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Original poster

to be pissed off that I'm being charged for the snow days

179 replies

DefinatelyNotAPooTroll · 20/03/2018 10:18

Children's nursery closed for the 2 snow days a couple of weeks ago and nursery have made the decision to charge for those days.

I feel really pissed off as I had to take unpaid leave + make time back in lieu.

I have two under three so it's not bloody cheap either!!

Apart from this I couldn't be happier with them. It's a wonderful nursery. They're worth every penny we pay them but I'm really naffed off they charged for this!

I'm being unreasonable, aren't I?

OP posts:
Mum2oneStepmum2two · 21/03/2018 22:00

StealthPolarBear
That’s what I would have thought - surely?! No? Maybe as someone who is self employed themselves and with a fireman husband who isn’t allowed to not work on snow days (he is needed more on those days thanks to icy roads!) I just thought it must be against the law for them to not pay the staff - and in turn it must be against the law for OP’s employer to not pay her. But after reading other comments about how their employers handle snow days and Icanttakemuchmore knowing more about those things than I do... I have to hang my white flag up and say I was wrong.
I still have to pay nursery fees on snow days and while I don’t like feeling like I’ve wasted money I didn’t question it as I just expected it.
So I now don’t know if OP is being reasonable or unreasonable lol! Going to look at the contracts for my son’s nursery! And at the contract for the school he’s starting in September... I’m curious to see what I’m going to be in for during the next freak Spring Snow Storm!

MintCassis · 21/03/2018 22:03

My friend's DS goes to an after school club at a nursery which was closed on the four snow days that we had. The nursery staff weren't paid for the snow days but she still has to pay the full cost of care for those four days when they weren't able to provide the service.

I understand the argument that the nursery still has running costs to cover but if they are withholding 4 full days of pay from staff it doesn't seem right they can charge parents full fees too Confused I think I would question the bill if I knew staff weren't being paid.

NoobThebrave · 21/03/2018 22:29

I worked in a nursery for many years. If we didn't work we didn't get paid, snow days/polling/off sick; this includes being sent home if lots of children off and ratios were affected i.e. not all the staff were needed! If you get government funded days it becomes more complex but I would check contract/ask!

FaveNumberIs2 · 21/03/2018 22:50

@StealthPolarBear ah, I didn't get that from the post

newmumwithquestions · 21/03/2018 23:00

Gosh I’m surprised by a lot of replies on this thread. My nursery has charged for the (one) snow day it was closed - I thought that would be standard.

I’m going to ask them tomorrow if their staff get paid! I think they should get paid and therefore I should pay for the time... but if they don’t get paid it’s cheeky!

givemesteel · 21/03/2018 23:44

Yes I'm surprised that so many people are indignant about this. I have used 3 different nurseries (due to relocation) and this is standard in every contract I've had, difference being that it is very rare they have to close.

For me the question is whether it was reasonable to close depending on your area, ie how bad the snow was and whether other nurseries / schools remained open.

If others were open I'd be pissed off, but if it wasn't reasonable to expect staff to bed able to get to work in your area I think you have to take it on the chin.

Fudgesauce · 21/03/2018 23:49

I would be surprised if they paid their staff. At work if we didn’t work we didn’t get paid. I would check your contract.

manicmij · 21/03/2018 23:50

They probably will be entitled to charge as it will be considered they closed due to a force majeure - act of god over which they had no control, Snow!

LaurieF · 22/03/2018 06:38

Were the staff paid though? Or expected to take unpaid leave/annual leave/make hours back up much like the OP did?

gamerwidow · 22/03/2018 06:42

It doesn’t matter what the costs are for the nursery it matters what’s in your contract. My CM allows both of us 4 weeks holiday a year at half pay with a minimum of 1 months notice but if she closes for any other reason we don’t pay. Same as if we don’t send DD in but she’s open (as we didn’t on snow day) we do pay.
She still has the same costs but no service outside agreed downtime= no money.

Lindy2 · 22/03/2018 06:50

I can see why you're annoyed but I can also see why the nursery still needed fees to cover their running costs.
Nurseries are actually closing all around the uk at a pretty alarming rate. The finances of many are so tight that 2 unpaid snow days could quite realistically tip the financial viability of a nursery over the edge.

runningoutofjuice · 22/03/2018 06:50

Do parents whose children go to fee-paying schools get a refund on snow days? Same situation really and I can't imagine they do.

himynameiss · 22/03/2018 07:03

Aww I know how annoying this is. I used to get frustrated.

SoupDragon · 22/03/2018 07:05

Some posters in this thread have said they do and some have said they don’t. I don’t from either DS’s or DD’s school.

Dungeondragon15 · 22/03/2018 08:41

Do parents whose children go to fee-paying schools get a refund on snow days? Same situation really and I can't imagine they do.

I think that private schools rarely close during snow days but many (not all) people have said that they get a refund if they do. I don't think it is the same situation though as schools are there to educate children rather than provide childcare. Yes, I know that childcare providers provide early years learning etc nowadays but that still is not their main purpose and nursery staff are hardly akin to teachers.
Speaking of schools closing, not all teachers get paid. It depends on their contract.

NickKaric · 22/03/2018 09:54

I can't believe people are being so reasonable! It's a business that provides a service. If this service isn't provided then they don't get paid. If it's in the t&c' s of your nursery then quite frankly more fool you!

Do you pay for bank holidays when you child can't attend? No! This is no different and the nursery should have a business interruption plan to cover this eventuality. I certainly wouldn't be paying!

Dungeondragon15 · 22/03/2018 10:07

I also wonder if the people who think it is okay to charge even if the business was closed would be happy to pay if the nursery shut for a month for some reason. What do they put in the contract to make it reasonable in your opinion? Did you agree to pay whenever the nursery decided to shut for whatever reason?

Dungeondragon15 · 22/03/2018 10:12

Do you pay for bank holidays when you child can't attend? No!

Having seen debates on this before, I think that some people do pay! Nurseries seem to get away with this due to a combination of people not being able to easily vote with their feet (or take them to court) and a general lack of understanding (by both some parents and nurseries) of how businesses/self employed people operate in the rest of the country.

Lizzie48 · 22/03/2018 10:17

Do you pay for bank holidays when you child can't attend? No!

We used to pay for bank holidays at our DDs' private nursery. It was a sore point when DD2 went there on Mondays and Fridays, because all bank holidays (apart from Good Friday) are on Monday. But it was a good place for DDs so we accepted it.

Allthewaves · 22/03/2018 10:34

Mine refunds doesn't charge if they close which I'm very grateful for

BoofayTheOompaLoompaSlayer · 22/03/2018 12:04

I've already posted on this thread saying what I do as a childminder, but I really should emphasise that the OP needs to challenge this with her nursery (as should other people who's nurseries charge them for days when they're closed).
In simplified terms; if I'm open and a child is contracted in, parents pay. If I'm closed (be it due to bad weather, illness, bank holiday, personal holiday) and a child is contracted to be in, the parents don't pay.

If a business is unable to provide their service for whatever reason, their customer/client shouldn't have to pay. No service received, no fees paid. And especially if staff aren't being paid for those days the nursery is closed!

ThatItIs · 22/03/2018 12:07

Either Paying or not paying for bank holidays is fine as long as it’s clear and in the contract. The same goes for snow days, it’s ok to charge for snow days or not to charge for them but whatever you do it has to be in the contract. You can’t just decide to charge for them willy-nilly.

Dungeondragon15 · 22/03/2018 12:16

Either Paying or not paying for bank holidays is fine as long as it’s clear and in the contract. The same goes for snow days, it’s ok to charge for snow days or not to charge for them but whatever you do it has to be in the contract.

Well no. You can't put anything you like in a contract and expect it to be valid. A contract term stating that a business can choose not to provide a service but still charge would be too easy to abuse.

GinghamStyle · 22/03/2018 12:35

No way I'd pay for days when it was closed. They chose to close the school, your DC couldn't go. If nursery was open and you decided you didn't want to take DC in, then that's a different story.

Speak to other parents, I'm sure you're not the only one questionning this.

Original poster
DefinatelyNotAPooTroll · 22/03/2018 13:02

I'm seeing it from the point of view that they were forced to close due to extreme weather and not due to any fault of their own. They absolutely could not have opened, it's not down to lack of planning but very rare weather conditions.

It's a small business and the care they give to my children is wonderful. My children go there full time and are happy, polite, loving, secure little humans. I have a lot to be thankful for.

If my £160 is needed to keep them afloat so I can carry on feeling confident that my children are loved while I'm at work then that's fine.

Not paying for the 2 days wouldn't bring my saturdays back that I had to work to make back hours!!

I'm pretty sure the NHS would still have had to pay the company I work for during the snow days.. nice little profit.

OP posts:
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