Terms and conditions

1. Lessons

Lessons are one to one and are held at a regular weekly time agreed between Sally and the family. Standard lesson lengths are thirty minutes for beginners and younger students, forty-five minutes for intermediate students, and sixty minutes for senior grades, exam preparation and adults. Sally will recommend the appropriate length at the initial meeting and review it as the student progresses.

A student’s regular lesson time is reserved for them. Where a family needs to change that time permanently, Sally will do what she can to accommodate it, subject to availability.

2. Missed lessons and cancellations

Lessons cancelled with at least 24 hours’ notice will be rescheduled at no cost, subject to a suitable time being available.

Lessons cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice, or not attended, are charged as taken. That time was held for the student and cannot realistically be offered elsewhere at short notice.

Where a student is genuinely unwell or a family emergency arises, families should notify Sally as soon as possible. In those circumstances Sally will endeavour to offer a make-up lesson within the following four weeks. This is offered at Sally’s discretion and is not guaranteed.

Make-up lessons are not carried over beyond four weeks and are not refunded or credited.

3. Cancellations by the teacher

If Sally needs to cancel a lesson, families will be notified as early as possible. The lesson will be rescheduled at a mutually convenient time, or will not be charged for that week. No family is ever charged for a lesson Sally has cancelled.

4. Fees

Lesson fees are provided at the initial meeting and confirmed in writing before lessons begin. Fees are reviewed from time to time; any change will be communicated at least four weeks in advance and will not apply retroactively.

Fees are not published on this website. Where a family’s circumstances change, Sally is happy to discuss the arrangement directly.

5. Ending lessons

Families may stop lessons at any time by giving two weeks’ notice. No penalty or exit fee applies. Sally may also conclude a teaching arrangement where that is in the best interests of the student or the studio; in that case she will give the family notice and explain her reasoning.

6. Concerts and performances

Concerts are optional and are held twice a year. Students may perform one or two pieces. Families are welcome to attend. Any concert fee is set per concert and is published on that concert’s own page.

Photo consent is requested for each concert individually, on that concert’s registration form. Consent given for one concert does not carry over to any other concert, and may be withdrawn at any time by contacting Sally.

7. Photographs and recordings

Where a parent or guardian has consented, photographs and video may be taken at concerts. Photographs are made available to the families at that concert through a password-protected page, and are permanently deleted thirty days after the concert.

Photographs of students are never posted publicly and are never shared with other families, or with anyone else, without explicit permission for that specific image. Where a family has withheld consent, their child still performs and simply is not photographed.

8. Expectations of students and families

Lessons work best when students arrive on time, have practised, and bring their music. Parents are asked to raise any concern directly with Sally rather than with other families, and to keep communication with Sally and with other families respectful.

Sally reserves the right to decline or end a teaching arrangement where a student or family behaves in a way that makes lessons unworkable, or that affects another family’s enjoyment of the studio.

9. Privacy

Personal information collected through this website is used only to arrange and administer lessons and concerts. It is not sold, shared or used for marketing. See the privacy notice for the full detail.

10. Changes to these terms

These terms may be updated from time to time. The current version is always the one published on this page, and material changes will be communicated to families directly.