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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to not pay 1st term fees for a school my DC is not going to?

111 replies

staranise · 18/07/2008 15:55

Bit of a long story but...

DC didn't get into any of her state school choices in April. After a few weeks of panicking and getting nowhere with the LEA, we reluctantly registered her private, paying a deposit of £1000+. A couple of weeks later, the council acknowledged they'd calculated our route wrong etc and we got a place in our first choice state school. I emailed the private school saying that DC would not be going there, though we had paid the deposit, they migth as well keep the place open for her (they are not full, indeed are undersubscribed so we were not taking up anyone else's place), though we didn't need home visit/induction/uniform details etc.

Now have jsut received an invoice for first term fees. According to them, we had to give a term's notice in writing - though we only registered her half-way through the summer term anyway, and thn told them she wasn't going two weeks later.

Are we at all liable for these fees? We've already lost the deposit, which is fair enough, but it never occurred to me they might pursue us for fees as well. Are they likely to seriously expect us to pay them?!

OP posts:
Original poster
staranise · 18/07/2008 16:28

But I told them she wasn't coming! They wrote to us to say thank you for letting them know and they were sorry that DD wouldnt' be attending - shurely they know she wasn't coming?!

OP posts:
LookattheLottie · 18/07/2008 16:29

Could you not ring the headmaster and explain the situation? See if there is any room to wiggle out?

Tbh though, if the school still has a lot of places to fill, they'll be wanting all the money they can grab surely? So it may mean paying them.

Original poster
staranise · 18/07/2008 16:29

And the deposit of £1200 is to avoid too many parents doing this!

OP posts:
Hulababy · 18/07/2008 16:30

I am confused....did you ask them to keep a place open for her? If so, then IMO you did not decline the place, you asked them to kep her place available for her.

Original poster
staranise · 18/07/2008 16:30

Just tried to ring but of course, they are already on hols. The invoice is dated sept.

OP posts:
KatieDD · 18/07/2008 16:31

Get the terms and conditions out and go and get some legal advice go from there.
It's a misunderstanding and maybe you can come to a compromise.

Hulababy · 18/07/2008 16:31

Yes, that is also normal - bill sent out in last week of term, so that parents know it is due within first two week's of September.

TracyK · 18/07/2008 16:33

Why not send her for the first year anyway? and then onto the state school when she's 5? That's what I'm doing with ds - 1 year at a private pre school and then onto state primary when he's 5.5.

zippitippitoes · 18/07/2008 16:33

well somehow the fee paying school has to cope with parents who are trying to hedge their bets realistically they have to have a cut off point after which they keep the deposit and charge the fees

it looks like the cut off point was when the council announces its places for the coming year

because you said hold open the place they have and are chargiong

if you say both i am cancelling the place but keep it open then they are going to assume you want to keep it open surely

which you say you did want them to do hence the fees will be charged for the first term

SqueakyPop · 18/07/2008 16:33

It's the bursar you need to speak to.

roquefort · 18/07/2008 16:33

The school is likely to take you to court and win - you asked them to keep the place open. All that you can do now is plead/negotiate. They will take a hard line because otherwise they will have lots of people registering and not taking up places and it would make their planning impossible.

LIZS · 18/07/2008 16:36

Normally it is a full term's notice, by the beginning of the previous term ie Easter for September. You paid the deposit and asked them to hold the place open for her even after you had the other state school place , so didn't really cancel the contract. The fact they are not full or have a waiting list suggests they are less likely to be flexible as they won't otherwise fill the place which has now been budgetted for. 3.5k does seem a lot for Reception though, presumably you would have got nursery vouchers to offset part of that cost so even more painful.

elmoandella · 18/07/2008 16:36

yes they would say thank you in reply to you telling them you did not want the place.

regardless if you said keep the place open.

if you signed a contract and gave a deposit you have to stick to it.if the contract states that you must pay the 1st term fees in a case like yours when you do not take the place. then you will have to do so.

no point even paying for a solicitor. check terms on contract. best you can hope for is to plead case to headmaster.

nappyaddict · 18/07/2008 16:36

did you ask them to keep the place open at the same time as telling them she wouldn't be going?

LookattheLottie · 18/07/2008 16:38

Well hang on, you paid a £1200 deposit which is there to avoid these sort of situations. Your dd isn't going anymore and you wrote to tell them that. They acknoledged this by writing to you and said they were sorry to hear she wasn't coming anymore. You've now lost your deposit.

So why are you being charged? How can you give them a terms notice when the school year starts in like, 6 weeks?

If you wrote to them to say your dd would not be attending, then you would loose your deposit and that would be it surely?

Am confused though, did you ask them to keep the place open? Because if so then yes, you will be liable because they'll asume there's a chance she will be attending.

Original poster
staranise · 18/07/2008 16:38

council give their places on an ongoing basis becasue of waiting lsts etc - it is not unusual for them to be granted at the last moment int eh first week of september. Checking the correspondence, I said that DD would not be going but asked to keep it open til August. I genuinely believed that the deposit allowed us to do this and the fees were a separate matter, due September. I gave notice as soon as we knew that a state place was, say, 95% likely (the council kept hmmmed and arred for a couple of weeks).

Am happy to throw ourselves on their mercy but they are on hols. Have already emailed them. I know DH would rather go to court than pay more but I hate confrontation and unpleasantness so would avoid it if poss. This is really panicking me now!

OP posts:
Hulababy · 18/07/2008 16:39

From OP: they migth as well keep the place open for her

I take this as the Op asking school to leave her place open for the child.

Original poster
staranise · 18/07/2008 16:40

we paid the deposit first (when we registered) when we had no state school place and then asked them to hold the place 2 weeks later, when the council had given us a 95% likelihood of getting a place.

OP posts:
zippitippitoes · 18/07/2008 16:40

if you asked them to keep the place open till august then the terms notice would be the spetember term

i dont think you have a case tbh

you could appeal but if as you say they have empty places then they are less likely to be generous

anniemac · 18/07/2008 16:40

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

Hulababy · 18/07/2008 16:42

It is not important to the private school when councils give out waiting list answers. They wll not be interested in that arguement. They work independently tot he state system remember.

Sorry, but if you asked them to hold her place open then you have taken up a aplce and are liable for it.

KatieDD · 18/07/2008 16:42

As I said earlier we went to court and lost, I would say you have a good chance of getting a judge who went to private school himself and will be on their side, try and compromise, really.

Original poster
staranise · 18/07/2008 16:44

i agree Hula, I was answering someone else. I jsut genuinely thought taht the deposit was for keeping the place. Nobody mentioend fees to us at all and my friend has done exactly the same as us, for the same reasons. Am freaking out we might jsut have donated £5000 to our local private school!

OP posts:
zippitippitoes · 18/07/2008 16:47

probably the form you completed with the deposit will have mentioned fees

for sure something you should have read will have private schools are very hot on this

SqueakyPop · 18/07/2008 16:47

A registration fee is £50 - 75. £1200 is the acceptance of a place and the intention to take it up.

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