To defend nursery on parents whatsap

If as said she doesn't have to pay then that's her choice, maybe remind her of this, but it sounds like she's trying to drum up other parents into supporting her in the hope that one of them may be the first to stop paying, that way she won't look like the instigator herself.

Petrol vs this (what the OP posted) is very different:

Surely everyone is aware that the 'consumables' charge has very little to do with actual consumables and more to do with topping up the gov subsidies that are being called "free hours"

I would use entitled to a woman or man if they were being entitled. Don't make an issue where there isn't one. 😌

Actually, that's better

"of course you can opt out of the consumables when you aren’t there but nursery can also opt out of the funded hours except for those on lower incomes. I think the consumable free and keeping free hours is preferable but you do you"

That, without the snidey ending, is good.

Tread carefully. Her child may end up at the same school as yours and people can hold grudges.

Also, are you sure they only get £3.50 an hour? Ours get much more than that here - pretty much the same as they charge for a regular hour, depending on age. But some around here charge a fee on top regardless.

I wouldn't get involved in WhatsApp but if you think her posts are crossing a line you might want to consider showing them to the nursery manager so they can deal with her individually.
Some parents had been posting quite nasty stuff about some of the teachers and school policies at my DDs school and this is what happened.
It's not right that parents can complain like that and the nursery/school can't defend themselves.

Eventually there will be a watershed moment. It isn’t sustainable with the funded hours being so underfunded by the government whilst costs of everything rise. Nurseries will increase the top ups, more and more people will want to access the funded hours after making decisions to get pregnant now due to knowing they will get funded hours in a couple of years. So you’ll have more and more people arguing with nurses over the illegal and fraudulent mandatory consumables charge. It’ll all come tumbling down at some point, and nurseries will start getting into trouble after enough complaints. Or they’ll stop offering funded hours as soon as it looks like these mandatory charges will actually be investigated. The government just don’t really give a shit at the moment, so won’t bother investigating, especially as any public enquiry into this would highlight how underfunded these “funded” places are. The government don’t want that.

But it is still illegal for the nurses to force parents to pay these charges.

If its fraud, please explain why there have been zero cases of nurseries ever being held accountable to this?

It's not a 'biy fraudy', it's fraud.

Committing fraud because otherwise your business can't make enough money (or profit) isn't acceptable in any other business.

It would be much better if they followed the law, and had a donations box where people could contribute extra if they wanted. Mandatory top up fees are illegal and should be treated as such.

Dgd nursery is £1 per hour. Like you I see it as the Nursery trying to balance the books in the most equitable way. She does 3 full days with 15 hrs of govt funding included.
However there will be those who see the price of everything and the value of nothing.

Ultimately the nursery is a business, a convenient one for sure but their existence is to make money for its owners, their convenience is an aside.

i can see why adding this arbitrary and seemingly compulsory “consumables” charge over and above the hourly rate is pissing off the other mum, especially when her kids aren’t there to use it. So she’s paying for your kids to have this wonderful experience at nursery in her absence.

It doesn’t matter how great the experience is for the kids, that’s a lot of additional money for things that a business ought to be able to cover because they’re a business. When you start your own business you take the risks you don’t pass it on to the consumers.

Would we expect or accept the same from a supermarket because they offer an essential service too? Just because the nursery has become an important part of your life and ability to work (or go to the gym or whatever you do) doesn’t mean they ought to fleece parents for more money on top of the fees.

We paid £2 a week for snacks at nursery. That was the only excess payment required. We had a great nursery, they had visitors and trips and good lunches too. It is possible to offer these things without conning parents out of more money.

Isn't charging for 'consumables' but it actually being for other stuff, a bit fraudy? I can see that people might not want to pay for things that they are not getting/ could get cheaper themselves.

She sounds like a total nitwit. You will only make her dig her heels in more.

I am sure nursery are used to dealing with entitled dickheads, they dont need you to stick up for them in that regard.

Maybe leave them a nice review somewhere instead?

You are correct, however what tends to happen is nurseries end up closing or opting of schemes when people take this approach. The government massively underfund childcare (while ripping working parents off!) and taking the 'legal' approach often makes things worse for everyone

Maybe she is struggling and not paying it would make a world of difference to her finances?! That is a lot of money - I'd be annoyed if they were charging me for it too! I'm not going to donate money I can't afford - it is a business. Yes by all accounts a good nursery, but even so.

I'd reply, but less preachy, something like: "Hmm. In reality, the consumables fee is used to top up the free hours that are not fully covered by the government. My worry would be that a shortfall in the consumables income would mean the nursery opts out of offering free hours altogether! 😧"

I would post what you originally thought. There might be a number of parents who think like you do but all don't want to get involved. We shouldn't let the one who shouts the loudest get the last say just because we don't want to say what we think.

I’d reply:@ honestly I can’t get worked up about this, I love the nursery, the care is amazing and so are the meals, we all know the staff are not highly paid.

@Whenthechipshitthefan I think the message you suggested posting in OP is a good one.
I was in a similar situation recently and I'm glad I spoke up, I'd do so again even though there has been a bit of fallout in my social circle. I said something because it become obvious to me that a woman who was pursuing a complaint was taking everyone's silence as agreement. When in fact I was having lots of 1:1 conversations with other parents who thought she was being petty and vindictive. So I let her know this. Perhaps I was too blunt because she hasn't spoken with me since but she has wound up the whole complaints thing she was attempting to escalate.
But your message doesn't sound blunt or harsh at all. If you accept that there may be some negative repurcussions I think you should post it.

I use to work in la childcare services who authorise funding.

Nurseries, pre schools and childminders who sign up to receive the funding sign a contract agreeing they will not charge extra to families accessing the funding . But they can request a donation for food, nappies, day trips, crafts etc. However they must be clear this is a voluntary donation and parents can opt to provide their own food, nappies etc and therefore still receive the 'free funding' at no extra cost.

They also agree to deliver eyfs education and to monitor plan and review each child's education plan.

It does sound like a great nursery with overall high standards.
And it cost to maintain high standards.

I understand why you would like to defend them.

Fair enough If parent decided to look up legal rights and wants to challenge it if she feels she can't afford it.
But people who kick up a fuss on WhatsApp groups can be really annoying and pretty toxic.

You could gently and diplomatically express your opinion if you don't agree with her and feel like the nursery should be defended.

French, yoga, they own their own forest, lots of animals. The children bake with the fruit that they grow in their allotments and collect the eggs from the chickens.

Cheap doesn't mean they get less. Her previous nursery charged a lot more top up but provided a lot less. This one is not considered a budget option, but one of the best in the area.

The whole point is that they aren't using it for 'consumables', they are using it as top up. Others provide at least as good a service without high top up charges.

I paid more than that as a top-up.

As you say there are plenty of cheap places you can send your DC.

But if you want the extras, I think you should pay for them and you obviously should pay if you're there or not.

Leave her dig her grave, hopefully will be a similar outcome to a MN parent who was recently being a pain in the arse to her nursery. Served a month’s notice.

Id just switch it to another topic as a previous poster suggested.