Welcome to the www.abodetherapy.co.uk terms and conditions.

Please read these Terms and Conditions before using our website and services. By browsing our website and using our services you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to these Terms and Conditions and our Privacy Policy. Please do not continue to use our website or services if you do not agree to these terms. We may make changes to these terms without giving notice. Please check them from time to time. These terms and conditions are effective from 07/03/21.

Background

• Abode (www.abodetherapy.co.uk) is operated by Abode Therapy Ltd. which is registered in England and Wales under the company number 12885677. Our company address is: 1 Vincent Square, London, United Kingdom, SW1P 2PN

• Abode Therapy Ltd. is a platform to connect you with therapists. We are not the provider of services. The provider of services (counselling, therapy, guidance) is the therapist. There is no contract between you and Abode Therapy Ltd;

• You must be aged 18 or over to register with us and to use the services listed on our website;

• USE OF THIS PLATFORM IS NOT SUITABLE FOR ANYONE EXPERIENCING A CRISIS. If you believe you are at risk of harming yourself, please dial 999 or go to Accident and Emergency (A&E) at your local hospital. Other phone numbers for crisis are provided below.

• By using our services you understand that we are not a substitute for clinical mental health or medical care. We provide a platform for you to meet accredited therapists who can support you to meet your personal goals. We do not claim to provide services intended to treat, cure, or diagnose mental health conditions.

Definitions and Interpretation

• Abode Therapy Ltd. is referred to as “we”, “us” and “our”, and you the user are referred to as “customer” “client”, “you” or “your”;

• We are a platform to connect you with accredited mental health professionals. The mental health professionals we are affiliated with are referred to as “therapist/s” or “clinician/s”;

• “Platform” means services provided using our website;

• “Website” means www.abodetherapy.co.uk;

• “Collection” refers to a set of six individual therapy sessions bought together from our collections page;

• “Session” refers to assessment, individual therapy sessions, and a single therapy session within a collection;

• “Registration” means your registration with us when you book a session to access the platform provided by us;

• Singular includes the plural and vice versa.

Confidentiality

Confidentiality is an essential part of therapy. Our confidentiality policy is outlined in the Client Confidentiality and Consent form and will also be summarized verbally by your therapist in your first therapy session.

Registration

Registration is required when you book an appointment or collection, so that we may contact you. You are responsible for providing us with a valid email address and/or phone number.

By registering you agree that you:

• Are over the age of 18;

• Are a UK resident;

• Understand that we are not the provider of therapy services - we are a platform to connect you with therapists. Therapy services are provided by the therapist and the contract for such services is only between you and the therapist;

• Are providing us with accurate information.

Information about you will be processed in line with our Privacy Policy and Client Confidentiality and consent policy.

Free 15-minute consultation

The initial consultation is for the following purposes:

• For one of our therapists to assess your suitability for therapy services;

• To provide a brief understanding of the difficulties you wish to address in therapy;

• For you to decide whether you would like to proceed with therapy services.

We reserve the right to decline to offer therapy services at any time. No advice will be given in the initial consultation.

Fees/Cancellation/Suitability

Fees for assessments, sessions and collections, are booked and paid through our third-party provider: Stripe (https://stripe.com/gb/privacy). No payment should be made directly to a therapist. You are required to pay before the start of any assessment, session, or collection, at the time of booking.

Cancellation, lateness and missed appointments

Details of fees and cancellation policy are also outlined in our Client Confidentiality and Consent form. If you cancel a session with less than 48 hours notice, this will automatically result in the full session fee being charged.

For any sessions (including those within a collection) cancelled with more than 48 hours notice, you will not be refunded however the money will remain on your account and we will offer you the opportunity to re-book.

If a session within a ‘collection’ is cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice, this will be counted as a missed session and will not be refunded or replaced. For example, if you have four sessions remaining and miss/cancel one of these four with less than 48 hours’ notice, you will then have three sessions remaining.

If you have not entered the session (zoom waiting room) within 15 minutes of the session start time, this will be considered a missed session, and you will be charged the full fee. If you enter within 15 minutes you will be entitled to your remaining session time, but the session will not be extended and the session will finish at the expected time.

If a therapist cancels a session you will be offered the option of a refund or it will be re-booked at no extra fee.

Suitability

We reserve the right to decline to enable you to make contact with our therapists, and therapists reserve the right to decline to offer therapy services to clients at any time. Therapists reserve the right to discontinue therapy at any time, including during a collection. If we or the therapists decline service, we will endeavour to signpost to other services, where appropriate. If we or the therapists decline to offer services, we will refund the cost of any sessions that you have paid for which have not been used (have not started).

Crisis

We are unable to offer help for acute or suicidal crises. If you feel like you might harm yourself or you feel suicidal, you should contact the emergency services (999), or go to your nearest A&E, or contact the Samaritans 24/7 online www.samaritans.org or on the phone (116 123).

We are unable to offer services to people under the age of 18. If you are under 18 and looking for support, you may find information on Childline (www.childline.org.uk) or by phoning them (0800 1111).

Disclaimer

Abode Therapy Ltd. is not the provider of therapy services to the client. The provider of such services is the therapist, who is regulated by their own regulatory bodies and insured with their own liability insurance. We will not accept liability for information provided by, or any loss or damage resulting from contact or work with the therapist. We do not guarantee the therapist’s ability to deliver results. Complaints about the therapist should be directed to the individual therapist, or (if necessary) to their respective member organisation.

Our practitioners are regulated by one or more of the following regulators:

●      The British Psychological Society

●      The British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies

●      The Health and Care Professions Council

The Abode therapy platform and the services obtained through its use is not a substitute for clinical mental health or medical care. We provide a platform for you to meet therapists who can support you to meet your personal goals. Our therapists do not claim to provide any services intended to treat, cure, or diagnose mental health conditions.

Assessments

‘Assessments’ are not intended to provide a diagnosis (we and our therapists do not offer diagnoses) or medical advice. The ‘assessment report’ is a summary of the information you provided in the session and some ideas from your therapist. Any recommendations made in the ‘assessment report’ are ideas and suggestions from your therapist based on the information you provided. They are not medical advice, nor should they be used in place of medical advice from a medical professional. By using any services advertised by Abode therapy you acknowledge that you are fully responsible for your own wellbeing during assessments or individual sessions (including collections) and for any and all subsequent choices and decisions you make.

Collections

Collections are a set of six or twelve individual sessions. The names of the collections (e.g., ‘Be Calm’) are not a guarantee or promise of outcome. They are to provide your clinician with information on what goals you may have for therapy. We and our therapists do not guarantee any particular outcome following the completion of a collection of sessions. If you choose to have more individual sessions after completing your collection sessions, these will be charged at the standard individual session rate. Alternatively, you are welcome to purchase another collection.

Liability

We do not limit or exclude our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraudulent misrepresentation or any other liability, which we cannot exclude by law.

We are not liable for any loss, harm, or damages (direct, indirect, consequential) whatsoever that arises as a result of use of our website, platform or services.

The content of the website, associated apps and our Instagram are designed for information only. It is intended to be helpful and supportive. However, we cannot guarantee its usefulness or accuracy. We accept no responsibility for decisions made as a result of our website content or our services and accept no liability or responsibility for any loss, damage or injury arising from its use or based on information found on our website.

We accept no responsibility for information given to us by therapists that is listed on our website. By advertising therapists on our website we confirm that they are registered with us, and that they have provided us with evidence of their registration to professional bodies. However, we do not accept any responsibility or liability for the services that they provide, nor have we checked the quality of their services. We do not accept liability for any fraudulent claims made by the therapists advertised on our website. We advise that changes in the registration or standing of our therapists with their accrediting bodies may have changed between their initial registration with us and when you begin your sessions with them. We recommend that you check that your therapist is in good standing with their professional body before beginning therapy.

We also hold no responsibility for any costs, damages, injury, loss or false information given with regard to our services or external contact or websites.

We do not guarantee that our site will be secure or free from viruses. We do not accept liability for any cost, loss or damage caused by a virus or any other technologically harmful material that may infect your computer or device due to your use of our site and content.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have sufficient technology, hardware, software and reliable internet access to access our website and services, and the therapy services provided by therapists.

Website use

Linking

Please contact us if you wish to make any use of our content or site, including linking to our site. We may decline permission to link to our site. If we do agree to linking to our site, it is under the condition that it is done in a legal manner that does not damage our reputation, or suggest our approval, association or endorsement where one does not exist.

Use of content

This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited without our expression written permission.