SummitMind Privacy Notice

Last updated: 21 October 2026

About SummitMind

SummitMind Leadership provides leadership coaching, leadership development, training, facilitation and speaking services to individuals, teams and organisations.

SummitMind Leadership is a trading name of Dave Thorne Consulting Ltd.

Company number: TBC
Registered office: TBC

For the purposes of UK data protection law, Dave Thorne Consulting Ltd is the data controller for the personal information described in this notice.

For questions about this notice or how your information is handled, please contact:

Dave Thorne
SummitMind Leadership
Email: dave@summitmind.co.uk
Website: summitmind.co.uk

Information we collect

Depending on how you interact with SummitMind, we may collect:

  • your name and contact details;

  • your job title, employer or organisation and relevant professional information;

  • information you provide when making an enquiry;

  • information supplied when booking a Discovery Call, coaching session, workshop or other service;

  • appointment and scheduling information;

  • correspondence between you and SummitMind;

  • payment, invoice and transaction information;

  • information you voluntarily share during coaching or leadership development;

  • brief coaching notes made to support our work together;

  • feedback, evaluation information and testimonials you choose to provide; and

  • technical information associated with your use of the SummitMind website, including information generated by cookies and website analytics.

We aim to collect only information that is reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it is being used.

Coaching and confidentiality

Effective coaching relies on trust and confidentiality.

During coaching, you may choose to discuss your professional experiences, aspirations, challenges, beliefs and personal circumstances.

Coaching conversations will be treated confidentially. Their content will not normally be disclosed to your employer, colleagues or another person or organisation without your knowledge and agreement, except where disclosure is required by law or where another exception has been agreed or clearly applies.

Where an organisation is funding your coaching, we will establish at the outset what information, if any, may be shared with the sponsoring organisation. The content of individual coaching conversations will not routinely be shared.

Coaching notes are intended to support the coaching relationship. They are not intended to provide a comprehensive or verbatim record of conversations.

Special category information

During coaching, you may voluntarily disclose particularly sensitive information, which under data protection law may include information concerning health, racial or ethnic origin, religious or philosophical beliefs, political opinions, trade union membership, genetic or biometric information, or information concerning a person's sex life or sexual orientation.

SummitMind does not routinely seek this information and follows the principle of recording only what is reasonably necessary to support the coaching relationship.

Where it is necessary for SummitMind to record special category personal data, we will identify an appropriate lawful basis under UK GDPR and an applicable condition for processing special category information. Where we rely upon your explicit consent, this will be obtained separately and can be withdrawn.

This distinction matters because special-category processing requires both an Article 6 lawful basis and an Article 9 condition. ICO

How we use your information

We may use personal information to:

  • respond to enquiries;

  • arrange Discovery Calls and appointments;

  • provide coaching, leadership development, workshops and other services;

  • prepare for and follow up coaching or development sessions;

  • communicate with you;

  • manage our relationship with you or your organisation;

  • process payments and maintain financial records;

  • provide relevant resources;

  • administer contracts;

  • improve SummitMind services;

  • obtain and use feedback or testimonials with appropriate agreement;

  • operate and understand the use of our website;

  • meet legal, accounting and tax obligations; and

  • establish, exercise or defend legal rights where necessary.

We do not sell your personal information.

Our lawful bases

Depending upon the circumstances, we may rely upon:

Contract — where processing is necessary to provide a service you have requested or to take steps before entering into a contract.

Legitimate interests — where SummitMind has a legitimate business reason to process information and your rights and interests do not override that interest.

Legal obligation — where processing or retention is necessary to comply with the law.

Consent — where you have actively agreed to a particular use of your information. Where processing relies upon consent, you may withdraw that consent.

Additional requirements apply when special category information is processed.

Scheduling and payments

SummitMind currently uses Squarespace Scheduling/Acuity for appointment scheduling and Stripe for payment processing.

These providers may process information necessary to arrange your appointment or complete a transaction.

SummitMind does not need to retain your complete payment-card information where this is processed securely by a payment provider.

Online meetings

Coaching and other meetings may be conducted using Zoom or Microsoft Teams.

Sessions will not normally be recorded or transcribed. If there is a reason to record or transcribe a session, this will be discussed with you beforehand and appropriate agreement will be obtained.

Where information is stored

Paper client records and coaching notes are stored securely in locked storage.

Electronic business and client information may be stored on password-protected and appropriately secured business devices and within Google Workspace.

Reasonable technical and organisational measures are used to protect information from loss, misuse, unauthorised access or disclosure.

Service providers

We use trusted third-party providers to operate SummitMind, which may include providers of:

  • website hosting;

  • appointment scheduling;

  • email and cloud storage;

  • payment processing;

  • video conferencing;

  • accounting and professional services; and

  • other technology required to provide our services.

Depending upon the circumstances, these organisations may act as processors on our behalf or as independent data controllers.

International transfers

Some technology providers used by SummitMind may process information outside the United Kingdom.

Where this constitutes a restricted international transfer, appropriate safeguards required by UK data protection legislation will be used.

How long we keep information

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purpose for which it was collected and to meet applicable legal, contractual, insurance, accounting and tax requirements.

As a general approach:

Unsuccessful/general enquiries: up to 12 months.

Discovery Call notes where no client relationship follows: normally up to 6 months.

Coaching notes: normally up to 2 years after the coaching relationship ends.

Core client and contractual records: normally up to 6 years after the client relationship ends where appropriate.

Financial and accounting records: normally at least 6 years in accordance with applicable requirements.

Testimonials: for as long as they remain relevant and we have an appropriate basis to use them.

Marketing preferences: while you remain subscribed, together with appropriate suppression/opt-out information where necessary.

Records are periodically reviewed and information no longer required will be securely destroyed, deleted or anonymised.

The six-year financial-record period is particularly sensible for your future limited company because GOV.UK says company accounting records generally need to be retained for six years from the end of the relevant financial year. GOV.UK

Marketing

Making an enquiry, booking a Discovery Call or becoming a SummitMind client will not automatically add you to a general marketing mailing list.

Where consent is required for electronic marketing, we will obtain it.

You may unsubscribe from marketing communications at any time.

Cookies

The SummitMind website uses cookies and similar technologies. Some are necessary for the operation and security of the website; others may be used for analytics or other non-essential purposes.

Where consent is required, non-essential cookies will not be used until you have made the appropriate choice.

You can manage your preferences using the cookie controls provided on the website.

Please see our Cookie Policy for further information.

Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, UK data protection legislation provides rights relating to your personal information, including rights to:

  • be informed about its use;

  • request access;

  • have inaccurate information corrected;

  • request erasure in certain circumstances;

  • request restriction of processing;

  • object to certain processing;

  • data portability in applicable circumstances; and

  • withdraw consent where processing is based on consent.

To exercise a right, contact dave@summitmind.co.uk.

Complaints

If you have concerns about how SummitMind handles your information, please contact me first so that I can try to resolve them.

You also have the right to complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), the UK's data protection regulator.

Information Commissioner's Office

Changes to this notice

This notice may be updated as SummitMind develops, its services or providers change, or applicable legal requirements change.

The current version will be published on the SummitMind website.