Privacy Policy

Candy Minds – Mental Wellness & Child Development Centre (“Candy Minds”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) respects your privacy and is committed to protecting personal information entrusted to us. This Privacy Policy explains how Candy Minds collects, uses, stores, protects and, where necessary, shares personal information when you visit our website, contact us, book an appointment, enrol in a programme, participate in an assessment, or use any of our services.

Our services may include counselling and mental wellness support for children, adolescents, adults, parents, couples and families; psychological and developmental assessments; special education; toddler programmes; child development services; Kids Gym/developmental activities; workshops; and related support services.

We may use personal information for legitimate purposes connected with our services, including:

• Providing counselling and mental wellness services across relevant age groups.
• Providing psychological, developmental, behavioural, educational and other assessments offered by Candy Minds.
• Providing special education, toddler programmes, child development services and Kids Gym/developmental activities.
• Preparing assessment reports, recommendations and individualised support plans.
• Scheduling appointments and managing sessions.
• Communicating with clients, parents, guardians and authorised representatives.
• Maintaining professional, administrative, attendance and service records.
• Monitoring progress and improving programmes and services.
• Processing payments and maintaining financial records.
• Responding to enquiries and requests.
• Maintaining website functionality and security.
• Complying with applicable legal, regulatory, professional or accounting requirements.
• Protecting the safety, rights and legitimate interests of clients, children, staff and Candy Minds.

We will not knowingly use personal information for a purpose incompatible with the purpose for which it was collected, except where permitted or required by applicable law.

Candy Minds recognises that counselling information is highly sensitive. Counselling information is treated as confidential and access is limited to authorised professionals or personnel who have a legitimate need to access it.

Counselling confidentiality may have legal, ethical or safety-related limitations. Information may be disclosed where reasonably necessary or legally required, including where there is a serious and immediate safety concern, suspected abuse/neglect/exploitation of a child or vulnerable person, a valid legal or court requirement, an emergency, or another circumstance where disclosure is permitted or required by law.

The precise confidentiality obligations applicable to a particular counselling or psychological professional may also depend on that professional’s qualifications, registration, ethical code and applicable law.

Candy Minds may conduct or coordinate assessments for children, adolescents or adults depending on the service and the qualifications of the professional conducting the assessment.

Assessment information may be used to understand strengths, needs, developmental or psychological concerns, educational requirements, intervention priorities and appropriate recommendations.

Assessment results and reports are intended for the purpose for which the assessment was conducted. They should not be reproduced, altered, distributed or relied upon for unrelated purposes without appropriate permission, professional guidance or legal authority.

Where an assessment concerns a minor, appropriate parent/guardian consent will generally be required, subject to applicable law and the circumstances of the assessment.

Candy Minds provides services to toddlers, children and adolescents. We take the privacy, safety and dignity of minors seriously.

Where a service involves a minor, we may collect and process information provided by or with the involvement of the parent or lawful guardian, subject to applicable law.

Parents/guardians are responsible for providing accurate information and for having the necessary authority to provide information and consent for the child.

We will not knowingly use identifiable information about a child for unrelated promotional purposes without appropriate consent where such consent is required.

Where consent is required, Candy Minds will seek consent in an appropriate manner before processing personal information for the relevant purpose.

You may have the right to withdraw consent where processing is based on consent, subject to applicable law and circumstances where Candy Minds is legally permitted or required to continue processing the information for another lawful purpose.

Withdrawal of consent may affect our ability to provide certain services.

For services involving minors, consent may be obtained from a parent or lawful guardian as appropriate.

Candy Minds does not sell or rent personal information to third parties.

Information may be shared where reasonably necessary and legally permitted with authorised Candy Minds professionals and staff; parents or lawful guardians where appropriate; healthcare, educational or allied professionals with appropriate authorisation or legal basis; technology, payment, hosting and service providers supporting our operations; professional advisers; government authorities, courts or regulators where legally required; or other parties where you have specifically authorised disclosure.

We expect service providers handling information on our behalf to maintain appropriate confidentiality and security.

Online payments may be processed by third-party payment service providers. Candy Minds generally does not need to store complete card, banking or payment credentials on its own systems unless required for a legitimate operational purpose.

Third-party payment providers may have separate privacy policies and terms.

Our website may use cookies or similar technologies to operate the website, remember preferences, maintain security, understand website usage and improve performance.

You may be able to control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling certain cookies may affect website functionality. Where legally required, appropriate consent mechanisms may be provided for non-essential cookies.

Candy Minds may contact clients regarding appointments, registrations, programme schedules, service updates, enquiries and other administrative matters.

Where permitted and where appropriate consent is required, Candy Minds may also communicate information about programmes, workshops, events or services.

Candy Minds may occasionally wish to use photographs, videos, artwork, testimonials or other identifiable content involving clients or children for educational, promotional, social media or marketing purposes. Appropriate consent will be sought where required.

Participation in a Candy Minds programme does not automatically mean that a child or client will be photographed, recorded or featured in promotional material. Declining promotional use will not, by itself, affect eligibility for services.

Candy Minds takes reasonable technical, administrative and organisational measures to protect personal information against unauthorised access, accidental loss, misuse, unauthorised disclosure, alteration, destruction and other inappropriate processing.

Access to sensitive information is restricted to authorised personnel based on legitimate operational or professional requirements.

No website, electronic storage system or internet transmission method can be guaranteed to be completely secure. Accordingly, while we take reasonable precautions, we cannot guarantee absolute security.

We retain personal information only for as long as reasonably necessary for the purposes for which it was collected, including providing services, maintaining professional and administrative records, resolving disputes, complying with legal obligations and protecting legitimate interests.

Retention periods may vary depending on the type of service, nature of the record, age of the client, professional or legal requirements and whether an ongoing service relationship exists.

When information is no longer reasonably required, we may securely delete, anonymise or otherwise dispose of it, subject to applicable legal and professional retention requirements.

Subject to applicable law, you may have rights concerning your personal information, including requesting information about data processing, requesting correction of inaccurate information, requesting deletion where legally applicable, withdrawing consent where applicable, raising a complaint and exercising other rights available under applicable data-protection law.

Requests concerning a child may need to be made by the child’s parent, lawful guardian or another person legally authorised to act on the child’s behalf.

Certain requests may be subject to identity verification, professional obligations, legal limitations or other applicable requirements.

You are responsible for providing accurate, complete and updated information. Please inform Candy Minds if important information changes, particularly contact details, emergency contacts or information relevant to counselling, assessment, education or a child’s programme.

Our website may contain links to third-party websites, social media platforms, payment services or other external services. Candy Minds is not responsible for the privacy practices, security or content of third-party websites. We encourage you to review their privacy policies before providing personal information.

Candy Minds is committed to maintaining a safe, respectful and developmentally appropriate environment for children.

Where safeguarding concerns arise, Candy Minds may take appropriate action and share relevant information where required or permitted by law.

Candy Minds intends to handle personal information in accordance with applicable Indian laws and regulations relating to privacy and data protection, including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and applicable rules, notifications and requirements in force from time to time, as applicable to Candy Minds.

Where another applicable law or professional requirement imposes a higher or different obligation, Candy Minds will seek to comply with that requirement to the extent applicable.

Candy Minds may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in services, technology, legal requirements or privacy practices. The revised version will be published on the website with an updated “Last Updated” date.