Last updated: 22 January 2026
The Ark Mental Health Retreat (“The Ark”, “we”, “us”, “our”) is committed to protecting your privacy and handling your personal information with care, discretion, and appropriate security. This Privacy Policy explains what personal information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and the rights you have in relation to your information.
This policy applies to personal information collected through our website (the “Website”), when you contact us, request information, or otherwise interact with us.
1. Who we are
Responsible party/data controller: The Ark Mental Health Retreat
Address: Jatinga Road, Plaston, White River, 1240, South Africa
Phone: +1-800-205-5961
For privacy-related requests, you may contact us using the contact methods above and clearly mark your request “Privacy Request”.
2. The kind of information we collect
Depending on how you use the Website and contact us, we may collect:
a. Information you provide directly
- Contact details: name, email address, telephone number, country of residence.
- Enquiry details: the information you choose to share when asking about our services.
- Administrative details: preferred call times, communication preferences, and any information you provide to help us respond.
b. Sensitive / health-related information (special category)
Because we provide mental health and addiction-related services, information you share with us may include health and wellbeing information, which is treated as sensitive personal information and handled with enhanced confidentiality and security.
We encourage you to share only what is necessary for your enquiry, especially in initial website contact.
c. Information collected automatically
When you visit the Website, we (and our service providers) may collect:
- Device and usage information: IP address, browser type, pages viewed, approximate location derived from IP, date/time of access, referring URL.
- Cookies and similar technologies: as described below.
3. How we use your information
We use personal information for the following purposes:
- To respond to enquiries and provide the information you requested.
- To assess and manage enquiries in a clinically appropriate way (where relevant).
- To provide services or take steps at your request prior to providing services.
- To maintain confidentiality and security, prevent fraud, and protect our systems.
- To operate and improve the Website (performance, troubleshooting, analytics).
- To comply with legal obligations and respond to lawful requests by regulators or authorities.
4. Legal bases for processing
We process personal information only when we have a lawful basis to do so. Depending on the circumstances, this may include:
- Consent (especially where you provide sensitive/health-related information via enquiry).
- Performance of a contract or steps requested prior to entering into a contract.
- Legitimate interests (e.g., operating and securing our Website, responding to enquiries appropriately), balanced against your rights.
- Legal obligations (e.g., record-keeping, regulatory compliance).
- Vital interests (rare, e.g., if urgent risk of serious harm is communicated).
Where health information is processed, we apply appropriate safeguards and limit access to authorised personnel.
5. Confidentiality and access controls
We recognise that enquiries relating to mental health and addiction are highly sensitive. We take reasonable steps to:
- limit access to personal information to staff/contractors who need it to perform their role;
- apply confidentiality expectations to personnel;
- use secure systems and good-practice operational controls to protect information from unauthorised access, loss, or misuse.
No method of transmission or storage is completely secure; however, we take reasonable measures to reduce risk.
6. Who we share your information with
We do not sell personal information.
We may share personal information with:
- Service providers who support Website hosting, website operations, email/communications, IT support, security, and related services (acting under instructions and confidentiality obligations).
- Professional advisers (e.g., legal, audit, compliance) where necessary.
- Authorities/regulators required by law or to protect rights and safety.
Where we use third-party service providers, we expect them to apply appropriate security and to use personal information only for the services they provide to us.
7. International transfers
Because we may use service providers (such as hosting, email, security, or analytics providers) that operate in other countries, your personal information may be processed outside South Africa. We take reasonable steps to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place for cross-border transfers consistent with applicable law.
8. Cookies and similar technologies
Cookies are small text files stored on your device. The Website may use cookies that:
- enable core site functionality;
- remember preferences (where applicable);
- support security and performance; and
- provide aggregated site usage insights (where analytics are used).
You can control cookies through your browser settings. Disabling certain cookies may affect how the Website functions.
9. Embedded content and third-party links
Pages on our Website may include embedded content (for example, videos) or links to third-party websites. Embedded content and third-party websites may collect data about you and use their own cookies and tracking. We recommend reviewing the privacy policies of any third-party sites you visit.
10. Data retention
We retain personal information only for as long as necessary for the purposes described above, including:
- to manage and respond to enquiries;
- to comply with legal or regulatory obligations; and
- for security and operational purposes.
Retention periods vary depending on the nature of the information and our legal obligations.
11. Your rights
Subject to applicable law, you may have the right to:
- request access to personal information we hold about you;
- request correction of inaccurate or incomplete information;
- request deletion/erasure in certain circumstances;
- object to processing or request restriction of processing in certain circumstances;
- withdraw consent (where processing is based on consent);
- lodge a complaint with a relevant data protection authority.
To exercise your rights, contact us and include enough information for us to verify your identity and locate the relevant records.
South Africa (POPIA)
You may also have rights under the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), including the right to lodge a complaint with the Information Regulator (South Africa).
UK/EU visitors (GDPR / UK GDPR)
If you are in the UK or EEA, you may also have rights under GDPR/UK GDPR, including the right to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.
12. Marketing communications
If we send marketing communications (for example, updates you asked to receive), you can opt out at any time by following the unsubscribe instructions (where provided) or by contacting us and requesting removal from marketing communications.
We aim to keep communications appropriate and limited, particularly given the sensitive nature of our services.
13. Children’s privacy
Our Website is not intended for children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children through the Website. If you believe a child has provided us with personal information, please contact us so we can address it appropriately.
14. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or legal requirements. We will post the updated version on this page and update the “Last updated” date above.
15. Contact us
For any questions about this Privacy Policy or how we handle your personal information:
The Ark Mental Health Retreat
Address: Jatinga Road, Plaston, White River, 1240, South Africa
Phone: +1-800-205-5961