Guidance on how to obtain clients' or supervisees’ informed consent to collect, store and transfer therapy/supervision recordings safely.

Audio-Visual Recordings Policy for Therapy, Supervision and Training Purposes

This provides guidance on how to obtain clients' or supervisees’ informed consent to collect, store and transfer therapy/supervision recordings safely. It features consent forms specific to each context. The emphasis in the doucment is on online therapy, but it can also be used for in person therapy.

Price: £30

Who is it for?

• For face to face supervisors
• For face to face clients
• For online supervisors
• For online clients

When is this document used?

This document is referred to when a recording is made in therapy, supervision or training. Recordings in therapy may be made when the client wants to listen to them for homework, as an aide memoire or for extra consolidation. Therapists may share recordings with their supervisor for professional development purposes. In CBT this is considered good practice. Recordings may also be made during non-therapeutic sessions such as training events.

What does it contain?

This policy covers face to face and online practice and features consent forms to support safe and effective practice. In preparing it, the following documents were consulted:

• Confidentiality: NHS Code of Practice
• Audio Visual Recording Policy, Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
• Information Security Management: NHS Code of Practice
• Data Protection Act 1998 and the EU General Data Protection Regulations 2018
• Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) Guidance on Data Breach Management

This document contains the following headings:

• Introduction
• Purpose of policy
• Definitions
• Scope of policy
• Principles
• Policy statement
• Duties
• Procedures regarding consent, recording devices, storage of recordings, transfer of recordings, retention and disposal of recordings, information governance incident logging.
• Development, consultation and ratification

Included consent forms:

• Appendix 1: Audio-Visual Recording of Therapy Consent Form
• Appendix 2: Audio-Visual Recording of Supervision Consent Form
• Appendix 3: Audio-visual Recording of non-therapeutic Sessions Consent Form
• Appendix 4: Disposing of Audio-visual Recordings at the end of Therapy
• Appendix 5: Disposing of Audio-Visual Recordings at the end of Supervision

What format does the document come in?

• Microsoft Word Template: Editable and unbranded so you can add your own branding