Why do you charge the rates you do?

I think it’s more than fair to ask why I charge the amount I do for my services, especially because it can mean a significant financial investment if you see a counsellor regularly. I understand this, as I have a regular therapist and it’s something I have to specifically budget. 

I also believe in transparency which is why I display my fees online and more than happy to explain how I settled on them. The simple answer is that I worked out how much I needed to make a year to make my private practice sustainable while keeping fees as low as possible.

My belief is that therapy should be easily accessible and affordable/free for everyone. Unfortunately, the current systems of government and capitalism do not appreciate the need for regular therapy and as such don’t make it accessible or possible. Free services like non-government organisations are often underfunded and overwhelmed with people, so that might mean you are on a waiting list for months until you get a session or have to wait weeks/months between sessions (I have worked in those spaces, so I have seen it). Also, you often have to fit into very specific and often very narrow demographics for government funding guidelines e.g. women who are survivors, over 65 years old, with a diagnosed mental health disorder, etc. with a very limited amount of sessions offered (usually 6 – 20 sessions) before the support is ended.

These restrictions and limitations are why people look to private practitioners for more immediate access, long-term consistent care, to have a choice of who to see and when, and not having to engage with a colonial medicalised system that labels and stigmatises people wanting or needing therapy. I see my own private therapist that I choose, that works with me in a way that works for me, I have control over the choices I need to make that benefit myself.

My fees are on par with most counsellors in private practice in Naarm (Australia), but are lower than the recommended fees from the Australian Association of Social Workers who recommend $270/hour for social workers in private practice. The Australian Psychological Society recommends psychologists to charge $270/50 minute session. Those fees are unimaginable to me and unaffordable for most people (I couldn’t afford to be paying that!) 

I charge close to the recommended fees, often under, for specialist therapy in private practice due to my values and ethics. 

I will give notice if there is a fee increase, and I will keep the increase as low as practical, and the increase will usually be due to a cost-of-living increase.

I do my best to balance my work and cost of living expenses with being affordable and accessible. The reality is that some people cannot afford to see me, and for that I am sorry, but also have to survive and to do that I need to charge a certain amount for my specialist skills and services. If that is the case I will try my best to refer you onto a relevant free or low-fee services but cannot guarantee their availability.

Here is what you’re paying for in each session”

·        60-90 minutes of direct therapy (sometimes more);

·        5 -15 minutes of case notes after the session;

·        Between session liaison, support and advocacy to other people and/or services in your support network;

·        Limited email and admin support between sessions e.g. writing support letters;

·        And contribution to my professional development and resources:

·        Office rent and other practical resources e.g. paper, electricity, etc.

·        Software (Power Diary, Xero) subscriptions, Stripe/Visa processing fees;

·        Accountants, monthly bookkeeper, website costs, other professional support;

·        Professional membership and recognition as a social worker;

·        Public liability and professional indemnity insurance;

·        Group supervision;

·        Fortnightly external supervision from multiple supervisors with different specialities;

·        Training fees and study fees to keep up with the most recent best practice and models;

·        My own regular therapy to make sure I have the psychological and emotional space to provide the best possible service and presence in my sessions with you.

·        My living expenses! Food, housing, clothes, phone bill, and anything else I need for day to day life in neoliberal nightmare Sydney.