to think that DS's new nursery owner should be prepared to answer parents' questions about changes to the nursery

[choufleur]

DS's nursery has been sold to a new owner, who already runs five other nurseries. there was a parents' evening last night. Obviously parents had quite a few questions about whether changes will be made in the day to day running of the nursery. The new owner seemed pissed off to be asked any vaguely diffult questions - such as, why are your fees going up by 30%!!!!!? and will staff's terms and conditions change very much (people worried about the excellent staff leaving). she couldn't answer as she hadn't botherd to compare terms and conditions, nor had she thought to look at the previous fee structure. Apparently she hadn't had time! seems very slack and uncaring. i know have serious doubts about DS's future at teh nursery.

YANBU, She should have forseen that the parents would want to know about the changes! She will have made a difficult situation even more difficult by not nipping parents' worries in the bud at an early stage

well i don't I'm being unreasonable. and still 'now' have doubts, as well as knowing that i have them.

oopps crossed posted. thought i was being ignored

You are def NBU. Im sorry to hear you are having problems at your DS's nursery.
I work in a day nursery as a memeber of manangement and think it is so important to keep the parents in all loops of the nursery.
I think she should arrange a meeting for all parents to attend and give them any new information about how she will be managing the nursery and any changes she may be making.
Surely before she bought the nursery she did research into it, such as fees and the staff contracts etc.

It is as important to keep the parents happy and uncomfortable as it is the children and staff.

Have you had any kind of letter to explain any changes??
xx

YANBU at all and I would have concerns at the apparant disregard for parents.

Communication with parents is a key criteria for Ofsted inspections. If there is a change of registered owner, they will have to submit to an inspection in the near future (I think it is 9 months). Ofsted ask for parents's views on precisely this sort of thing.

What did everyone else think? It might be worth getting a few people together (do you have a parents' committee?) and putting these things in writing and gently reminding the new owner of the fact that it will help her with Ofsted.

She might just have had the wind taken out of her sails but she might be a money grabbing chain owner! There's only one way to find out - ask more questions and then make your mind up!

she did arrange a meeting for parents, which was last night. I think everyone went in fairly open minded but personally i was quite disgusted with her attitude. We don't have a parents' committee unfortunately.

I expected her to have done her reserach before buying a nursery, which i suspect is quite a large investment . she clearly just didn't want to answer questions.

I've got a meeting with the nursery manager, who was the manager under the previous owners on Monday, so hopefully can get things a bit straighter then. apparently i'm not the only one to have requested a meeting.

I'm just particularly cross as DS is so happy there and really don't want to move him. I'm worried that the owner's attitude will filter down to staff (who i haven't got a bad word to say about)

debs money grabbing seems to sum her up. DS only does 1/2 days, which are currently £20 per session. This is about average near me - i phoned a load of other nurseries this morning. The new fee structure will comes into effect in June is £26 per half day.

Unless I'm very much mistaken in my recollection of employment law in this area (always very possible) someone buying a solvent going concern takes on all the existing employee's contracts, so terms and conditions remain unchanged under TUPE regs - so if she's not apprised herself of them, she's an idiot. Any unilateral variation is a breach of contract. She can't change them, and it's a little peculiar she didn't say so to reassure you all.

She sounds vile, I'm really sorry. Hope it stays a lovely place for your son.

YANBU.

It amazes me when people at this level of management can't seem to deal with parents without being defensive.

We;ve been told that under TUPE that contracts have to stay the same for three months. What's really awful is that the staff haven't been told how their contracts are going to change.

Oh btw the nursery is Leicester, part of Bush Babies. In case anyone was thinking about sending their children there.