Assessments

Assessments will generally be offered in your own home, so that your child can be assessed and observed in familiar and relaxed surroundings. They can be completed at school or in nursery if appropriate. Assessment appointments take approximately 1 – 1 ½ hours including feedback time. A thorough written report will also be provided, with guidance and resources as appropriate.

Therapy

Following assessment, if therapy is recommended, you do not have to take this up unless you choose to. Should you wish me to provide this however, there will not normally be a wait for therapy, unless this has been previously discussed with you. Sessions will usually be offered in your own home or your child’s school/ nursery as this is usually convenient for families. Families are asked to provide a quiet space for assessment and therapy, free from distractions (such as TV) as far as possible. Therapy sessions are usually offered weekly, but can take place less often if required (fortnightly or monthly). These can last 30 or 60 minutes, including a few minutes reviewing progress and suggesting tasks to carry out over the following week.

Role of parents/carers

Parents/carers play a vital role in therapy. At the end of each session, activities and ideas will be given for you to try with your child before the next session. Completion of practise tasks is just as important as the therapy sessions themselves, and regular support at home usually results in more positive outcomes. It is therefore very useful if a parent/carer is present throughout the sessions to enable better follow-up afterwards.

Fees

All fees are agreed prior to the start of therapy. Each session charge covers the time spent with your child as well as travel, planning, paperwork, liaison and preparation of therapy materials. Additional charges will be made for:-

• Attendance at Annual Reviews or other meetings.
• Classroom observation sessions.
• Travel of more than 10 miles will be charged at 50p per mile.
• Phone calls lasting longer than 15 minutes maybe charged at therapist discretion.

Payment

I accept payment by cash, cheque or BACS. Sessions should be paid for on the day of the appointment unless agreed prior to therapy. Clients using private medical insurance are responsible for settling invoices and then claiming from the insurance company. It is advisable to check your level of cover before commencing therapy.

Cancellations

If your child is unwell and is unable to attend the session, please call/ text me on 07838 120398. Nursery’s and schools do not have time to let me know if a child is absent so please tell me. As long as I have been informed by 8.30am on the day of the appointment, I will not charge for the session. If I arrive for the session to be told that your child is ill or absent I will charge £10 to cover time and petrol.

If I am ill or unable to attend a session, I will inform you as soon as possible. If appropriate, I will offer a replacement session.

Parents may choose to withdraw a child from therapy. At least a week's notice would be appreciated.

Failed payments

If a session is not paid for within 7 days of the appointment, I may suspend further sessions until payment has been made. If you require extra time to make a payment, please let me know. I will notify you of any late or missed payments.

Data Protection

I am registered with the ICO (Information Commissioner’s Office) as I have to collect information about you and your child. All personal details, notes and reports will be stored securely and treated confidentially.

I will only collect information about your child (and family) that is relevant to their assessment/therapy. Written notes will also be completed after each assessment/therapy session to inform ongoing intervention. To meet legal standards, these notes need to be kept until your child is 25 years old and then they will be destroyed.

It is good practice to share information about your child’s needs with professionals who are working with your child. I will not disclose any information about your child without your consent except if there were concerns regarding your child’s safety and/or wellbeing.

As part of my accounting, your name and your child’s name (used as a reference on bank transfers) and the postcode of the place where the session occurred will be recorded. This information is seen by my accountant and could be seen if I were audited by HMRC. This data is always stored securely. Information in emails sent between you and myself maybe seen by my website host if there were technical issues with my site. I always ask for permission before sending confidential information electronically. I am happy to post reports etc. if you would prefer. You/ your child’s data will not be shared with any other third parties.

For more information about how I process and store data, please read my Privacy Notice.