Music · early childhood · speech therapy

Where every child finds their voice.

The Academy brings music lessons, early childhood programs and paediatric speech therapy to your child — at their school, at kindy, or at our studios. One enrolment, one portal, one team that handles everything.

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  • Partner schools & kindergartens
  • Blue Card–checked teachers
  • NDIS-friendly therapy
  • Family portal & reminders
One-on-oneSame teacher, every week
Term-basedEvery lesson scheduled up front
Three settingsSchool, kindy or studio
Blue Card checkedEvery teacher, current
What we do

One academy, four ways to grow

We started as a music school. Families kept asking for more — so today the Academy supports children's development across music, movement and communication, with the same care in every program.

Individual music tuition

Weekly one-on-one lessons matched to your child's age, instrument and goals — at our studios or right at their school.

Ages 5–17 About tuition

Programs for schools

Fully managed in-school lesson programs. We bring the teachers, the timetable, the enrolments and the admin — your school brings the students.

Primary & secondary For schools

Early childhood music

Playful group programs for kindergartens and early learning centres that build rhythm, language and confidence before school age.

Ages 2–5 Kindy programs

Speech therapy

Paediatric speech pathology at the studio, at school or at kindy — with digital intake, clear session notes and NDIS-friendly billing.

All ages About therapy
A young student practising at an upright piano in warm afternoon light
Individual tuition

Lessons that fit your family — not the other way around

Every student gets a weekly recurring lesson time for the whole school term, generated around public holidays from day one. No surprise clashes, no chasing schedules — your term is mapped out before the first lesson.

Lessons run at our own studios with open scheduling across the week, or at your child's school if it's one of our partners — the same teacher every week, wherever suits you.

  • Piano & keyboard
  • Guitar & bass
  • Drums & percussion
  • Voice
  • Violin
  • Ukulele

Every enrolment includes

  • A full term schedule up front — every lesson dated, holidays already excluded.
  • Make-up credits when an absence is reported at least 36 hours before the lesson — tracked automatically. T&Cs apply.
  • The family portal — see every child's lessons, report an absence in one tap, read teacher notes.
  • Lesson reminders before every session, so nothing slips.
  • Lesson recaps — what was covered and what to practise, straight after each lesson.
  • Siblings on one login — one account for the whole family.
An elevated timber Queensland state school building with a verandah and a shade-sail playground
For schools & kindergartens

A complete program on your site — with no admin for your staff

Principals and centre directors partner with the Academy because we run the whole program end to end: enrolment, timetabling, parent communication, compliance and reporting. Your school gets a thriving music program; your office staff get their time back.

In-school lesson programs

Individual and small-group instrumental and vocal tuition during or after school hours, in your own rooms. We schedule around your bell times and your term calendar — pupil-free days included.

Group & ensemble programs

Bands, ensembles and classroom-style group lessons with per-student attendance tracking — a natural next step for schools that want music beyond one-on-one tuition.

Early childhood music at kindy

Weekly group music sessions for early learning centres, invoiced simply to the centre. Music at this age builds the listening and language foundations school-readiness depends on.

On-site therapy services

Speech therapy delivered at your school or centre, so children don't miss half a day travelling to appointments — and parents don't have to leave work to make it happen.

How a partnership works

  1. We scope it together. Rooms, days, hours and the mix of programs your community wants.
  2. We fill the program. Enrolment, parent information and waitlists — families deal with us, not your office.
  3. The term runs itself. Timetables generated per term, teachers assigned to your venue, families reminded automatically.
  4. You stay informed. A term report on participation, and a single contact who owns everything.

Why schools trust us

  • Every teacher Blue Card checked — compliance documents tracked with expiry alerts, evidence available on request.
  • No burden on your office — parents contact us, not your admin team.
  • Purpose-built scheduling — our own platform prevents room clashes and respects your school's calendar, term by term.
  • Reliable communication — automatic reminders, cancellation notices and term schedules for every family.
A therapist and young child working with picture cards at a low table in a warm therapy room
Speech therapy & allied health

Support for communication, where your child already is

The Academy now offers paediatric speech pathology alongside music — because the families we work with asked for it, and because the two belong together. Rhythm, song and play are natural allies of speech development, and our therapy team works hand in hand with our music teachers.

Sessions run at our studios, at your child's school or at kindy. Certified practising speech pathologists deliver assessment and therapy for speech sounds, language, fluency and early communication.

NDIS participants welcome. We support self-managed and plan-managed participants, with clear service agreements and session records from day one.

Enquire About Therapy

What families can expect

  • Digital intake — enrolment, consent and service agreements completed on your phone, signed electronically.
  • An initial assessment with clear goals agreed together, before regular sessions begin.
  • Structured session notes kept for every visit — private to your child's treating practitioner.
  • Flexible locations — studio, school or kindergarten, whichever removes friction for your family.
  • NDIS-aligned billing — per-session invoicing with plan budget tracking, no paperwork surprises.
  • Referrals recorded properly — GP and specialist referrals tracked, with validity dates.
The Academy platform

Organised like nowhere else you've enrolled

We built our own scheduling and family-communication platform, purpose-designed for how schools, terms and families actually work. It's the quiet reason everything here feels easy.

One family portal

Every child, every lesson, every note and every invoice in one login. Report an absence in one tap — the teacher and office know instantly.

Nothing forgotten

Automatic reminders before every lesson, cancellation notices the moment anything changes, and your full term schedule at term start.

Fair make-up credits

Absences reported at least 36 hours ahead, and any closure we cause, become credits automatically — tracked in your portal, never lost in an inbox. T&Cs apply.

Calendars that sync

Subscribe once and every lesson lands in your phone's calendar — updated automatically when anything moves.

𝄞 Photo: Lauren with a student at the piano
(to come)
About the Academy

Built by a teacher who kept saying yes

The Academy began with one teacher, one piano and a handful of students. Lauren McKinnon's rule from the first lesson was simple: a child who feels safe and celebrated will practise, progress and stay in love with learning.

That rule is backed by a career spent on every side of education. Lauren is a qualified teacher with a postgraduate Masters in pedagogy and music education, and her work has moved between the classroom, government education, and consulting to the sector on teaching best practice. What she recommended to other schools is what she builds here: evidence-based teaching, delivered warmly.

Schools noticed. First one partner primary school, then more — then kindergartens asked for early childhood music, and parents began asking whether we could help with speech as well as song. Each time the answer was yes, done properly: qualified people, real structure, and our own purpose-built platform running the schedule behind the scenes.

Today the Academy is a team of teachers and allied health practitioners working across partner schools, early learning centres and our own studios — still run by Lauren, still run by that first rule.

"Parents hand us more than a weekly time slot — they hand us their child's confidence. We take that seriously, and we built this whole academy around it." Lauren McKinnon — Founder & Director
Word of mouth

What families and schools say

Mia went from refusing to practise to asking for ten more minutes. Her teacher knows exactly when to push and when to play.
Sarah Chen — parent of Mia, 9 · Piano, second year
"Our son's speech sessions happen at his kindy, during his normal day. No pulling him out, no racing across town. The therapist sends notes after every session — we always know where he's up to."
Daniel & Priya M. Parents — speech therapy
"The Academy runs our whole instrumental program and my office staff barely lift a finger. Parents enrol directly, the timetable respects our term dates, and every teacher's clearance is current and evidenced."
School principal Partner primary school
"When my daughter was sick I reported the absence from my phone in about ten seconds, and a make-up credit just appeared. Compare that to ringing an office and hoping someone wrote it down."
Sarah K. Parent — voice
Questions

Frequently asked questions

How do we get started?

Book a trial lesson online — thirty minutes with a teacher matched to your child's age and instrument, $25, fully credited if you enrol. After the trial the teacher sends a short recommendation: suggested lesson length, starting pieces and a term plan.

What instruments do you teach?

Piano and keyboard, guitar and bass, drums and percussion, voice, violin and ukulele — plus early childhood music groups for younger children. If the instrument you're after isn't listed, ask: the teaching team keeps growing.

Where do lessons happen?

Three places: at our own studios, at partner primary schools during or after school hours, and at kindergartens for early childhood group programs. Your enrolment stays with your child even if they move between venues.

What happens if my child misses a lesson?

Report the absence with one tap in the family portal. Absences reported at least 36 hours before the lesson earn a make-up credit within the same term (T&Cs apply), and if we ever cancel a lesson — for example a teacher is unwell — you're credited and notified automatically whatever the notice.

Do you offer speech therapy under the NDIS?

Yes. We support self-managed and plan-managed NDIS participants, with intake forms, service agreements and session records handled digitally. Sessions can run at our studios, at your child's school or at kindy.

Can my child have lessons at their own school?

If their school is one of our partner schools, yes — lessons run on site during or after school hours. If their school isn't a partner yet, ask the school to get in touch: we handle the entire program setup.

How does billing work?

Music tuition is billed per term — one clear invoice per family covering every scheduled lesson, with public holidays already excluded. Therapy sessions are billed per session, aligned to NDIS pricing where applicable.

Are your teachers and therapists screened?

Every teacher and practitioner holds a current Working with Children clearance (Blue Card). Compliance documents are tracked in our system with expiry alerts, so nothing lapses unnoticed.

Ready when you are

Start with a single trial lesson.

Thirty minutes with the right teacher. $25, fully credited if you enrol — no term commitment, no forms up front.

(07) 3000 0000 hello@academyofmusic.au South East Queensland
Book a Trial Lesson