Your free consultation at Nova, East Finchley
Thirty minutes, no pressure and no obligation. You leave knowing what would help, what would not, and what it costs.
Every treatment at Nova starts with a free consultation. It is not a sales appointment. We look at your skin or your face in good light, listen to what bothers you, go through your health and your medicines, and tell you plainly what would help, what would not, and what it would cost, in writing. Sometimes the answer is a treatment we offer. Sometimes it is skincare, a prescription option we can only discuss in person, a referral, or nothing at all.
The consultation is for anyone over 18 who wants an honest opinion before spending money on their face, skin or hair, including people who have been quoted elsewhere and want a second view. It is free whether or not you book anything, and most people who come to us for the first time are asked to go home and think before any treatment is booked.
What happens at your consultation
Allow 30 to 45 minutes. We start with what bothers you and what you hope for. Then we go through your health, medicines, allergies, whether you are pregnant, planning or breastfeeding, and any treatments you have had before, because all of these decide what is suitable. We look at your skin or face in good light, at rest and moving, and photograph it for your record with your consent. If a mole or a spot needs a doctor rather than a cosmetic clinic, we say so and write to your GP.
You then hear every option that fits, including doing nothing: what each involves, its risks, how long it takes to work, how long it lasts, the honest limit of what it can do, and the exact price. Where the right answer is a prescription treatment, for expression lines, for persistent acne, for melasma or for hair loss, we explain its form and that it is prescription only; it is prescribed, if at all, only after this face-to-face assessment. You leave with a written plan, valid for 12 months, and nobody chases you.
Time to think before a first treatment
If this is your first treatment with us, we ask you to take a few days to think before you book it, and we do not treat on the day of a first consultation. Every consent form carries a box for this, and nothing is opened until you have signed it with the time you were given written down. For a collagen stimulator, which cannot be dissolved, and for the prescription option for expression lines, that time is not negotiable. Returning clients who have had the same treatment with us before can usually go ahead the same day, after a shorter check.
Who we say no to
Anyone under 18, for any cosmetic injectable or energy treatment: it is an offence in England to give a cosmetic filler or the prescription treatment for lines to a child, and we may ask for photo ID. Anyone pregnant or breastfeeding, for injectables, peels, light and energy treatments; skincare and a gentle facial can still be planned. Anyone being pushed into treatment by someone else; we will talk, but we will not book you. Anyone whose expectations we cannot meet, because a treatment that cannot give you what you want is a treatment that will disappoint you. Anyone with a changing mole, a sore that will not heal or a rash we cannot name, who needs a GP first. And anyone for whom we think treatment would not help how they feel about themselves: we will say so gently, and may suggest talking to your GP.
The honest limit
A consultation tells you what is realistic; it cannot promise a result. No treatment we offer turns back the clock, lasts for ever or works the same on everyone, and where the evidence behind a treatment is thin we tell you that too. If what you need is something we do not do, surgery, a dermatologist, a prescription from your GP, you will hear that rather than a sales pitch for something we do.
Prices
Consultation, skin or face, 30 to 45 minutes: Free
Written plan, valid 12 months: Free
Review after treatment: Free
LED phototherapy with any other treatment, on request: Free
Letter to your GP where one is needed: Free
Treatment prices are on each treatment page and are confirmed in writing before anything is opened. The prescription treatment for lines and wrinkles has no public price: consultation required.
How booking works
If you already know the treatment you want, perhaps because you have had it before or you have already had your consultation, you can book it straight from its page. If you are not sure, book the free consultation instead and we work it out together. The lines and wrinkles page has no treatment booking at all: that page is consultation only, because the treatment most people are asking about is a prescription medicine and can only be decided after a face-to-face assessment.
To book: use our online booking page and choose Free Consultation, message us on WhatsApp on 077 21 400 600, or call 020 3925 1232. We are open Monday to Friday 09:00 to 17:00, Saturday 09:00 to 14:00 and Sunday 10:00 to 14:00. Come without make-up if you can, bring a list of your medicines and the names of any products or treatments you have had, and bring your questions.
There is no treatment at a consultation, so there are no treatment risks. The risks of each treatment you are offered are explained face to face and in writing before you decide, with a written aftercare sheet and a number you can reach out of hours. Nothing is given without your signed consent and time to think.
Common questions
Is the consultation really free?
Yes, whether or not you book anything afterwards. There is no deposit and no obligation. Reviews after treatment are free too.
Can I have treatment on the same day as my consultation?
Not at a first consultation. If this is your first treatment with us you are asked to take a few days to think, and the prescription option for expression lines is never given on the day of a first visit. Returning clients who have had the same treatment with us before can usually be treated at the same appointment.
What should I bring?
A list of your medicines and supplements, the names of any products or treatments you have had and when, and your questions. Come without make-up if you can so we can see your skin.
Will you tell me if a treatment is not worth it?
Yes. That is the point of the consultation. If skincare, a prescription from your GP, a surgeon or doing nothing is the right answer rather than anything we sell, you will hear it.
Why can you not tell me about the treatment for lines and wrinkles online?
Because it is a prescription-only medicine, and UK rules do not allow prescription medicines to be named, priced or promoted to the public. It is explained in full, with its cost, at the consultation, after a face-to-face assessment.
Do you treat under-18s?
No cosmetic injectable or energy treatment for anyone under 18, which is the law in England for fillers and the prescription treatment for lines, and our policy for the rest. We may ask for photo ID.
I am pregnant or breastfeeding. Is it worth coming?
Yes, if you want to plan ahead or sort out skincare. Injectables, peels, light and energy treatments wait until afterwards; a gentle facial and a routine built around sunscreen can be planned now.
I have been quoted somewhere else. Can I come for a second opinion?
Yes, and people often do. Bring the quote and the product names if you have them. We will tell you whether we would do the same, something different, or nothing.
Related treatments
Book a free consultation. Or message us on WhatsApp: 077 21 400 600.
The clinic is at 260 East End Road in East Finchley, three minutes on foot from East Finchley station on the Northern line, with a car park next door and free street parking on Saturdays and Sundays. The ground-floor treatment room is wheelchair accessible. Most people who come for a consultation live in Hampstead, Hampstead Garden Suburb, Highgate, Muswell Hill and Finchley, with others from Golders Green, Crouch End, Whetstone and Barnet. See every area we serve.
This page is general information, not medical advice. What suits you depends on your own skin, health and history, which is exactly what the consultation is for.