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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think nursey fees are a rip off

73 replies

bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 22:15

AIBU to think that £9 a day for pre-school nursery is too much? It's 9.30am until 12noon. Its run in a little village hall by local mothers (all passed as proper childcare givers, so all very kosher but far from anything formal). I can't help but think its a bit expensive for what you get. I'm not looking for alternatives or solutions but just wanted some feedback regarding the cost.

To add to slight insult, we have to pay an extra £8 a week for drink and a snack per child, when i questioned this, a drink and snack consists of a cup of tap water and 1 biscuit per child (per session)

OP posts:
BreeVanDerCampLGJ · 28/02/2008 23:15

When I went to see the CM I eventually entrusted with DS, I thought she was too cheap.

I paid her over and above her hourly rate, because it felt wrong to leave my child with her for any less than the sum I had in my head when I went to meet her.

She was not the best childminder in terms of gluey art etc., but come the summer she was out in the garden with them from start to finish.

The other thing that made me go with her was the fact that she did not drive,she used to collect DS and others from nursery and walk them a mile uphill.

To this day, DS is a great walker.

KatyMac · 28/02/2008 23:15

Sorry Harriet - I meant the leader would be paid £7 an hour in my rough approximation (iyswim) & that I wouldn't take on that level of responsibility for that money

Original poster
bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 23:17

Moondog, for what you get as in a small village hall run by local mums and for snacks you get a cup of tap water and 1 biscuit.

Making out that you should pay excessive amounts of money because you think your childs life is priceless is the most ridiculous statement i've heard in all my life.

OP posts:
KatyMac · 28/02/2008 23:18

Based on my senario - I would close it due to it being uneconomic

NiceTry · 28/02/2008 23:19

I pay a babysitter £7 per hour, usually up to £30 for an evening. They do not have to do anything - kids are in bed! All they have to do is ring me asap if they wake up. You are questioning £9 for a whole morning when your child is awake and needs close supervision.

Original poster
bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 23:20

They take children from 2.5 years old up to school age (4 years old) so yes there are some under 3 years of age. I assume they need more staff by law to make sure they have X amount of staff per X amount of children.

OP posts:
BreeVanDerCampLGJ · 28/02/2008 23:22

You are not being ripped off, but you are being tight.

Does this help ?

HarrietTheSpy · 28/02/2008 23:22

Interestingly enough a friend in Dorset - fully trained teacher - runs a preschool for £7 per hour. Works her butt off, including weekends. But she sees it as a mission of some kind. Honestly. Not saying she should or shouldn't but some people do take this view. Our preschool has a 'Christian ethos' with the leader saying: we are not in it for the money. Raised a packet at the Xmas fair, they gave half to charity.

Not sure how the funding works for these places. Maybe they are state subsidized? So they can charge lower prices?

KatyMac · 28/02/2008 23:22

So Bigbumhole - if I were running it I would close it- so you would have no pre-school

I would appreciate it and try to fund raise for it so that it stays open at least as long as your child needs it, because at the moment it is only running due to the goodness of the ladies who organise it.

soapbox · 28/02/2008 23:26

Well, in fairness to the OP, as they say - a loaf of bread at 20p is cheap... if you've got the 20p!

Original poster
bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 23:26

NicyTry, i was just after some general feedback regarding the going rate for this sort of thing. After reading everyones threads, i have come to learn that £9 per 2.5 hour is pretty reasonable going, which i accept by all means and i stand corrected when i asked is it a rip off, so in a nut shell, no its not.

OP posts:
Original poster
bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 23:29

Thank you soapbox! We are a one income family and money is very tight, so we will struggle immensely to pay the fee's, but i am sure we will find a way by all means.

OP posts:
KatyMac · 28/02/2008 23:29

Fortunately (or unfortunately perhaps) Harriet lots of childcare workers are the same.

I could only fictionally close bigbumhole's pre-school because I don't know the staff or the children.

In the real world I have yet to break-even this year & yet I still do it

cat64 · 28/02/2008 23:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

Original poster
bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 23:41

Thank you so much Cat64, i really appreciate your reply. The whole nursery thing is all brand new to me and i have no idea what the norm is in these situations. When I started nursery the going rate was 85p!! Oh how things have changed eh?

Thanks again for your reply, means a lot

OP posts:
Eddas · 28/02/2008 23:43

Our preschool is £8.50 I think for 9.30-12. Parents provide the snack and a drink and they also get either water or milk when it's snack time. Other drink is for whenever the child wants it.

TBH when dd joined I thought it was a lot. But i'm now on the preschool committee and it's not a lot at all.

The amount of work that the staff and committee do which the parents are unaware of is unreal. They do so much. Our preschool IMO is brilliant. DD loves going there and I for one couldn't be without it.

Our preschool (and quite a few others) are a charity and as such run a very tight budget. So I think the fees you mention are veyr reasonable. I would question the snack/drink fees though

Original poster
bigbumhole · 28/02/2008 23:48

BreeVanDerCampLGJ - telling me i am being tight does NOT help. If i had asked the question "am i being tight?" then yes maybe it would help, but seeing as i didn't ask that, NO it doesn't.

OP posts:
cat64 · 28/02/2008 23:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

furrycat · 28/02/2008 23:52

Bignumhole asked a very reasonable question and seems to be under attack. Can't people be a bit nore pleasant about the way they answer?

nancy75 · 29/02/2008 00:04

in my part of london pre schools 9.30-12.30 are between £10 and £15 per child per session, no food , but they do get a cup of water.

nappyaddict · 29/02/2008 02:10

where i live (west midlands) the preschool at the local primary school is £4 a session which is for ages 2-5.

Mummywannabe · 29/02/2008 09:14

Just a thought but the charge for the snack is most likely a way to top up the grant without charging top up fees which is soon to be disallowed - so for example if the grant pays £7.00 per 2 1/2 hour session then they would charge £2 per day snack to cover the real cost. Hope it makes sense but that could explain why the snack charge appears high. The alternative would be to lose that £2 real cost per session.

tjacksonpfc · 29/02/2008 09:42

my dd is 3 and in pre-school which is attatched to the school but independent if you knwo what i mean we pay £15 per term they are there for 2 1/2 a day 5 days a week they get free milk and fruit every day which is goverment funded the money we pay goes towards they snack on a friday whoch is special snack day some weeks they make sandiches and have a picnic things like that they bake every friday and do lots of different things. we pay a £5 book deposit in september as they bring a book home every week and as long as none get damaged then we get that back when they finish nursery so it might just be me but £9 a day seems expensive to me and £8 a week of snack is ridiculus if they are a registered nursery they will get milk and fruit provided by the goverment. btw i liv in wiltshire

nappyaddict · 29/02/2008 09:44

£15 a term???

moondog · 29/02/2008 09:45

Blimey.
Get yerself over to Tjack's neck of the woods Bigbumhole.