To think nursery should owe me a day for Boxing Day when they're closed!

[purplebaubles]

DD attends nursery just two days a week - Thursday and a Friday.

Just been informed that they are closed on the Thursday (Boxing Day) - no problem. So I said, I'd send her Monday and Friday that week instead.

I've been told it's tough and we'll just lose the day but still have to pay for it?!

I work term time only, so don't get paid in the holidays.

AIBU to think that they should owe me a day, given I'm paying for it?

I might add, normally (i.e not Christmas week!) they're dead flexible if I need to change days.

[ivykaty44]

I used to work boxing day but nursery were closed so I got a refund and found alternative child care for that day. I have no problem with places not being open but I am not paying for a service I am not getting.

It would be like walking in to a sweet shop and being charged for sweets that I am not getting but then being told that the shop assistant doesn't get paid much so I need to pay for sweets I can't have

[StatisticallyChallenged]

It depends on the contract. DD's nursery (she only goes for 2 half days a week) closes completely over Christmas and New Year, and you still pay for it. However, that's what's in the contract - we pay the same fee every month. I suspect if they didn't charge for those two weeks explicitly, we'd just pay for them anyway via higher fees year round.

DH is a childminder, and when we set the fees/fee structure that's certainly how we looked at the various options - if we had decided not to charge for holidays/sickness etc (on the mindees part) then the fees would have been higher to compensate

[Katinkia]

This is why I always used to send mine Tue/Thu

[nennypops]

I just assumed everyone paid for bank holidays! If you don't, how do they pay their staff for those days?

They charge a little bit extra on the other days to cover it. After all, that's how every other business operates. If a hotel with long-term guests was closed, it wouldn't expect to charge the guests.

[TheDoctrineOfWho]

If the policy is to charge for bank holidays, I guess you have to think of it as an extra £45-£90 per year for you to pay (Good Friday and perhaps another) which is less than an extra £1-£2 per week.

It's a pain for you because it's unexpected but if the nursery was £46 per day and bank holidays free, you'd pay slightly more over the year but probably wouldn't feel as bad about it.

If they based the fees for all on free bank holidays. They'd probably be £47-£48 per day as all children would get all bank holidays averaged across their fees (so not having Monday as one of your days would lose its advantage.

Am I helping?!

[InsanityandBeyond]

DS3's nursery closes for a full 2 weeks between Christmas and New Year and I still have to pay full fees. Bank holidays ditto. I was not aware of this (or that they were closed for so long) until a few weeks before Christmas last year and I was self employed then and needed to work .

Also if they can't open on 'snow days' they still charge full fees. If they can't get enough staff in and can only partially open due to bad weather, they will only accept the children of 'full time' working parents.

My Ds was 'refused entry' earlier this year when it snowed as I was 'only' part time self employed even though I had paid the same amount for him to attend that day as the other parents whose DCs weren't turned away. I had to pay for the day even though they would not take him! I was furious but told that I should have read their 'policy documents', a massive folder kept in the office that they continuously update but don't tell you about unless you remember to ask to see it and have a few hours spare to read through it!

This was not in my contract. It is referred to in very small print stating 'please ask the office staff to see the nursery policy documents'. So we were not actually informed of this until the time came.

Keep thinking to move Ds but he starts school next September so really no point as he is settled.

[1980schick]

Op i dont know why others are getting on your back, dont think your being UR at all, when my nursery is closed on a day ds attends i dont pay for it. for example they are closed in the afternoon in a few weeks, i only pay for the morning.

As for boxing day i wouldnt expect to pay for that if the nursery was shut either.

[MillyStar]

Yabu!

Nursery fees are calculated with these holidays in mind

My dd only goes one a Monday so she's always off on bank hols when they're closed and I still have to pay

It's just one of those things

[mellicauli]

All the Thursday kids can't suddenly turn up on Monday. There will nit be enough staff to cope with it. Also their staff want to take holiday that week too. Just thank your lucky stars you don't do Mondays or you would be paying for 4 of these rather than 1.

[CommanderShepard]

I have to pay for all bank hols plus four trainingng days. Thought it was pretty normal.

[ivykaty44]

just because they have drawn up a contract doesn't mean that they can draw up anything they want and make you sign it if you want your dc to go to the nursery, you can challenge this through trading standards. You local county council webpage will have the telephone number or web email.

turning fee paying children away and saying it is all set out in the terms and conditions doesn't mean you have to put up with it

[Revengeofkarma]

Whether or not you're being unreasonable almost gets irrelevant. If you go to nursery and tell the you're not paying it, you're going to find that there's another day they won't take her, because your bill is overdue. That flexibility you usually get? Kiss it goodbye. Permanently. If losing the goodwill and flexibility of what you say is otherwise a good nursery is worth it to you, then go for it. If she's been there a while, then (like where we use and most other nurseries) the £45/day is effectively subsidised because of days like this. They'll have been very public which days they're closed each year.

We use full time nursery and they're closed between Christmas and New Years. As a contractor, where I work is also closed then (yay!) but I won't get paid (boo). Nursery fees are the same as the other 11 months of the year. Initially I was surprised, but once the maths was explained I had no issue. If you want to risk a great relationship over the money (and it sounds like you are), then don't be surprised when it comes back to bite you.

[TheDoctrineOfWho]

Ivykaty, I think charging for bank holidays in childcare is one of a range of normal practices, as seen by other posts on this thread and comparisons with childminders etc. I can't see why trading standards would have an issue with it.

[ivykaty44]

because you are being charged for a service you are not receiving, and just because many business do something doesn't make it right or correct practice

[Revengeofkarma]

Um, but you aren't being charged for a service you aren't receiving. As many, many, many people have told you now, it is budgeted in with the rest of the year, so your other days effectively cost a little less.

Never mind. You don't want to hear it. I'm just going to wait for the thread where you start complaining that you don't have the flexibility any more and they are chasing you for the £45. It'll come. You'll never let it lie. Trading Standards? You have got to be kidding.

[DrCoconut]

DS2 gets annual leave from nursery. We can take him out for the same number of days as I get with no charge for those days. The cost is based on you taking the full allowance and averaged over the year. So bank holidays are covered that way. It's attached to the college where I work so can operate this way. They are open all year except between Christmas and new year as we all have different holiday entitlements and dates but can be verified through personnel.

[OrganixAddict]

I loved my dc's nursery and, the more I hear on here about others, the more I realise how lucky I was.
All milk, nappies etc provided, spare clothes, coats etc ditto so just had to get dc there. They even bought sun cream and asked what brand we wanted them to use!

Didn't pay for when they were closed, could swap days (subject to space) for no charge and our holidays (if notified to them in advance) got a £10 per day, per child discount.

My friend used a nursery where you had to take your dc out to potty train and have 3 accident free days before they would have them back, but you still had to pay them! My nursery pretty much toilet trained mine for me.

All nurseries are not created equal it seems.

[Figgygal]

Yabu the nursery still have to pay staff for being off bank holidays.

It's how it works

[brettgirl2]

yanbu If they need to pay staff then they need to charge more for other days.

My nursery offer a day in leui if you have Mondays.

The full time argument doesn't really stand as they pay a monthly fee which equates to a much lower daily rate.

[worryingunnecessarily]

As Revengofkarma said all that will happen is they will put up the daily charge to cover the cost, this will also include the extra admin as if not averaging payment over the year and invoicing monthly the admin would increase greatly.

It annoys me when parents don't read their contracts/terms and then moan. (not saying it is in yours, but I would have a guess it is)

[Revengeofkarma]

You are right, just because they have drawn up a contract doesn't mean you have to sign it.

Oh, you signed it.

And you've been perfectly happy with it until now, even when they were flexible with you, which I guarantee (as someone who negotiates contracts for a living) they were NOT contractually obligated to do.

Trading Standards is NOT there to re-negotiate your nursery contract. Or for that matter your phone contract (do you demand a refund of your unused minutes/texts every month?) your TV license (its not on 24/7, so why not get a refund for what you don't watch?), your broadband (you don't use the maximum), or the days your child is sick and can't attend nursery, and in this case Boxing Day.

Even if TS would do something, which they won't (except snicker about you for ages after you leave) you'd have to terminate the contract. Meaning: find another nursery. Who might very well have worse terms. And less flexibility. If they even have space. Ours has a waiting list for kids over a year. And they'll hear about you from the first one. It's a small community.

I say go for it! Refuse to pay! Make your stand! Call Trading Standards! Sue under the Unfair Contract Terms Act! Do let us know how that works out for you, wont you? I could use a deep belly laugh.

[AndHarry]

purple do our DC attend the same nursery? :o

DD's nursery is also charging for the full month even though they are closed for some if it. She goes for a few days though so I hadn't really thought of that until now. Hmm.

DS's nursery only charges for the hours we actually use, payable per week and booked a half term in advance.

DS's old nursery only charged for the days we used but the monthly payments were averaged out over the year so we paid the same flat fee each month.

[DrinkFeckArseGirls]

In my nursery we pay for 51 weeks but it id spread out over 12 months payments. So you may very well nit be paying for the week they're closed.

[ivykaty44]

Revengeofkarma you worked in TS?

[RoseRedder]

but it sounds like you are wanting your money's worth rather than spending time with your daughter?

Which one is more important?

I do see were you are coming from however what would you do if they turned round and said we will open on boxing day?

Would you still send your daughter?