Waiting list response generator
You're full. Write the reply that keeps the enquiry warm instead of losing it.
Your reply
Hi [First name],
Thank you for getting in touch. I don't have space at the moment, and I would rather tell you that straight away than keep you waiting. I expect a slot to open in around six weeks.
If you would like, I can keep your name and contact details and get in touch the moment a slot opens; just reply to confirm you are happy for me to hold them. If you would rather not wait, the BACP's Therapist Directory and the Counselling Directory both list practitioners with availability now.
Best wishes,
[Your name]
Two things that make this reply work
Reply speed is the whole game. An enquiry answered within a day stays warm even with a six-week wait, because what the person learned is that you respond; an enquiry answered after a week has already found someone else, whatever your availability. Referrers work the same way: GPs and colleagues keep sending people to practitioners who reply, and quietly stop sending them to ones who do not. Being full is not a referral problem; being slow is.
The second thing is data minimisation, and it is why the template asks permission before holding anything. An enquiry email often already contains sensitive disclosures, so the reply deliberately does not probe for presenting issues; assessment happens when the work starts, not while someone waits. And holding a person on a waiting list means holding health-adjacent data about them, which is why the permission line exists. Your privacy notice should mention enquiries for the same reason.
When a slot does open, the message that goes back is a fine place for a booking link: the person says yes and picks a time in one step, instead of another week of email back-and-forth while the slot sits empty.
Frequently asked questions
Bloom gives you a booking page, so the moment a slot opens, the person at the top of your list gets a link and books themselves in while the slot is still warm.