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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To want to know if nursery manager was fired?

55 replies

Oxmama · 08/10/2019 21:37

My son has been at nursery since April this year, and since then there has been a very high staff turnover (4/5 staff from his room and 2 managers have left & there’s a lot of agency staff from unfilled roles). We’ve just been told that the manager has left the job this week, and that “due to unforeseen circumstances cannot work out her notice period”. That’s all the information we’ve been given. When other staff have left there’s been a note about wishing them well etc, but nothing said about this. I checked with staff in my son’s room today and they said they were just told the same, no details etc.

AIBU to want to know if the manager was sacked, and if so, what for? I’m concerned that most sackable offences would be related to the well-being and safety of the children at the nursery, and I would want to know if this has been compromised.

Or should I just keep out of it??

It’s a private nursery and the fees are extortionate...so I feel like we should be getting a good service.

OP posts:

Mimsnethe · 08/10/2019 22:42

100 per cent you have a right to know exactly why a senior staff member had left

No, she doesn’t.

Stop spouting shite like that. It’s poor advice for the OP.

Louiselouie0890 · 08/10/2019 22:42

Sounds like shes let for another job. I find most people dont do there notice if they find a job

jennymanara · 08/10/2019 22:44

Also the staff may know the reason she has left, but been told not to tell parents.

StatisticallyChallenged · 08/10/2019 22:46

100 per cent you have a right to know exactly why a senior staff member had left

Ha ha no.

Even if the manager was fired there are plenty of reasons not relating directly to the children which could have been the cause. They're also entitled to privacy and confidentiality in most cases (unless they have done something which warrants reporting or for references etc)

Every parent does not need to know. What I would want to know is how they are going to manage in the absence of a manager

MintyMabel · 08/10/2019 22:48

If she was fired for poor conduct, why do you need to know? Any risk to your child is now gone.

More likely they aren’t wishing her well as she’s buggered off and left them in the shit.

jennymanara · 08/10/2019 22:50

She may have had a big argument with the owner and walked out. The owner would then not want a poster up wishing her well.

Rachelover60 · 08/10/2019 22:53

No reason to believe she has been sacked, she may have just found another job that suited her better. Even if she was fired it could be for anything - bad time keeping, skiving, having a fight with another member of staff, smoking in the stationary cupboard and setting it on fire.......drunk on duty.

The mind boggles!

Best not to speculate. If you are basically happy with the nursery, it's likely to be fine.

LittleDancers · 08/10/2019 22:54

I'd be more using my energies on thinking about whether it was the right nursery for my DC than the specifics of staff situations. Is your DC happy there? Are the staff pleasant and friendly? Do you trust them to engage him and look after him well? Does he have many bumps or accidents there? All kids can have bumps and accidents but frequently signing the accident book is a red flag in my book. Really good nurseries don't have endless bumps and bruises or squabbles between children resulting in being hit with a toy/scratched/bitten etc. IMHO that happens because staff aren't watching them closely enough and/or aren't engaging and/or there aren't enough staff on duty, or enough experienced staff on duty ie too many (cheaper) juniors and trainees.

It can also be useful to arrive unexpectedly early to collect your DC every now and then just to see what the engagement and energy levels are like in the room when you spring up unannounced.

BackforGood · 08/10/2019 22:55

100 per cent you have a right to know exactly why a senior staff member had left.

Absolute bollocks

AlexaAmbidextra · 08/10/2019 22:55

Of course you would. Or on the other hand you might be nosy and looking for salacious gossip.

AProblemHasOccured · 08/10/2019 23:08

Nursery worker here. My guess would be that she got a new job and they wanted her to start work earlier than her notice would allow. Or illness.

saraclara · 08/10/2019 23:10

My husband left his teaching/management job overnight and was never able to go back. He had an awful breakdown from which he never fully recovered. It was agony for him and for us.

Anyone prying into why he disappeared could just fuck off, frankly.

BlackCatSleeping · 08/10/2019 23:18

I took it more that the OP was concerned about the welfare of her child rather than idle gossip. Obviously, if it was for personal reasons, the OP has no right to know, but if she was fired for gross misconduct, then parents are bound to be curious as to what happened and if there had been a safeguarding risk. Hopefully, new management will improve the working environment and things will be a bit more settled at the nursery now.

Longlongsummer · 08/10/2019 23:33

I would look for another nursery ASAP. It may well have been just bad luck to have so many staff leave, however it’s not a good sign and you won’t get the truth for a while. So I’d give notice and change.

MoreCuddlesForMummy · 08/10/2019 23:36

Surely there’s no harm in asking, but based on the many other comments it seems unlikely you would be told.

Our nursery manager recently left at very short notice and similarly there had been a lot of staff turnover. Also private, also v bloody expensive!

We have had the area manager in covering 3 days a week since and both DH and I have met with her to make sure we understand what’s going on in terms of making sure all the remaining staff are supported and in turn caring for the children properly, plus the following recruitment. They have fallen down on communication in the past and still not that great.

Both DH and I were told that the manager resigned of his own free will (and although they didn’t say it, he’d essentially been caught out for talking the talk but not actually achieving very much at all) and we were given the impression that he decided to not work his notice probably because he was embarrassed. We were emailed late on the Thursday and he was away the next afternoon.

If you have concerns about the safety and care of your children that’s probably the most important thing you can start discussions about. Equally, asking what their plan is for recruitment.

Also no harm in looking elsewhere. We have looked around and found other places we liked but can’t bear to pull apart DDs little friendships, and while there are a few aspects of the general (v basic) running of the nursery we don’t like, we are very happy with the level of care she gets day to day.

Hope it all goes well!

LolaSmiles · 09/10/2019 06:51

BlackCatSleeping
It's dressed up as that, but it's still gossip.

If a situation involving her child had occurred then she'd have already been in.

This is all 'i want to know if they were sacked because if they were sacked then...' Ultimately there are many reasons someone may leave post immediately and it's not appropriate to share the information.

It's even more ridiculous that some posters think they have a right to know why staff leave.

Drogosnextwife · 09/10/2019 07:37

If something had happened to the children or your child because of any of the nursery staff, you would have been informed. Why do you think you paying for your child's nursery, means you are entitled to know personal details about the staff?

vikkimoog · 09/10/2019 07:43

Would a childminder not be a better idea? no staff turnover

SellFridges · 09/10/2019 08:06

It’s none of your business. If you have a concern about the welfare of your child at that nursery you should look for alternative provision.

Bluntness100 · 09/10/2019 08:11

Blimey op, she could be ill, have a family emergency anything. Don't be such a busy body.

heartsonacake · 09/10/2019 08:13

YABVU. It’s absolutely none of your business and you have no right to know.

goalpie2 · 09/10/2019 08:25

Move your child, you don't trust the nursery

dottiedodah · 09/10/2019 08:36

Does seem worrying such a high staff turnover .Is your DC happy there? the problem with such a situation ,is that children like their routine and the same faces each day .I think it may be personal reasons maybe, but I dont think you will be able to find out really .Perhaps have a look round some different Nurseries to get a feel and see what their staffing is like

PotatoesDieInHotCars · 09/10/2019 08:52

"Unforeseen circumstances" implies there was an emergency or something sudden. People who are fired don't normally have a notice period to work. Either way it is none of your business. If your child had been put at risk you would have been informed.

LolaSmiles · 09/10/2019 09:53

Does seem worrying such a high staff turnover
It seems quite normal in a lot of settings based on what my friends and relatives say.
Those I know who work full time either as long term key workers at level 3 or room leaders tend to find that they get more and more added to them due to fast turnover. There's always a demand for agency staff too.

I've not really worked out why that's the case, but I would imagine probably similar pressures as schools but much lower wages. Some of my friends in level 3 childcare jobs have to do more paperwork and detailed planning and record keeping than I do for my A Level classes!

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