To think someone MUST be profiting from private nurseries?

As an ex childcare practitioner, private owners are usually making a fortune and staff tend to scrape minimum wage. My previous bosses had very nice new cars, big expensive houses and enjoyed luxury holidays. One of the reasons I stepped out of the profession - worked like a donkey to barely make ends meet.

It's nit about feeling sorry for them, it's about realising there is more to it than you think and you possibly don't have a full understanding of why it is the way it is.
I can see both sides from being on both side many don't have this perspective resulting in unrealistic views and opinions which are often wrong.

I know a nursery owner, he has a chain of about six nurseries. He is minted, really flashy. Always on very extravagant holidays, massive cars, employs a housekeeper etc. It does make me wonder about nurseries always crying poverty.

The chain of nurseries I used to work for are 100% making a big profit. They own about 12 branches and the three directors are very wealthy, drive flashy cars, big houses etc they pay their staff just over min wage but they are always understaffed and over ratio. This nursery has been going for over 30 years though and possibly smaller nurseries don’t make as much.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/rishi-sunak-koru-kids-akshata-murty-b2398515.html

I can’t imagine Rishi Sunak’s wife had shares in a childcare company if she didn’t think it was going to make her a nice profit!

I would add, i was involved in assisting a local community preschool with their finances for a while and could absolutely see they didn't make money.

Their staff were all older, qualified and very experienced. They only took for the two years before school, term time only, school hours, and were heavily reliant on 3 year old funding, and refused to charge much top (only a small weekly consumables fee).

Care Homes make a FORTUNE.
Private nurseries also make a FORTUNE.
Just look at Companies House.

For those saying "but the staff arrive on the bus" no doubt they do. It's not the staff, room leaders or even manager who will be profiting from this. It's the shareholders of the limited company.

I can imagine that Owner owns the Property freehold (probably as a pension investment) and then leases the Property to the Limited Company (thus earning rent). Limited Company shares held by Owner.

Childcare and care homes. Care homes are always pleading poverty yet the ones I’ve looked up are making millions.

True but you've (presumably) no idea whether these people have partners. The lady who runs our preschool isn't earning much from it but goes on plenty of fancy holidays. Her husband has a relatively highly paid job.

How do you know for sure? Even if they were that could be from years of building the business steadily, you just don't know.

Our business wasn't a nursery either.

You do seem rather angry about the fees you're paying. There a necessary evil if you work, and those fees need to cover costs and keep the business viable. It can't be avoided, credit to them if it's a family business, it's hard work to run one, and run it with family on top of all the other stresses and dealing with people who make ill informed judgments about your business and life style.

I'm just pleased I sold my business as I don't have to be judged like this anymore.

My friend has worked at the same small preschool for nearly 20 years @Greebish . Sounds very similar to yours. I hope you manage to stay up and running.

Yes, I completely understand how a preschool operating like this will struggle.

Crikey, some posters are taking the OP very personally aren't they? Nurseries are much like schools on Mumsnet @SprinkleofSpringShowers . Must never be questioned. As you are finding out by the weird replies.
I always assumed they made profit due to employing and relying on underage workers. Also the extortionate amount they charge. £1800 a week per child anyone? Yeah, course no ones making a profit 😂. Its a business at the end of the day and the person/company running it isnt doing it from the goodness of their heart. Stupid to suggest otherwise.

It’s not so much that a business is making profit, that’s to be expected - it’s what they’re there for. It’s the pleading poverty at the same time.

I was paying £70 for a day (9 hours) years ago. ‘Free hours’ were scheduled as a few hours in the morning and afternoon, they charged a much higher ‘additional hour’ rate for the hours around the ‘free’ hours, plus an ‘enhanced provision charge’, plus I think lunch. (I didn’t opt for breakfast or tea and managed to avoid any hours around the standard ‘day’ hours as these were double rate. So a funded day was £58. They got more than £12 from the government in funding for the day.

Of course it was my choice to use the nursery but once a child is settled you’re at the mercy of fee increases or a big upheaval, they increased fees annually. Plus group sizes grew hugely and some of the new staff didn’t seem that hands on with the children. Plus it was very hard to work out charges as they advertised the ‘day’ rate, it was only once you got billed with a very complicated calculation it became apparent that you paid a lot for ‘free’ hours.

That was their prerogative of course, but after 2 years the owner pulled her own children out of state school and put them into private… and then actually complained to parents about the cost of privately educating her children!

I switched nurseries. It added another hour round trip to drop off and of course a lot of pain of resettling but it was our only option financially.

There are lots of models of delivering childcare, some that are more profitable than others. I have a small preschool and we are struggling. My staff tend to stay with me until they retire and everyone is qualified. We don’t charge a top up and it is really tough to pay for a high quality workforce with just the funding.

The issue for settings is that the government sell this funding to parents as free hours. The parents then get annoyed that nurseries and cms are still charging on top. The myth is that the government rates cover your 15/30 hours entirely, they don't.

The best thing would to have the government admit this is just a contribution and parents wouldn't feel so annoyed at still be charged a tip up.

Instead they make settings come up with fancy ways of still receiving the same amount and parents aren't stupid and feel tricked. You should feel tricked by the government, not the childcare providers.

Yes, they all plead poverty but the ones near us make a fortune. They are making even more by charging top up fees for funded hours too.

Not moaning, dearie, just pointing out that you are moaning and making assumptions based on outward appearances

You're forgetting that some parents will just use the free hours and so don't pay top ups.

Your high fees are effectively subsidising those parents.

I was one of those who managed to wangle it to just use the free hours.