Privacy policy for Somatica Massage
This page explains how your personal information is collected, used and protected when you contact Somatica, book an appointment or visit the clinic. It is written in line with UK data protection law and the UK GDPR.
- I only collect information that is needed to provide safe massage treatment, run the clinic, and respond to your enquiries. Your details are never sold, and they are only shared when it is essential for delivering services or required by law.
- Contact and booking details are used to manage appointments and stay in touch with you about your sessions.
- Health information is recorded so that treatment can be carried out safely and appropriately.
- You can request a copy of your information, ask for corrections, or withdraw consent for non-essential contact at any time.
1. Who we are
“Somatica Massage”, “Somatica”, “we”, “I” or “us” refers to the independent massage practice operated by Alice (holistic massage therapist) in Bradninch, Exeter, Devon, UK.
Somatica is registered and insured to provide massage therapy and complies with UK data protection legislation (UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018).
2. Information that may be collected
Depending on how you interact with the clinic, the following information may be collected:
2.1 Information you provide directly
- Contact details such as your name, email address, phone number and postcode.
- Booking information – preferred appointment times, treatment type and payment status.
- Health and medical information relevant to treatment – for example symptoms, diagnoses, medications, surgeries, lifestyle factors and risk factors.
- Communications you send – such as emails, messages via the website, or feedback forms.
2.2 Information collected automatically
- Basic technical information when you use the website, such as IP address, device type and pages visited (via cookies or analytics, if enabled).
3. How your information is used
Your information is used for:
- Providing massage treatment safely and tailoring sessions to your needs.
- Managing bookings, confirmations, reminders and any changes to appointments.
- Responding to enquiries and providing information you request about services.
- Keeping appropriate treatment records and financial records for tax and insurance purposes.
- Improving services and the website, for example by understanding which pages are visited most often.
Your data is not used for automated decision-making or profiling, and your details are never sold to third parties.
4. Legal bases for processing
Under data protection law, personal data must be processed under at least one lawful basis. For Somatica, these are typically:
- Contract: to provide massage sessions and manage your bookings.
- Legal obligation: to keep financial and treatment records required by law, insurance or professional bodies.
- Vital interests: in rare situations where information is needed to protect you or another person from serious harm.
- Consent: for optional communications such as newsletters or offers. You may withdraw this consent at any time.
5. How long your information is kept
Treatment records are generally kept for a minimum period required by insurers and professional guidelines (often 7 years after your last appointment, or longer if treatment took place when you were under 18).
Contact and booking details are kept while you are an active client and for a reasonable period afterwards, unless you request deletion where possible. Information that is no longer needed is securely deleted or anonymised.
6. When your information may be shared
Your information is treated as confidential. It may only be shared when:
- You ask for information to be shared with another health professional (for example, a GP or physiotherapist).
- It is required by law, regulation or a court order.
- Service providers are used to support the clinic (for example, online booking software, website hosting, email services or payment processors). These providers are only given the minimum data necessary and must keep it secure.
Your information is not shared with third-party marketers and is not transferred outside the UK unless adequate protections are in place.
7. Your data rights
Under UK data protection law, you have a number of rights in relation to your personal data:
- Access – request a copy of the information held about you.
- Correction – ask for inaccurate or incomplete information to be corrected.
- Deletion – request deletion of information, where it is no longer needed and no legal obligations apply.
- Restriction – ask for certain uses of your data to be limited.
- Objection – object to certain types of processing, such as direct marketing.
- Data portability – request that some information is transferred to you or another provider in a usable format.
To exercise any of these rights, please use the contact details below. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you are unhappy with how your data is handled.
8. Cookies & website analytics
The Somatica website may use small text files known as cookies to help the site function correctly and to understand how visitors use the pages.
8.1 Types of cookies
- Essential cookies – needed for basic site functions such as security and page navigation.
- Analytics cookies – optional cookies that provide anonymous statistics on page visits and traffic.
Where non-essential cookies are used, you will be given the option to accept or reject them. You can also control cookies through your browser settings.
9. Contact details
If you have any questions about this privacy policy or how your data is used, you can contact:
Mrs Alice Drake – Somatica
1 Cullompton Hill, Bradninch, Exeter, Devon, United Kingdom EX54NP
Email: info@somatica.org.uk
If you are not satisfied with the response, you can raise a concern with the Information Commissioner’s Office at ico.org.uk.