Clinic · ExplainedWhat a Skin Consultation Is Actually For
It is not a sales appointment with a fee attached. It is the half hour that decides whether the next six months of your money goes somewhere useful.
Why it costs something
A free consultation has one purpose, and it is not diagnosis. It exists to get you in the chair and out with a booking. Charging £30 — redeemable against whatever you go on to have — changes what the appointment is for, because there is no longer a reason to recommend something.
It also means we can spend the time properly. Skin analysis, history, medication, what you have tried, what made it worse, what you actually want changed rather than what you have read about.
The most valuable thing we say in a consultation is often "not yet".
What actually happens
- Skin analysis — looking properly at what is going on, not glancing
- History — medication, pregnancy, previous reactions, what you use at home
- What is bothering you, in your words
- What is realistic, in ours
- A plan with an order and a timescale, and what it will cost
The order matters more than the treatments
Most people arrive with a treatment in mind and the wrong sequence. Pigmentation treated before the barrier is repaired rebounds. Acne scarring treated while the acne is active is money spent twice. A peel on skin already over-exfoliated makes everything worse for a fortnight.
Sequencing is most of the value. It is also the part nobody sells, because "do nothing for three weeks and change your cleanser" is not a product.
When we say no
Regularly. Tear trough filler where the skin is too thin — polynucleotides instead. Anti-wrinkle injections for static lines they will not touch. IPL for melasma, which it often worsens. Dermaplaning over active acne. A course of anything for a condition that needs a GP.
We would rather lose a booking than take one we do not believe in, and clients who have been sold to elsewhere tend to notice the difference immediately.
What you should ask us
- What exactly am I treating — and how do you know?
- How many sessions, honestly, and what if it does not work?
- What happens if I do nothing?
- Who is performing it and what are they qualified in?
- What would you do if this were your skin?
Any clinic worth using will answer all five without flinching.
Which consultation you need
Skin consultation and analysis, £30, for skin concerns. Aesthetic nurse consultation, £30, for injectables and regenerative treatment — and no injectable treatment is carried out on the day of a first consultation. Laser consultation and patch test, £30, which includes the mandatory patch test. All redeemable.
Meet the people who will be doing it on our team page.
Common questions
Frequently asked
Why do you charge for a consultation?
Because a free one exists to produce a booking. Charging £30, redeemable against treatment, removes the reason to recommend something you do not need.
Is the fee refundable?
It is redeemable against treatment rather than refundable — so if you go ahead, it costs you nothing.
Will I be pressured into booking?
No, and we decline work regularly. If the honest answer is that you do not need treatment yet, that is what you will be told.
How long does it take?
Around thirty minutes for skin, and longer where the history is complicated.
Do I need one before every treatment?
Not for maintenance treatments like a facial or brows. Yes for skin plans, laser and anything injectable.
Book a consultation
£30, redeemable, and about thirty minutes. Bring what you have tried and what went wrong with it.
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