Policies - Free Flight Dance

Terms and Conditions

The fees for the year, September opening date to June, last day of recital, are divided into ten parts for the convenience of writing post dated cheques. Unless paying in full, two parts are payable AT REGISTRATION as a deposit and NO PORTION of those two parts is refundable AT ALL, including if a class is dropped but the student is still participating in any other classes. The balance of eight parts is to be paid in post dated cheques starting in the October of the registering year and ending with May the following year. All cheques are to be dated for the FIRST of each month. If paying in full and a class is dropped there will still be a deduction of first and last month's fees as a cancellation fee. A two tenths deduction will be made on payments in full before any refunds are given for a dropped class, the same as if payments were divided into ten equal portions. All cheques made out to Free Flight Dance please.

A registration fee of $20 for returning students or $25 for new students is also applicable at registration and NO PORTION of this fee is refundable under any circumstances.

No cheques will be returned after December 15th and payment for the rest of the year will still be the parent's or legal guardian's responsibility. Withdrawal from any class or from the studio must be made in writing on our withdrawal form please. The form is available from the office, or online under the forms link. If Free Flight Dance cancels a course, we will refund any tuition, competition and costume fees already paid IN FULL, but no portion of the June tuition fees are refundable under any other circumstance.

An NSF fee of $20 will be applied on any returned cheques. If 3 cheques are returned NSF the balance for the year will be required to be paid in cash.

A discount of approximately 5% is applied to the year's fees if payment is made in full by November 1st. Please see the registration forms for these discounted fees.

Please note that our fees INCLUDE H.S.T..

Withdrawal procedure

To withdraw from a class, please print the withdrawal form off the website, it's available on the "Forms" link on the home page or from the office or the teacher, complete the form as per instructions, have a teacher sign and date it. The teacher will then hand it in to the accounts department who will then contact you regarding any refunds or adjustments.

Transfer to another class procedure

To transfer from one class to another class, please fill in the class transfer form, once it has been confirmed by the teacher that you may make this switch. The form is available to print off the website, under the "Forms" link on the homepage . Hand it in to the teacher, the change will be made on the computer and any adjustments made to the account. the accounts department who will then contact you regarding any refunds or adjustments.

Add a class procedure

To add a class, please fill in the class add on form. The form is available to print off the website, under the "Forms" link on the homepage . Hand it in to the teacher, the change will be made on the computer and any adjustments made to the account. The accounts department who will then contact you regarding the extra amount.

Competition fees and expectations

Competition fees will be invoiced to you with the deposit made at registration deducted from the fees and unless a student has withdrawn prior to entry fees being paid to the competition organization, AND the studio has been informed in writing, these entry fees WILL BE the responsibility of the parent or guardian. We have to pay the fees in one Free Flight cheque several months before the competition.

Any student who is in competitive class is expected to have excellent attendance. If a student misses several classes Free Flight reserves the right to move the student to a non competitive class. If there is a medical issue this needs to be discussed with the teacher directly first. Our goal for competitive classes is for the students to learn team work, experience the performance aspect and to represent the studio in a joyful and respectful manner.

Please also see our competition link for expectations relating to competition, attendance etc.

Attendance and Year End recital

It is very important that student's attend class as much as possible and if injured but not sick we do ask that they observe class so that they will not fall behind, memorising the choreography, developing muscle strength and memory and developing musicality, teamwork and listening to corrections as well as positive feedback all contribute to the student's growth. ALL STUDENTS ARE EXPECTED TO ATTEND THE RECITAL UNLESS WE RECEIVE WRITTEN NOTICE BY MARCH 15TH THAT YOU WILL BE AWAY DURING THE RECITAL DATES.

Our recital is the culmination of the full year's work, plus the many year's training before in most cases, and all students are expected to participate in both shows. If you will not be here for the shows, please make sure the teacher is informed at least 4 month's ahead of time to allow for choreography changes and for the other students to re-space. The recital takes many, MANY parents, teachers, seamstresses and of course, all the students to make it a success. The recital is in the Bell Theatre on 64th and 144th in Surrey. It's a beautiful, modern, comfortable theatre with professional theatre staff, lots of parking and a concession and seating area. Tickets price is t $20 per person.

A class with young students, usually under the age of 10, will require a parent to supervise the children at the recital, at least one Mom per day (Dad's cannot be downstairs but we love having their help in other areas of the recital) but if no one volunteers then Free Flight will hire a babysitter and the parents of the class without a parent sitter will have to each pay in to cover the cost of a sitter being hired for the entire afternoon.

Costumes and Clothing

Please make sure your name is inside EVERY pair of shoes (both) and all dance clothing. Please see each program listed on the side of the page for attire / hair requirements and program description for each dance discipline. There is a shoe swap at the studio the first Sunday after we open in September.

The cost of the costumes for the recital and/or competition is between $65 to $95 plus HST, depending on fabric or manufacturer's price, how complicated and the average age of the class, with $50 due at registration, the balance being payable upon receipt of invoice. Solo, duo or trio costume prices may vary and tutus are always more expensive but prices will then be discussed with the parents ahead of the time. Free Flight also has tutu's that they will rent upon occasion.

Class Cancellations

While every effort is made to ensure that all classes run at their scheduled time and day, there are the few occasions when a class must be cancelled. We will then run a make up class or offer the students the opportunity to join another class in the same discipline and at the same level.

Behaviour and Consequences

We expect that all students, parents and teachers will treat each other respectfully. We expect the studio space to be treated with respect and kept tidy by the students and parents cleaning up their food, garbage and clothing each day. Free Flight reserves the right to ask a student to leave the school if their behaviour is found to be unsafe and/or disrespectful, without recourse.

Studio Rules, Goals and Expectations

I would like to take this opportunity to remind students and parents of a few of the studio rules and expectations.

1) Please DO NOT at ANY TIME park at Speeds Pub as he has caused a lot of trouble in the past over this issue, and yes, I know HIS clients park in OUR parking, but we seem unable to control that in any way. There is a lot of public parking in the lot right beside our building in the PUBLIC car park.

2) Please be respectful of the staff and other students at all times.

3) Please respect the studio space and DO NOT litter (we have garbage cans and recycling bins). Do not put feet up on the walls or furniture, or stand on the benches in the dressing rooms. Ask if there is no paper in the washrooms, we always have it! Remember that hundreds of students pass through the studio every week and if everyone respects the studios we will all have a great time.

4) Please do NOT use the washroom as a dressing room. There are 2 change rooms in studio C if you need to change at the studio.

5) Please wear the regulation uniforms at all times. The attire requirements are listed on the website under “Programs”, and wear you hair in a bun for Ballet, or tied back for all other dance classes.

6) Anyone who has a returned cheque will be charged a $20 NSF fee. Please note that while we break down the fees into 10 portions, with 2 non refundable portions due upon registration (plus an admin registration fee) each portion does not directly pertain to 1 month! Some months have more classes in them and some have less, we base our price on an overall number of weeks and divide it into 10 equal potions for the sake of keeping things simple.

7) We hand out or email newsletters at the beginning of each month, so it is up to the parents to ASK their child if they have not brought it home, or ask for a copy if they missed a class, or you can check the website. The newsletters will be posted as soon as they are composed! The web address is www.freeflightdance.com

8) For the sake of the students, both participating and absent, regular attendance is the most rewarding! Every time students miss class, we all have to take 2 steps forward and one step back. Apart from the effect on the class as a whole, a student who misses a lot of classes never has the confidence of those who attend regularly. We are not suggesting that you cannot be ill!! We would just like to reiterate the importance for all to be committed for the year, as well as BOTH performances in the recital!

9) PLEASE DO NOT call the teachers at home except in an emergency. We all have very little time with our families as we work until 10 pm at night.

Every year I like to remind the students of our goals. They are:

1) To maintain a positive atmosphere at all times.

2) To impart to the students a love of dance and improve technique.

3) To encourage EVERY student to reach their potential.

4) To encourage each student to work for themselves (work ethic/ownership!)

5) To maintain a neat and tidy studio.

6) To treat each other, students and teachers alike, with respect and grace.

All the teachers at Free Flight are committed to their on going learning to become more informed, have more tools and remain inspire to impart the love of dance to ALL their students. We are constantly questioning how we can reach more students, in more ways, and with more passion and enthusiasm. We hope our commitment to the students and Free Flight is an inspiration to you all to make learning exciting, fun and as rewarding to you as it is to us.

Remember our moto – YOU CAN FLY !