really annoyed about this -- what should I do (slightly long)?

[oregonianabroad]

DS1 has been going to the same nursery for 2 years, and is going to be joined by ds2 in Jan. I am very happy with the quality of care, however, I have recently been billed £40 for a 'registration fee' (bearing in mind we registered Sept 2005), and have also just found out that term-time only fees exist, in spite of me having asked repeatedly and being forced to pay for sessions we never used (both dh and I are lecturers), which I calculate has cost us roughly £400 per year, if not more. This is all coming out in the open because the nursery manager has changed. I am really frustrated but don't want to cause a big ruckus in case they hold a grudge! What to do???

[Bluestocking]

Did you ask about term-time only fees in writing? If you did, you might be able to make a case.

[NAB3]

Oooo, I wonder if that is the nursery we used. It has all changed recently too. Check in all the details you have. we got caught for losing our fee for not giving a month's notice when we wanted to finish, but we managed to get it back anyway.

[oregonianabroad]

No, didn't think to ask in writing!
It's in the NE somewhere, NAB3?

[NAB3]

Nope. We are in the SE.

[oregonianabroad]

lucky you. anyway, did you change nursery because of this kind of stuff? I am loathe to change, having tried it once and regretting it (I wanted DS to be closer while i was on leave, massive upheaval and upset and unsatisfactory care).

[Bluestocking]

If there isn't a record of you having asked about TT fees, it would be hard for you to prove that you did actually ask. I would make a case that it's now too late to ask you for a registration fee that they should have asked for two years ago though! BTW, if it's your workplace nursery, do you pay via a "salary sacrifice" scheme? I do that at DS's nursery and it saves me 25%.

[oregonianabroad]

we are sorting the scheme out now, actually. in fact, this is ANOTHER thing i am annoyed about: i hassled the new manager for months to send details to dh's employer, it took so long, we took ds out for the summer and are only now getting it sorted (more cost to us).

[Bluestocking]

How amazingly annoying. If your DS1 is three, have they managed to give you the discount for nursery vouchers?

[oregonianabroad]

he's not 3 till next April. we've been advised that the vouchers won't take effect till the term following his birthday (May). Is this true?

[Twiglett]

it is probably an administration error .. do not get up in arms until you arrange a meeting with the manager

what do you want?

obviously to not pay registration for DS1, but will pay for DS2?

to only pay term-time fees in the future

to get rebate on sessions paid for and not used to date (I would use this as a negotiation and not expect to get anything here)

start by reading your contract though .. all of it .. small stuff too

[Bluestocking]

I think this is right. My nursery managed to create a cock-up with the vouchers (they applied the discount too soon and ended up clawing money back, much to my chagrin). Given that your nursery doesn't have a good track record in the fees area, you might want to get them to give you the info in writing to force them to check it before they do anything!

[oregonianabroad]

I should have said ... I met mananger tonight; she was sympathetic but seemed unable/unwilling to do anything. She rang the accounts office, who basically said there was nothing they could do about the £40!

[Bluestocking]

What do they mean, there's nothing they can do about it? You weren't asked for it, two years ago, and they're now trying to extract it from you - they haven't got a leg to stand on!

[oregonianabroad]

that seems obvious to ME, but how do i get THEM to accept this, short of threatening to take my kids out, which is a threat i am not prepared to follow through on, as i just don't want to have to go through re-settling them somewhere else, and i am really truly happy with the staff.

[Bluestocking]

I would just not pay it. What are they going to do?

[oregonianabroad]

That's what n manager suggested, bluestocking, but I actually want it removed from the bill, because now we will always have this £40 debit on there, and as sometimes we will be in credit because of salary sacrifice, i am afraid we'll end up inadvertantly paying it. grrrr

[OrmIrian]

term-time only seems to be a bug-bear at many nurseries. Ours started out offering it, then withdrew it, then offered it again. I was lucky that it was available when I registered DS#2 - no way was I paying for 1o weeks or so that I would simply never use - with 2 older DC's it's simpler just to take leave or ask gps. My neighbour who joined a few months before me didn't get offered termtime only but it was there as a tick box on one of the many forms I signed. Even so I had to 'remind' them several times that I had ticked it! Was it mentioned on any of the forms you filled in?

[morningpaper]

What about paying the Registration fee but asking them (in writing) to agree that you will get it back when you finish at the nursery?

What is the PURPOSE of a registration fee? Did you sign anything to say you would pay it?

[NAB3]

oregonianabroad
We have maoved our DD twice. Once after 5 months in a play school and then after 8 months in a private nursery.
With the playschool it was either a case of there had been a problem for 5 months that they hadn't told us about, or they were jumping in too quick with special needs checks.
With the nursery it was too many staff and other changes in a short space of time and we could no longer trust what the manager was going to do next.

[oregonianabroad]

No mention of tt only or a registration fee on anything. Luckily, I DO have a letter from the first manager saying, 'welcome, blah blah blah, please pay 1st month and a £50 deposit.' Nothing about registration fee.
It really is irritating. I am thinking a letter, but to whom, and what should I be asking for? Is it enough simply to express my dissatisfaction and ask for the £40 to be removed from my bill? Can they charge me for something I did not agree to 2 years after the fact?

[oregonianabroad]

NAB3-- How did she cope with the change? Do you feel it was worth it?

[NAB3]

The first time she was at home with me for a few days and it took quite a while before she would settle at nursery. At one point she laid on the floor for over an hour. The staff put all they had in to her and went more than the extra mile to the point that she wanted to go every day!

We took her out with no notice and she wasn't fussed at all. Started school last week and no problems at all.

[NAB3]

Both times it was the right thing to remove her.

[oregonianabroad]

But I am not at all sure about moving him because of an admin problem, epsecially after having been through 1 move that didn't go well. in fact, that experience really made me value this nursery since they do go the extra mile. crap, maybe i should just pay the 40 quid and get over it?!

[1dilemma]

Ha ha salary sacrifice, we have been waiting over 4 years for mine o bring in salary sacrifice, work all done one manager jusy wont sign. Is that the longest?
Registration fee a complete con IMHO, a joke to ask for it 2 years late ask for it back, point out you're allready registered!.
Not sure what you can do about term time I asked for part - time quite a few times once before they said oh yeah we've had someone for a while who wanted to share!!