The questions families ask us most, answered in plain language. If yours isn’t here, call us on 416-622-9979 or send us a message through our contact form.
You can start without a diagnosis. ABA is a set of teaching tools, and they work for anyone building new skills. A diagnosis is needed later for Ontario Autism Program (OAP) funding and HST exemption. If your child already has a diagnosis, please bring the report to the consultation.
Most of our clients are between 2 and 18. Early intervention starts younger, from 18 months, so families with a very young child are welcome to get in touch.
Our services are designed for children and teens up to 18. Most families finish with us around then, because Ontario Autism Program (OAP) funding ends at 18.
As your child gets close to 18, we’ll talk with you about what comes next. We can point you toward funding for adults, such as Passport, and suggest other providers who work with adults. If you move to a new provider, we can share your child’s progress and current goals with them, with your consent. Your family sets up the new services, and we’ll help you plan so the move goes as smoothly as possible.
It depends on the service and the centre — usually around 3 weeks.
Our team gives you an estimated timeline when you begin intake, and keeps you updated as spaces open up.
Yes. Most families start when their funding begins, and that can happen at any point in the year. We’ll work with you to find a start date that fits your funding.
Yes. Ontario Autism Program (OAP) funding can be used for eligible AlphaBee services.
Our services are overseen by qualified Clinical Supervisors who are regulated professionals and meet the requirements for delivering OAP-funded core clinical services. Many of our clinicians are also listed on the OAP Provider List. Our team can help you understand which services may be covered and how your funding can be used.
ABA therapy ranges from $80 to $150 an hour, depending on the program, number of hours and setting. Clinical intake is free, and therapist travel is included in the hourly rate.
Other programs are quoted during your consultation. Families may use Ontario Autism Program (OAP) funding, extended health benefits, private pay, or a combination. See the full ABA rate table.
Services may be HST exempt. To confirm eligibility, provide a letter from your family physician confirming your child's diagnosis (if applicable) and recommending ABA therapy, or proof that your child is registered with the OAP, such as a screenshot from your OAP account showing your child's name and OAP number, or a copy of the OAP registration confirmation letter.
Where possible, we plan your child’s schedule so your funding lasts through the year. If it runs out, your child will be temporarily discharged until funding is available again.
We know funding doesn’t always stretch as far as families need. When you’re ready to come back, your family will always be given priority to return. If your funding is ending, let our Services Team know at least 30 days before your last session, and we’ll work with you to plan the time in between.
No. The OAP doesn’t allow providers to bill it directly, so families manage their own funding and submit their own invoices.
You won’t be doing it alone, though. Our team is happy to answer your questions and walk you through the process the first time, and any time after that. If you'd like, our Services Team can also help you keep track of your funding. Share your core funding start and end dates and amount, and we'll schedule only what's covered. Some families prefer to manage this themselves, and that's fine too.
Our hourly rate includes 1:1 direct ABA sessions with an Instructor Therapist, and oversight from a Clinical Supervisor or Supervised Therapist, as well as assessments, reports and report review meetings.
If applicable, the rate also includes consultation and meetings with other professionals (such as SLPs, OTs and ABA consultants), which are arranged with you before they are scheduled.
Our cancellation policy depends on the service. It's set out in your service agreement, and we'll explain it to you before services begin.
Billing depends on the service and how you fund it. Your service agreement sets out how billing works, and our team will walk you through it before you start.
Sessions run in one of our three centres, in family homes, in daycares, and in some schools. Where sessions happen depends on your child's goals, the service, what works for your family and the space available.
School-based sessions depend on your school board — some boards allow therapy to take place in schools and some do not. If you’d like sessions at school, check with your child’s school first. Once you know what’s allowed, we’ll plan around it with you.
In our 1:1 ABA services, your child has a team: one Clinical Supervisor and one or more Instructor Therapists.
The Clinical Supervisor assesses your child, writes the plan, sets the goals, writes the progress reports and supervises the team. The Instructor Therapist runs each session with your child. Your child may work with more than one Instructor Therapist, which helps them learn to use new skills with different people and, where appropriate, in different settings.
For 1:1 ABA, most families choose 2 to 5 sessions a week, either half days of 3 or 4 hours, or full days of 6 to 8 hours.
The right number depends on your child’s goals, how your family’s week runs and the funding you have. We’ll work with you to find a starting point that fits. Within the first 30 days, your Clinical Supervisor completes a full skills assessment and recommends hours in their report. They update the assessment and recommendations every 6 months.
Within the first 30 days, your Clinical Supervisor completes a full skills assessment. We draw from a range of established assessment tools to understand your child’s current skills, strengths and areas for growth.
Depending on their age, needs and goals, this may include tools such as the VB-MAPP, EBIC, AFLS, EFL or ESDM. The goal isn’t simply to produce a score — it’s to build a meaningful starting point for individualized programming and measuring progress over time.
We collect data throughout your child's sessions, with much of it recorded in Hive, our clinical data tool. We track progress toward individual goals and look at patterns over time.
Your Clinical Supervisor reviews the data alongside observations and family input, and adjusts teaching strategies or goals when needed. The goal is to keep the program responsive as your child learns.
For one-to-one ABA, you get a report after the first 30 days of service, then every 6 months. For Social Skills, you get a report at the end of each term.
Your Clinical Supervisor goes through each report with you. That conversation is your opportunity to ask questions, tell us what you are seeing at home, and change the goals if your family’s priorities have shifted.
Let us know. Our main priority is your child’s success.
If you feel progress isn’t being made or if you are unhappy with something, talk to your Clinical Supervisor. We will do our best to address your concerns and work with you to make sure your child and family are getting the most out of their program. Most of our services are designed to run over several months or longer. You can expect to see small changes along the way, and if progress stalls, your Clinical Supervisor will review the program with you.
Get in touch with your Clinical Supervisor if:
Your Clinical Supervisor can talk you through your concerns, review the program and make changes when appropriate. They will also make sure the Instructor Therapist team is updated on any changes.
ABA has changed significantly over time, and so has the way we practice it. At AlphaBee, the focus is on meaningful skills that can improve everyday life, including communication, independence, safety and quality of life, not compliance for its own sake or making a child appear less autistic.
We also recognize that ABA is not the right fit for every child. Families are encouraged to ask questions, raise concerns and be active participants in decisions about goals, teaching approaches and services.
There is a range of views, and we listen to all of it. Some adults with autism describe negative experiences of ABA. Others support individualized behavioural approaches.
We take that feedback seriously and let it shape how we practice. Our focus stays on skills your child can use for themselves: communicating, being understood, staying safe, and getting through a day more independently. We also teach self-advocacy skills and use assent-based practices, so your child's comfort and choices shape how sessions run.
Masking is not a treatment goal. We focus on building skills that help each learner communicate, participate, advocate for themselves, stay safe and become more independent in the environments that matter to them.
We do not aim to suppress harmless behaviours simply because they look different. When we teach a new skill, the question is whether it meaningfully helps the learner — not whether it makes them appear more typical.
Yes. We ask for 30 days’ notice. If you need to end services, tell our Services Team.
We will plan the transition with you and make sure you have a chance to talk through any questions before the last session.
Every child starts from a different place, so the honest answer to most questions is that it depends on your child.
Our intake coordinator can talk it through with you before you commit to anything.
Book a consultationOr call 416-622-9979Ask these of any provider you are considering, including us. Write the answers down — by the third call they blur together.
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