Confidentiality

Confidentiality is fundamental to the trust and integrity of the counselling relationship. It creates a safe space for the client to explore difficult and challenging issues.

Right Corecare offers the highest level of confidentiality in line with our commitment to the BACP Code of Ethics and Practice. Consequently we stress the importance of professional confidentiality but do not suggest that confidentiality should be absolute. To make it absolute would prohibit disclosures made in order to prevent serious harm to clients themselves or to others and would frustrate the requirement to receive counselling supervision, or to facilitate meaningful management referrals. The guiding ethical principles in disclosing confidential client information are:

• Any disclosures should be in the client's best interest
• Disclosures should only be on a "need to know" basis
• Any disclosure is consistent with the purpose for which the client originally conveyed the information.

The situations where confidentiality may need to be broken include the threat of serious harm to self or others, and where counsellors have statutory obligation to disclose as outlined in Parliament Acts such as The Prevention of Terrorism Act 1989 or the Drug Trafficking Offences Act 1986.

Wherever possible, Right Corecare would seek the client's consent before disclosing confidential material.