Booking & Cancellation Policy – Literacy and Learning Centre

Effective from 01/05/2025

Psychology services

Thank you for choosing the Literacy and Learning Centre. This policy explains how to book and cancel initial consultations and assessment appointments, so we can provide consistent and timely care to all clients.

✅ 1. Confirming Your Appointment

To confirm your Initial Consultation and Assessment appointments:

Provide us with your credit card details – either over the phone or by completing the Payment Policy form
Sign and return the Payment Policy and Cancellation Policy documents.

Appointments will not go ahead if we do not receive these signed documents within 1 business day.

💳 2. Booking Fee

A booking fee is required to secure an assessment appointment (eg, 2-3 hour cognitive and/or academic assessments).
The booking fee will be deducted from the final cost of the assessment – see exceptions below.
You can pay this by credit card (stored securely) or bank transfer.

🔄 3. Cancelling or Rescheduling

🗓 Initial Consultation (60 mins), other consultations, and therapy sessions

Cancel or reschedule with at least 2 business days’ notice: No fee.
Less than 2 business days’ notice: 50% fee.
Less than 1 business day’s notice or no-show: 100% fee.

Note: Business days do not include weekends or public holidays

🧠 Assessment Appointments (2–5 hours)

Cancel or reschedule with at least 5 business days’ notice: No fee.
Less than 5 business days’ notice: The booking fee is not refunded.

Note: Business days do not include weekends or public holidays

How to Cancel or Reschedule:
Contact us by:

Phone: 02 9712 8777 (9:00am–5:00pm). You can leave a message.
Email: info@literacyandlearning.com.au

🚫 Waiving Fees (in special cases)

We may waive the fee if:

We can fill your appointment slot with another client.
You have a genuine emergency (see below).

Accepted reasons (may need proof):

Illness or injury (e.g. medical certificate)
Family emergency, accident, death, or funeral

Not accepted as emergencies:

Work or school meetings
Sports or extracurricular activities
Holidays or family plans

🔔 Appointment Reminders

We will send a courtesy email reminder on the day before the initial consultation and assessment appointment, but you are responsible for keeping track of your appointments. Reminders will not be sent for ongoing regularly scheduled therapy sessions.

🔔 Scheduling further appointments

You must have no outstanding payments, including cancellation fees, before your next appointment can be booked.

❗ Why This Policy Matters

Missed appointments or late cancellations affect everyone:

Time cannot be rebooked
Fewer appointments available for others
Financial loss for our clinicians
Additional admin time and cost

This policy helps ensure fairness and better access to care.

Other important information about Psychology appointments

Payment is due on or before the day of the appointment.
All appointments must be made in advance.
A standard consultation is 50-60 minutes.
It is important that you arrive on time for your appointment. Late arrival will result in reduced time for your session; however, the full session fee will still be charged.
Paperwork will be sent to you prior to your initial appointment. Please ensure that this is completed and returned prior to your initial appointment. Your appointment cannot proceed without returned consent and confidentiality paperwork being completed. If you have not completed this paperwork, and need to do so during your appointment time, this will result in reduced time for your session and full session fee will still be charged.

Cost of Psychology services

The recommended fee set by the Australian Psychological Society (APS) for a standard consultation with a Psychologist is $311 per 50-60-minute session. At the Literacy and Learning Centre we reduce this fee for local private paying families to assist them to access this service. Third parties such as Government Departments, Education Institutions, Insurance Companies etc are billed at the APS recommended fee.
Please contact the Centre to enquire about current fees for our Psychology appointments and assessments. Four weeks notice will be provided to clients for any change in fees for Psychology services.

Health Fund Rebates

For Psychology consultations, health fund rebates may be available if you are a member of a fund and depending on your level of cover.
For payments made at the clinic, HICAPS services will be available at the time of the appointment otherwise you will need to organise any available rebates from your health fund yourself.

Medicare rebates

Children and / or their parents referred to a Psychologist under a GP Mental Health Plan, or by a Paediatrician or Psychiatrist, may receive up to 10 treatment session per year subsidised by Medicare.
Medicare referrals must be initiated by the doctor, Paediatrician or Psychiatrist. If you do not have the appropriate referral at the time of consultation, you will not be able to claim a rebate for that visit.
Clients must pay in full at the time of the appointment. A receipt will be provided for the client to claim the rebate.

Please note: NO CREDIT WILL BE GIVEN

Full payment is due at the time of or prior to the consultation or assessment.
You will be asked to provide credit card details, which will be encrypted and stored securely on our practice management software.
The invoice for the appointment will be sent on the day prior to the appointment. If your initial paperwork is received on the day of the appointment or after 5 pm on the day prior to your initial appointment, an invoice will be sent upon receipt of your paperwork.
Payment for the appointment will be processed immediately after completion of the appointment (this will include a small credit card processing fee which is charged by the practice management software).
If you wish to make payment by different means, please inform the receptionist and arrange for this payment to be made prior to or at the time of the appointment. Please send remittance advice to avoid the appointment fee being processed using your stored card details.
Other acceptable forms of payment are Cash, EFTPOS, Visa, Mastercard over the phone, Cheque. Please advice the Receptionist if wishing to make payment by AMEX as this will incur a processing fee of 3%. Payment by electronic bank transfer can also be made prior to the appointment but remittance advice will need to be provided prior to the appointment.
Please note: A valid credit card will still need to be provided and stored on our practice management software in the event that the cancellation fee is charged.
A Credit Card Authorisation Agreement will need to be signed.
Further bookings for new appointments is contingent on all fee payments being up to date. Reports for assessments will not be released until all payments are up to date.
A Tax Invoice will be issued for all services that attract a fee.
An administrative fee may apply for invoices that remain unpaid for more than 30 days (2%).
A debt collection service may be used as a last resort if clients do not pay their balance (Note: the collection agency will receive only basic information, such as the client’s name, contact information and total money owed).

Any client accessing funding through third-parties will be billed personally for any cancellation fees as corporate entities will not fund such charges.

If clients who fail to attend an assessment appointment or cancel on the day of the appointment wish to make a new appointment for assessment, they will be required to pay the cancellation fee and also to make full payment for the new assessment at least 7 days prior to the new appointment.

Tutoring services

Payment of Tutoring Fees

Tutoring fees are due in advance by Week 3 at the start of the new school term.
You will be asked to provide credit card details, which will be encrypted and stored securely on our practice management software. Invoices will be sent out following the first tutoring session. Payment will be processed on the day of the tutoring appointment in Week 3 (this will include a small credit card processing fee). Please contact the Centre to arrange alternative payment via cash, EFTPOS, Visa, Mastercard, or cheque payable to the ‘Literacy and Learning Centre’, or by Bank Transfer (please provide remittance advice). A valid credit card will still need to be provided and stored on our practice management software in the event that the cancellation fee is charged.
If your child begins classes in the middle of the term, the amount charged will be prorated.
Payment plans can be arranged for families experiencing financial difficulties; however, these must first be discussed with and approved by the Centre Director.
Any additional tutoring sessions (eg, in school holidays) must be paid for on or prior to the day of the appointment.
In the event of outstanding tutoring fees, please be advised that we will not be able to guarantee your child’s preferred tutoring time slot as we have an extensive waiting list for tutoring times.
An administrative fee may apply for invoices that remain unpaid for more than 30 days (2%).
A debt collection service may be used as a last resort if clients do not pay their balance (Note: the collection agency will receive only basic information, such as the client’s name, contact information and total money owed).

Cancellation and Refund Policy — Tutoring services

Cancel or reschedule with at least 2 business days’ notice: No fee.
Less than 2 business days’ notice: 50% fee.
Less than 1 business day’s notice or no-show: 100% fee.
When notice is provided, we will endeavour to find an alternative time for your appointment.
Classes that are missed without notice will not be re-scheduled nor will the cost of the session be refunded
If you are running late, please contact us immediately. Time lost cannot be made up at the end of your scheduled session.
The Literacy and Learning Centre does not issue refunds for missed sessions. If a make-up session cannot be scheduled, all unused funds will be credited for future tutoring sessions.