Privacy policy
What we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, and how to make us delete it. In plain language, because a policy nobody can read protects nobody.
Last updated
The short version
We collect as little as we can. We never sell your data, never share it with advertisers, and never use what you tell us in a session for marketing. What you share with a coach stays with your coach, apart from three narrow legal exceptions set out below. You can ask us to delete everything we hold about you at any time, and we will.
Who we are
FamilyBonding.org is the data controller for the information described here.
- Email: info@familybonding.org
- Phone: +234 813 311 3284
- Address: Plot C9 Road 52, Off 5th Avenue, Along Fire Service Road, Gwarinpa, Abuja, Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria
We operate in Nigeria, the United Kingdom and the United States, and online worldwide. This policy is written to meet the Nigeria Data Protection Act and NDPR, the UK GDPR, and US state privacy laws including the CCPA/CPRA. Where those regimes differ, we apply whichever gives you the strongest protection.
What we collect, and why
When you contact us or request a resource
Your name, email address, optionally your phone number, the topic you select, and whatever you choose to write in the message.
Why: to reply to you, and to send the resource you asked for. Lawful basis: your consent, which you give by ticking the box and can withdraw at any time.
When you become a client
Session notes, the topics you are working on, appointment records and payment records. Session notes are deliberately brief and written so that they would cause you no embarrassment if you read them — which you are entitled to do.
Why: to provide coaching properly and continue it across sessions. Lawful basis: performance of our agreement with you, and our legitimate interest in keeping adequate professional records.
Sensitive information
Coaching about marriage, intimacy, parenting and family conflict inevitably involves information about your relationships, your health and sometimes your religious beliefs. Under UK GDPR some of this is “special category” data and under NDPR it is “sensitive personal data”, which means it gets extra protection.
We handle it on the basis of your explicit consent, given when you begin working with us. We ask you to share only what is necessary, we do not record more than we need, and you can ask us to remove any detail from our records without giving a reason.
When you use this website
We currently run no analytics and no tracking of any kind on this website. If that changes we will update this policy and our cookie notice first.
Our hosting provider keeps standard server logs, including IP addresses, for security and to diagnose faults. These are kept for a short period and not used to build any profile of you.
What we never do
- Sell, rent or trade your personal data. Ever, to anyone.
- Share it with advertisers or data brokers.
- Use anything from your sessions in marketing, publicly or privately.
- Publish a testimonial, quote or story about you without your specific written permission — which we do not ask for while you are still working with us, because that would not be a free choice.
- Add you to a mailing list because you enquired about coaching.
When we may have to break confidentiality
Three narrow exceptions, which your coach will also explain in your first session rather than leave buried here:
- There is a serious and immediate risk of harm to you or to another identifiable person.
- We have reason to believe a child or a vulnerable adult is at risk of harm. In some jurisdictions we are legally required to report this.
- We are compelled by a valid court order or other legal obligation.
Wherever it is safe and lawful to do so, we will tell you before we act, and we will share the minimum necessary.
Who else can see your data
Only the people and services that need to, each bound by contract to protect it:
- Your coach, and our administrative staff where necessary.
- A clinical supervisor, in anonymised form — supervision is how coaching stays safe, and identifying details are removed before any case is discussed.
- Our email, scheduling, payment and hosting providers, acting on our instructions only.
Some of these providers are outside your country. Where data leaves Nigeria, the UK or the EEA we rely on approved transfer mechanisms such as Standard Contractual Clauses, and we choose providers who commit to them.
How long we keep things
| What | How long |
|---|---|
| Enquiries that do not become clients | 12 months, then deleted |
| Newsletter subscription | Until you unsubscribe, then removed within 30 days |
| Client session notes | As required by our professional obligations and local law, then securely destroyed |
| Payment and accounting records | As required by tax law in the relevant country |
| Server logs | A short period, for security only |
Your rights
Wherever you are, you can ask us to:
- Tell you what we hold about you, and give you a copy.
- Correct anything that is wrong.
- Delete what we hold, unless we are legally required to keep it.
- Stop or restrict how we use it.
- Send your data to you or to someone else in a portable format.
- Withdraw your consent at any time, with no consequence for your care.
- Object to any processing based on legitimate interests, and to marketing at any time.
We do not use automated decision-making or profiling. We do not, and will not, sell personal information as that term is defined under the CCPA/CPRA, and we do not discriminate against anyone for exercising a privacy right.
To exercise any of these, email info@familybonding.org. We reply within 30 days and will not ask you why.
Your safety, and your email address
If you are worried that someone else may read your email or messages, please use an address only you can access, or contact us from a device that is not monitored. We will follow any instruction you give us about how and when it is safe to contact you — including not replying to a particular address, or using a neutral subject line.
If you need urgent support, our get help now page lists services that are free and confidential.
Children
Our services are for adults. We do not knowingly collect data from anyone under 18. We coach parents rather than children, and where a session concerns a specific child we record only what is necessary.
Complaints
Please raise it with us first — email info@familybonding.org and we will take it seriously. You also have the right to complain directly to a regulator:
- Nigeria: the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC).
- United Kingdom:the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), at ico.org.uk.
- United States: your state Attorney General, and the California Privacy Protection Agency if you are a California resident.
Changes
If we change this policy in a way that affects you, we will update the date at the top and, for anything significant, tell existing clients directly rather than relying on you to re-read this page.
Questions about any of this?
Ask us plainly and we will answer plainly. Get in touch.