Was that session four or five?
Some of your clients prefer to pay for six or ten sessions at a time. It suits them and it suits you, until you try to work out where each of them is. One client paid for six in March, missed one, and you cannot remember whether that one was a late cancellation that used up a session or one you waived.
Another client's block ran out two weeks ago. Nobody noticed, so they have had two sessions unpaid and will now get a larger invoice than they expected. You feel you should have flagged it, and they feel slightly caught out.
You keep a tally in a notebook and a note in each client file, and the two do not always agree.
Where block tracking breaks
A block is money received now for sessions delivered later, which means two records need to stay in step for weeks or months. When one of them is a diary and the other is a bank statement, they drift.
- Payment is recorded when it arrives; sessions are counted, if at all, by hand.
- Late cancellations may or may not use up a session, depending on your policy and your discretion.
- Block prices may differ from single session fees, and some clients have older rates.
- Clients switch between block and pay-as-you-go.
- A therapist leaving mid-block leaves a balance someone has to account for.
The cost of losing count
| Slip | Result |
|---|---|
| Block runs out unnoticed | Unpaid sessions and an unexpected bill for the client |
| Sessions over-counted | A client told their block is finished when it is not |
| Cancellation treatment unclear | Disagreements about whether a session was used |
| Unused balances | Money held for sessions that never happen, with no plan for it |
| Accounts confusion | Income recognised in lumps your accountant has to unpick |
Money conversations in therapy are best kept brief and predictable. An unexpected invoice for two back sessions is neither.
How we track blocks against the diary
- Each block is a record: client, number of sessions, price paid, date bought, and any expiry your terms set.
- Attended sessions count down automatically from your booking system. Late cancellations are handled by your policy, with a draft decision you confirm or waive.
- The client and you can see the remaining balance, in the confirmation email or a small client portal if you want one.
- When the balance reaches a point you choose, a renewal invoice or payment link goes out in your wording, so the next block is in place before the old one runs out.
- Payments are recorded in Xero or QuickBooks, and, if your accountant wants it, income is released as sessions are delivered rather than all at once.
- Unused balances are listed with their age, so decisions about refunds or expiry are made deliberately under your terms.
If you take card payments, Stripe can handle the block purchase and renewal. Bank transfer works just as well with a matching step.
In a group practice, blocks are held by the practice rather than the associate, so a client's balance is safe if their therapist changes.
What changes day to day
Before a session, you can see the client has two left and that a renewal invoice has already gone out. You do not need to raise it in the room. Late cancellations are recorded with a clear decision, so there is no debate later about whether one counted.
At month end, your accountant sees block income matched to sessions, and you can answer any question about a client's balance in seconds.
Clients like it too. Knowing exactly where they stand removes a small uncertainty they may never have mentioned but did notice.
Is this your week?
- Some clients pay for sessions in blocks.
- You track remaining sessions in a notebook or spreadsheet.
- A block has run out without anyone noticing.
- You are unsure how late cancellations affected a client's balance.
- Unused block balances sit with no clear plan.