You might have read the recent headline’s around Police and Court requests of counselling notes, and felt your stomach drop. Counselling notes. Police requests. Rape cases. The quiet fear that something private could leave the therapy room and end up in someone else’s hands.

If you did not know this could happen, you are not alone. Many people start therapy assuming every word stays between you and your therapist. Most of the time, that belief matches reality. Still, the justice system has sometimes pulled therapy into its processes in ways that felt intrusive and unfair to survivors. This week brought an important change.

What changed, in plain English

On 12 January 2026, new rules came into force in England and Wales that aim to stop police routinely requesting sexual assault victims’ counselling notes during investigations. The Home Office says police should only request these records in special circumstances. It also says requests must meet a higher threshold and senior officers must approve them. This matters because survivors have told campaigners and journalists that requests for therapy notes can feel like another violation. Some people have delayed therapy, limited what they said in sessions, or dropped out of investigations because the process felt too exposing. The new approach sets a clear expectation. Start with privacy. Treat counselling notes as highly sensitive. Ask for them only when you can absolutely justify the need.

Why this matters if you are thinking about therapy

If you experienced rape or sexual assault, you already know how quickly life can split into “before” and “after”. After might include Police procedures, Waiting times, Decisions you did not ask to make. Therapy should not add to that burden. You deserve a space where you can speak freely. You deserve a room where you do not have to perform strength. You deserve privacy that supports healing, not obstacles that delay it. The new rules help because they reduce the chances that your counselling notes become part of an investigation by default.  Still, it helps to understand what notes are, what they are not, and how I handle them.

My note keeping policy, and why I keep it minimal

As part of good professional practice and to meet insurance requirements, I keep very short notes after each session. These notes help me keep track of attendance and the general focus of our work together. I keep them very brief on purpose.

Here is my policy:

• I only write a few words about the main theme of the session, not detailed accounts of what was said.
• I also record any safeguarding concerns if they arise.
• Notes are anonymised, stored separately from your contact details, and not kept electronically.
• This way, your privacy is protected, and your information is handled in line with the BACP Ethical Framework and data protection law, GDPR.

If you come to therapy after sexual violence, you often carry two parallel needs. You need someone to take the impact seriously. You also need control over your own story. Minimal notes support both.

Confidentiality, and the parts people rarely explain clearly

Confidentiality sits at the centre of therapy. Without it, clients censor themselves. Progress slows. Shame grows. Silence wins. Confidentiality also has limits. Psychotherapists must take action if serious safeguarding concerns arise. Courts can also compel disclosure in some circumstances. That last sentence can sound frightening. It helps to add detail. In real life, requests for therapy material should not happen casually. The direction of travel now pushes even harder toward “only if truly necessary”. It should no longer be commonly requested. This is a big change,

What you can do if you feel worried

If you want to start counselling while a police process runs in the background, you also deserve support that does not force you to choose between healing and justice. Campaigners have pushed hard on this point for years, and these new rules reflect that pressure.

How therapy supports recovery from sexual assault

Sexual assault can affect your body, your mind, your relationships, and your sense of time. Many survivors tell me they feel “on hyper alert” all the time. Others feel numb, shut down or dissociated. Some feel all of this, in the same day.

Psychotherapy supports recovery by helping you regain choice.

In therapy, you can work on:

Grounding and stabilisation
You learn ways to settle your nervous system. You practise skills that reduce panic, dissociation, and spirals.

Sleep and safety
You create routines that support rest. You identify what helps you feel safe in your home, your body, and your relationships.

Memory and meaning
You make sense of what happened at your pace. You do not have to tell the story in detail to do meaningful work. You decide what to share, and when.

Shame and self blame
You name the myths that keep survivors stuck. You rebuild a kinder, more accurate view of yourself.

Boundaries and consent
You strengthen your ability to notice your “yes” and your “no”. You practise saying both. You build trust in your own signals again.

Relationships and intimacy
You work with triggers, avoidance, anger, grief, and fear. You decide what you want intimacy to look like now.

If you looked up “ psychotherapy for rape and sexual assault recovery” late at night, you probably wanted one thing. A way forward that does not require you to minimise what happened. Therapy can give you that, in small steady steps. If you are local and searching for “bromley sexual assault counselling”, you may also want something else. A therapist who understands the area, local services, and the realities of getting support while you still need to function day to day. You do not need to hold this alone.

Other support you can access alongside therapy

You can use specialist services at any point. You do not have to report to the police to get help. I have listed some resource options below. Some offer free and low costs individual and group counselling options as well as advocacy and wider support.

Bromley and Croydon Women’s Aid
Support for domestic abuse, including advice and services in Bromley and Croydon.

Rape Crisis England and Wales
A charity supporting survivors of sexual violence, with a free 24/7 support line and online chat.

NHS Guidance
Practical information on medical help, reporting options, and support after rape and sexual assault.

Survivor podcast
Stories and conversations from survivors and advocates.

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A final word on feeling safe in the room

Therapy works when you feel safe enough to tell the truth. Your truth can look messy. It can look contradictory or confusing. It can change from week to week. You should not have to filter your pain because you fear where it might end up. The new rules aim to reduce that fear by limiting when police can seek counselling notes, and by raising the threshold for any request. If you want to talk about what this means for you, bring it to the first session. Bring the worry, the anger, the sadness, the exhaustion. We can work through it together at a pace you can manage.

New Rules on Police requesting counselling notes come into force

BBC article – Police to no longer have routine access to rape victims’ counselling notes

I am a Bromley based senior accredited psychotherapist in private practice. I support women recovering after rape and sexual assault, recent and historic. If you are considering psychotherapy for rape and sexual assault recovery, or you are looking for Bromley sexual assault counselling, you can contact me to ask questions and explore whether we feel like a good fit. You might also find the resources listed above a good place to seek support.