Use this when... a lesson did not happen as planned and you need to decide how it affects attendance, parent billing, credits, credit notes, tutor pay, and reporting.

Before you start... check your cancellation policy, the session status, who cancelled, when notice was given, whether the tutor attended or prepared, and whether the parent has already been invoiced or paid.

Start with the session record so the operational status is correct before billing changes.

Cancellations and no-shows touch several workflows. If you apply a credit before checking attendance, you may correct the money but leave reports wrong. If you mark attendance but forget billing, the parent balance may stay wrong. Work from the session first, then billing, then communication.

Open the session and confirm whether it was attended, cancelled by parent, cancelled by tutor, no-show, rescheduled, excused, or still pending. Check messages if the reason or timing is unclear.

Check messages when cancellation timing or reason affects billing decisions.

Update the session status according to your policy. Add concise notes where useful. Avoid writing sensitive personal details into session notes unless they are necessary for the operational record.

Expected outcome: scheduling, attendance reports, tutor records, and billing workflows all start from an accurate session status.

Open Billing or the relevant invoice. Decide whether the session remains chargeable, should be credited, should be removed from a draft invoice, or needs a credit note because the invoice was already issued. Follow your finance process for credits and credit notes.

Review billing only after the lesson status is clear.

If tutor pay depends on attendance, cancellation timing, or employment model, check whether the tutor should still be paid. A parent no-show, late cancellation, or tutor cancellation may have different pay outcomes.

Tell the parent what was recorded and what will happen to the balance. Tell the tutor only what they need to know about the lesson and pay process. Keep wording consistent with your policy.

The parent balance still looks wrong: check whether the invoice was draft, issued, paid, partially paid, credited, or voided.

Reports show the lesson as attended: update the session status and re-check the reporting period.

The tutor disputes pay: review session status, cancellation timing, policy, and any manual adjustments.

Before closing the issue, check session status, invoice state, credit or credit note, parent communication, tutor pay impact, and any related report. These records should tell the same story.

Use your own organisation policy, but make sure admins understand common cases: parent cancels with enough notice, parent cancels late, tutor cancels, student does not attend, lesson is rescheduled, lesson is delivered partly, or the business chooses to waive a charge. Each case may affect billing and tutor pay differently.

Use a credit when the family should have value available against future charges. Use a credit note when an issued invoice needs a formal reduction or correction. If the invoice is still draft, it may be cleaner to correct the draft before issuing it.

If the same cancellation question comes up repeatedly, review your scheduling and billing policies. Clear rules reduce inconsistent decisions and make parent communication easier.

Use the same tone across the admin team and record what was sent. Keep wording clear: confirm the lesson date, status, policy outcome, and balance impact. If a credit or credit note has been applied, explain what it changes and when the parent will see the updated balance.

After handling the cancellation or no-show, review the family balance, tutor pay view, and attendance reports so future billing and reporting remain accurate.