Helping Families Access Support for Executive Function Coaching
Written by: Samantha Woods
Funding Options for Executive Function Coaching
Every child, teen, and student deserves access to the tools that help them learn, stay organized, manage emotions, and thrive. But many families don’t realize that a wide range of grants, insurance plans, tax credits, and community programs can significantly reduce — and sometimes fully cover — the cost of Executive Function coaching.
At Kaizen, our mission is simple:
Make Executive Function support accessible to every learner.
This guide walks you through the most common funding options available to families and post-secondary students across Alberta and Canada.
💡 Tip: Use the cards below to jump directly to the sections that apply to your situation.
🧩 Children & Teen Funding
See all options that can help cover 1:1 coaching for school-aged kids and teens, including payment plans, tax credits, insurance, FSCD, and more.
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🛡️ Insurance & Employer Plans
Learn how extended health benefits, health spending accounts, and wellness plans can help pay for Executive Function coaching, including some parent coaching support.
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💰 Tax Credits & Disability Benefits
Find out how the Medical Expense Tax Credit and Disability Tax Credit can reduce your out-of-pocket costs, especially for ADHD, learning disabilities, or autism.
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🧠 FSCD (Alberta)
Learn when Family Support for Children with Disabilities (FSCD) may fund skill-building, emotional regulation, and parent coaching supports.
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🤝 Scholarships & Community Supports
Explore supports from the Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta (LDAA), community programs, and school-based funds that can help cover services.
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🎓 Post-Secondary Funding
See how Canada Student Grants for students with disabilities can fully cover EF coaching for college and university students.
Learn More →
Start Here
What Applies to You?
Every family’s situation is different. Use the quick links on the right to jump directly to the funding paths that match your child’s age, needs, or diagnosis. This helps you skip the overwhelm and get right to the options that may apply.
💳 Kaizen Payment Plan
Flexible Payment Option
A simple way to spread out coaching costs over time.
Kaizen offers a convenient payment plan for families who prefer to spread the cost of coaching over several installments. This option is available to all clients paying by credit card, with no additional paperwork required.
Why families choose this option:
✔️ Makes coaching more affordable month-to-month.
✔️ Works well when combined with tax credits or insurance reimbursement.
✔️ A good starting point if you’re not sure whether external funding will apply yet.
If you plan to submit benefits or tax claims later, Kaizen can provide detailed receipts and session summaries to support the process.
🛡️ Insurance & Employer Plans
Coverage Through Benefits Plans
Many extended health plans and employer benefit packages include reimbursement for Executive Function coaching.
Many families can use extended health benefits or employer-sponsored plans to cover Executive Function (EF) coaching. While every plan is different, EF coaching is often reimbursed when categorized under:
➝ Psychological services
➝ Learning support services
➝ Cognitive or behavioural interventions
➝ Health Spending Accounts (HSA)
➝ Wellness or Flexible Spending Accounts (WSA)
Some employer plans also include Education Assistance or Professional Development funds that can apply when coaching improves academic performance, stress management, or productivity.
Kaizen provides everything needed for reimbursement, including:
➝ detailed receipts
➝ session descriptions
➝ coach credentials
➝ progress summaries
➝ letters of support (if required by your provider)
If your insurance plan requires that services be recommended or overseen by a regulated professional, let us know, we can help ensure your documentation meets the requirements.
Parent Coaching Coverage
In some cases, parent coaching sessions may also be eligible for coverage when they directly support a child with a diagnosed condition such as ADHD, learning disabilities, autism, or executive functioning challenges.
This is most common when parent coaching is clearly connected to the child’s support plan, for example:
➝ reinforcing strategies recommended through assessments
➝ supporting routines, organization, emotional regulation, and follow-through at home
➝ aligning parent support with a child’s coaching or learning goals
Coverage depends on how services are categorized within your plan. Kaizen can help provide documentation when parent coaching is part of a coordinated support approach.
💡 Pro Tip:
Most insurance plans don’t explicitly list “Executive Function Coaching” as a category. Instead, ask your provider how they classify learning strategy coaching, cognitive skills training, or skill-building interventions. These terms are often accepted and increase the likelihood of reimbursement.
💸 Medical Expense Tax Credit (METC)
Claim Eligible Coaching Costs
Families may be able to claim Executive Function coaching as a medical expense when a child has a qualifying diagnosis.
The Medical Expense Tax Credit (METC) is a federal non-refundable tax credit that helps families reduce the cost of health-related services — including some forms of Executive Function coaching.
Children with the following diagnoses may qualify:
➝ ADHD
➝ Learning Disabilities (LD)
➝ Autism or developmental conditions
➝ Mental health conditions that impact learning
The CRA allows families to claim certain expenses related to:
➝ Psychoeducational assessments
➝ Specialized tutoring or skill-building services
➝ Interventions recommended by a regulated professional
➝ Cognitive or learning strategy support tied to a diagnosed impairment
Kaizen can work with your psychologist, doctor, or accountant to provide the documentation needed for your tax return.
💡 Pro Tip:
The CRA often accepts EF coaching under the category of specialized tutoring or skill-building when it is recommended in writing by a regulated professional (psychologist, pediatrician, physician, etc.). If you don’t yet have a letter, we can help you determine what’s needed.
🧠 Disability Tax Credit (DTC)
A Significant Long-Term Benefit
The DTC can reduce taxes owed and provide retroactive credits for families whose children experience marked executive functioning challenges.
The Disability Tax Credit (DTC) is a federal program that provides meaningful financial relief to families of children who experience significant, long-term challenges in daily functioning. Many parents are surprised to learn that executive functioning impairments can qualify, especially when associated with:
➝ ADHD (moderate to severe)
➝ Autism
➝ Learning Disabilities
➝ Mental health conditions impacting day-to-day functioning
Children may qualify when their executive functioning difficulties create substantial challenges in everyday tasks, such as:
➝ Working memory: difficulty holding and using information
➝ Planning and organizing: trouble completing multi-step tasks
➝ Focus and attention: inability to stay on task without support
➝ Impulse control: acting before thinking, safety concerns
➝ Emotional regulation: intense responses, difficulty coping
If approved, the DTC can provide:
➝ Annual tax credits
➝ Retroactive credits for up to 10 years
➝ Access to certain supplementary benefits (varies by province)
Applications are completed online and require a medical professional, typically a psychologist, pediatrician, or nurse practitioner to verify impairments.
Kaizen can help families understand which executive functioning areas may strengthen an application and provide relevant progress summaries if needed.
💡 Pro Tip:
Many families are denied the DTC on their first try because they focus on diagnosis rather than everyday functional impact. The CRA is most concerned with how impairments affect a child’s ability to plan, focus, regulate emotions, and complete daily tasks — not the diagnosis alone.
🤝 Scholarships, Grants & Community Supports
Support Through Schools & Community Programs
Several organizations and school-based programs offer financial assistance that can help cover Executive Function coaching.
Learning Disabilities Association of Alberta (LDAA)
The LDAA provides financial support to families and students who need additional learning assistance. Depending on availability, they may offer:
➝ Scholarships for K–12 and post-secondary students
➝ Bursaries for tutoring, learning supports, or skill-building services
➝ Family hardship grants for those needing short-term financial assistance
These supports are designed to reduce barriers for students with learning disabilities, ADHD, and related challenges.
Community Non-Profit Programs
Some community-based programs, typically known for supporting sports or recreational activities may also fund developmental, skill-building, or well-being programs, especially when they support a child’s mental health or ability to participate fully in daily life.
Programs to explore include:
➝ Jumpstart
➝ KidSport
➝ Local family-support non-profits
Eligibility varies, but families facing financial hardship are often prioritized.
School-Based Supports
Some schools, especially in Calgary and major Alberta school divisions, offer funding that can help cover parts of Executive Function coaching or supplementary learning support.
These may include:
➝ Wellness or inclusion funding
➝ Unique learning needs budgets
➝ Professional development funds (often available when parents attend training programs related to supporting their child’s learning or emotional well-being)
Parents can request:
➝ cost-sharing options, or
➝ for schools to integrate executive skill development as part of the child’s learning support plan.
💡 Pro Tip:
Many schools have discretionary inclusion budgets or wellness funds that go unpublicized. If your child already receives learning support or has an Individual Program Plan (IPP/IEP), ask the school whether executive functioning skill development can be funded as part of their existing support plan.
🧡 FSCD (Alberta)
Support for Skill-Building & Development
FSCD provides funded services for children whose disabilities impact daily functioning, including executive functioning challenges.
The Family Support for Children with Disabilities (FSCD) program offers financial assistance to families of children whose disabilities impact their development, learning, or behavior. Many families don’t realize that executive functioning impairments often qualify — especially when documented by a psychologist or medical professional.
Who FSCD Applies To
FSCD may support children diagnosed with:
➝ ADHD
➝ Autism spectrum disorder
➝ Learning disabilities
➝ Anxiety or mood disorders
➝ Executive functioning impairment
➝ Neurological or developmental delays
A formal diagnosis is not always the only criterion, what matters most is how the condition affects daily functioning, including behavior regulation, learning, task completion, and emotional control.
What FSCD May Fund
Executive Function coaching often fits within FSCD categories such as:
➝ Developmental/skill-building support
(e.g., working memory, planning, organization, time management)
➝ Behavioral development or support
(e.g., impulse control, emotional regulation strategies)
➝ Parent coaching
(helping families support their child’s executive functioning needs at home)
➝ Learning and emotional regulation support
(practical strategies to reduce overwhelm and build adaptive coping skills)
FSCD funding amounts vary depending on the child’s needs but can significantly reduce or fully cover the cost of coaching.
How Kaizen Helps 🤝
Kaizen can support your FSCD application by providing:
➝ progress summaries
➝ goal-oriented reports
➝ documentation describing executive functioning challenges
➝ recommendations aligned with FSCD’s support categories
We coordinate with families to ensure that reports clearly highlight functional needs and skill-building goals.
💡 Pro Tip:
FSCD approval is stronger when documentation focuses on functional impact, not just diagnosis. Describing difficulties with planning, impulse control, emotional regulation, transitions, and task follow-through can meaningfully support an application.
🎓 Post-Secondary Funding
Grants for College and University Students
Students with disabilities or health conditions may qualify for federal grants that fully cover Executive Function coaching.
Many college and university students are eligible for federal funding that supports academic success. Two grants in particular can significantly reduce or completely cover the cost of Executive Function coaching when learning is affected by ADHD, learning disabilities, autism, anxiety, or other health conditions.
Canada Student Grant for Students with Disabilities (CSG-D)
Students may qualify for the CSG-D if they have:
➝ ADHD
➝ Learning disabilities
➝ Autism
➝ Mental health conditions
➝ Chronic or long-term medical conditions that impact learning
The CSG-D provides financial support for academic accommodations and learning support services. Executive Function coaching often fits within these allowable services.
Canada Student Grant for Services and Equipment (CSG-DSE)
This grant covers the specific tools and services a student needs in order to participate fully in post-secondary learning. Examples include:
➝ Executive Function coaching
➝ Learning strategy coaching
➝ Organizational and time management support
➝ Academic skills training
The CSG-DSE can fully fund EF coaching for many students.
Important Requirement
To access either of these grants, students must have an approved Canada Student Loan for the current semester or an upcoming semester.
How Kaizen Helps 🤝
Kaizen can support students by providing:
➝ Documentation describing functional impacts
➝ Clear learning goals and support plans
➝ Communication with accessibility advisors
➝ Copies of letters or assessments from regulated professionals if required
We help students understand exactly what paperwork is needed and how to navigate the process smoothly.
💡 Pro Tip:
Many students do not realize they qualify for these grants until an accessibility advisor reviews their documentation. If you already have a psychoeducational assessment or medical documentation, you may be eligible even if you have never accessed accommodations before.
🧠🏡 Brain Hub at Home
A Flexible, Lower-Cost Coaching Option
A self-paced Executive Function program designed to support families who want effective tools at a more accessible price.
Brain Hub at Home brings Kaizen’s research-based Executive Function coaching strategies directly into your home through a guided, self-paced online program. It is ideal for families who want support but need a more budget-friendly option than weekly one-to-one coaching.
This option may be a good fit if you are looking for:
➝ A lower-cost alternative to individual coaching
➝ Flexible pacing that fits busy family schedules
➝ Practical tools for organization, planning, emotional regulation, and time management
➝ Strategies parents can apply consistently at home
Brain Hub at Home can also be used alongside other funding options such as insurance reimbursement or tax credits, depending on your situation.
Access and Discounts
Kaizen offers Brain Hub at Home at a significantly reduced cost compared to one-to-one coaching. A fifty percent discount is available for families experiencing financial hardship.
If you are unsure whether this option fits your child’s needs, we are happy to help you decide.
💡 Pro Tip:
Some families use Brain Hub at Home as a starting point while they explore longer-term funding options such as insurance reimbursement or FSCD support.
Not Sure Where to Start? We Can Help.
Every family’s situation is different. We are happy to help you understand your options and decide what to do next.
Samantha Woods
