school threatens to call police over after school club

[Locket8891]

My school provides a paid after school club for working parents.
I booked my child into the club one morning and went to work.
While at work the school called my mobile to explain my child could not attend the club today, as I have not paid the previous payment for this club.
I asked how much I owed and she told me £35 I was surprised that knowing I'm a single parent at work! That they would not allow my child to go to the club today at least as I'm at work now,,she agreed and the convosation ended.
Not long after the liaison officer from school phoned my work place! to tell me again my child can not attend. I proceeded to explain that I had just spoken to someone and that they agreed my son can attend today as I'm at work and it's only £35!
the liaison officer would not give me any help nor chance,
her words were"your child can not attend the club today and if I do not pick him up at 3:10 she will call the police because it's a form of neglect!?!!!

Fair enough there is money owed which I was able to pay when I would of pick my child up.
how ever I took this as a personal dig at me, unprofessional and wrong? I am not neglecting my child nor would I let him wait outside the school to wait for me so why was I threatened this? It's not protocol if they can get hold of the parents or the emergency contact even or have a good will and allow him to attend the club why had it jumped to such extreme measures

Or maybe the type of school that routinely need to find money from elsewhere to pay after school staff because parents forget?

Maybe, but no excuse to take it out on OP. The silly threat to call SS/police when they would be the ones turfing out the child is ridiculously over the top.

The silly threat to call SS/police when they would be the ones turfing out the child is ridiculously over the top

No they wouldn’t be “turfing out the child”, they’d be expecting a parent who hadn’t paid for after school care not to expect to use after school care.

I still say there’s more to it.

If there is more to it, it would explain, to some extent, the threat. However, it is still an overreaction. It's £35, not £350!

I'd have lost a lot of goodwill for the school in OP's shoes.

After school care cannot charge more than it costs for the activity, in law.

Therefore, staff wages, activities, supplies, any food all need to come out of the money parents pay. If they don’t pay, none of those things are paid.

The bottom line is this. Pay your bills, when they’re due.

If there is more to it, it would explain, to some extent, the threat. However, it is still an overreaction. It's £35, not £350!

And if ten people do it because they know they can get away with it, it becomes £350.

Actually, I'm quite excited now. A lot of my invoices are now paperless so if I don't open my emails I won't have to pay them! Genius.

They were pointing out that you either showed up before the club started (and collected the child, or paid) or they'd hand over the child to the police.
That's how I understood it anyway.
Because if the child wasn't able to be in the club and a parent/carer didn't collect them then there's an unaccompanied minor.

Sadly some parents seem to rely on after school clubs giving in and taking their child because they'll worry about the child. From friends who staff them they seem to get serial piss takers.

That's a straw man, Rhiannon, OP has said she's not a repeat offender, and that this was a genuine mistake. She said she would rectify it on the day. She is not responsible for what other parents may or may not do. As such, they have been very heavy handed. It would leave a nasty taste in my mouth.