wellbeing Service contact will not be recorded on any academic or medical records.

Exceptions to this confidentiality can be made if we believe that you are putting yourself or others at risk of serious harm; in such cases, disclosures might be made to a GP or other medical professional, and/or to the University’s Safeguarding Committee, for example. Even then, if at all possible, the situation will be fully discussed with you.

If you are currently involved with a police investigation then what is discussed in sessions with us may be limited by the case. It is possible for a court to request to see the notes we keep about your use of the service. There are also legal requirements on us to disclose if you are involved in terrorism or money laundering.

The Student Wellbeing Service practitioners all abide by professional ethical frameworks. These require that practitioners receive regular supervision from a supervisor who is bound by the same ethical codes and confidentiality rules. Practitioners may also talk or write about their work within professional contexts such as training and continuing professional development - such discussion is always conducted anonymously and within the parameters of the relevant ethical frameworks.

 

Missed sessions

We have limited resources and aim to offer a high standard of service, with fair access for all seeking support. In order to keep wait times to a minimum, missed sessions are still counted as sessions in our record of your use of the Service. Exceptions may be made for exams and required field trips, and illness with 24­hour notice.

 

University of Portsmouth Student Wellbeing Service Contact Details:

Phone: +44 (0)23 9284 3466

Email: wellbeing-admin@port.ac.uk.

Location: The Bateson Centre, The Mary Rose St, Portsmouth, PO1 2BL

 

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