Can’t afford the additional charges at nursery for my 3 year old

[Lilacbluewaters]

Hi,
my son recently started nursery attached to a school, he turns 4 in March. He receives the 15 funded hours. However the nursery have sent an invoice with additional charges for things like nappies. Wipes, extra activities, snacks and their app. I wasn’t aware of this and I can’t afford the extra £80 per month for this.
will I have to withdraw his place?

Our LA state primary school charges zero for pre school. We had to provide a snack and a packed lunch but all material was included. Barring SEN, you can only send your child if they are toilet trained, so nappies and wipes were also not needed (they only take from term after turning 3).

It seems really off charging to access the school app! Do they charge the parents of kids in the rest of the school to use it?

How are your hours split? 5 mornings or 2.5 days?

Sadly they probably can add these charges on. But it’s really rubbish for you.

Most nurseries ask you to pay for sundries - the consumables like play doh, paint, soap and paper towels, plus a mid morning snack. Ours is £1 a day I think, which I'm happy to pay as it is otherwise free childcare. £80 for a month seems excessive. Are you sure the place was fully funded and it doesn't include a top up amount to cover the difference like a lot of private nurseries charge? Does he stay there for lunchtime and receive a meal that you have to pay for? Our previous nursery attached to a school charged £2.50 for lunches as those aren't funded like they are from reception.

Can you ask for a full breakdown of the bill?
Then state you will only pay the charge for snack as you should not be paying for consumables that your child does not use.

To clarify, is the pre school run by the primary school? Just some schools round us have an on site nursery, but it’s a private provider that pay to use a room/grounds/kitchen etc. That will definitely be a different kettle of fish to a pre school run by the LA as part of a wider school.

I don't know why you keep asserting things as fact when they aren't.
My son goes to a private nursery 7.30-5 , 3 days a week
He also attends a school nursery 7.30-5.30, 2 days a week. He wears a school uniform and it is an extra class on the school. There is a baby room, and a 2-4 room. The deputy head of the school is the manager of the school nursery.

Also 2 year olds do get free childcare. They get 15 hours free if they're 9 months or older in England, if parents work.

Op personally I think £80 per month is normal but they should have been more transparent.

I'm a primary teacher and have children in a private nursery. They are following exactly the same EYFS as children in a school nursery. The pre-school room doesn't have a nap time just like they wouldn't in a school nursery, but a child could have a lie down and little nap of they were particularly tired, again just like in F1 or F2 at school. There are children who just go for mornings or afternoons and only started age 3, in preparation for school, just like you get in a school nursery.

I also know many people who absolutely do use school nurseries for childcare; it mostly just depends on what the local provision is in your area.

@Threeandahalf I did say I have totally confused myself and I really don't know any more 🙂
The free hours from 9 months is only for working parents - so not all children will get it.

7:30-5:30 at a school nursery? Is that the ‘school day’, ie learning time in reception to year 6, or does that include some form of wrap around care?

Yes the wrap around is 7.30-8.45 and 3.30-5.30.

@Saltandvin I know private nurseries follow the same EYFS curriculum but surely the curriculum is based on attending for just 15 hours.
If a child is at a private nursery for a whole day (ie 8 - 5) they must spend time doing non EYFS activities?
So it can't be completely the same....can it ??

@Threeandahalf is the wrap around care run by the school/nursery? In most schools I know the wrap around care is from an outside provider - so not actually part of the school (but usually on site). So I would expect to have to pay for that.

Well I'm surprised and maybe feeling naive as my just turned 4 year old is in a school nursery, wears uniform, advertised as a nursery/eyfs curriculum on the school website.
However there are no teachers. Just a "room lead"
He's in 15 hours so he does two 9-3 days. So technically only really using 12 hours out of the 15
And I have to pay £2.25 ph

Here's what it says on parentpay
"The £2.25 consumables charge on a funded £ hour AM or PM session Or The £15 charge for a non-funded session Payments can still be paid through childcare vouchers or the government tax free childcare choices option, contact "

I have to say I am completely confused by the system now having read all this and am very glad I don't have a 3 year old any more 😁
I hope you get this sorted @Lilacbluewaters 🙂
I'm off now.....bye everyone.

Top ups are normal. My nursery charged £75 per day. The gov free hours covered about £55 of that, and we topped up the rest. 'Free hours' is a bit misleading in most cases with private nurseries, it's more like subsidised hours.

It's all run by the school but I do pay for that.
(I use my funded hours at the private nursery actually so all the school nursery use is paid for.)

Schools in England can’t refuse to take a child in nappies, so can’t see how a school nursery can refuse a child in nappies

Because traditionally day nurseries existed to provide up to full day care 51/52 weeks of the year from children from 0 upwards.

Preschools and school nurseries were usually half day provision in the year before starting school, term time only in order to prepare children for starting school. They wouldn’t necessarily have provided meals.

At some point the last Labour government introduced an entitlement for all children ages 3 to 12.5hrs per week free education for 39 weeks of the year. Some 2 year old were entitled to it in some places some 3 year olds were entitled to 30hrs education. It could be taken in any provision that provided free places that the parents chose.

It’s got fiddled a bit with over the years not least with the Tories adding an extra 15hrs childcare for children with working parents. I suspect this means the delineation between what different types of childcare does has got slightly blurred.

I just recieved a £100 extra bill as voluntary payment for my sons forest school too which I was not aware of. I emailed about it and she said it needs paying. I emailed again as asked her to confirm this is voluntary and I could decide what i paid. She reluctantly agreed. They wanted to charge and extra £2.80 an hour for snacks and firewood. I ended up sending what I could afford, I'm currently also on a UC top up and a surprise £100 felt extreme for the 2 afternoons he does there a week!

I suspect it is voluntary.

Let them know that you can't afford to pay this, don't need nappies or snacks.

We had a similar issue when I ran the pre-school committee, someone couldn't pay and just picked them up for the non-funded time and sent in their own snacks etc.

I wouldn't be paying for consumables my child isn't consuming, so no nappies, no wipes, and tell them you'll provide your own snack, amd you'd like a breakdown of the costs for thr activities. Also ask for contact details above them to query the charges. It's a public school, they can't demand it. If they continue to be awkward, just continue to ask for someone higher up to query it with

Lots of 3 years olds are still in nappies. Mine started pre school when he had just turned 3 a week before. He was still in nappies.

No extra charges. Took a bag with supplies but snacks were provided.

My DS attends a school nursery, as is a nursery for age 3+ that’s attached to a school. Does lunch, assemblies etc with the school. He does the 15 hours at the moment, 8:45-11:45 per day, and we pay nothing extra. Snack is given and the apps (tapestry and class dojo) are free.

We can either top-up to full time school hours for £80 a week or use the 30 free hours when I’m back at work. When he does go full time it’ll cost £2.25 per day for school lunches but that’s it. DS isn’t toilet trained (suspected ASD) and we just send nappies and wipes in.

£80 a month for a school nursery when you’re only using the 15 hours is ridiculous. All of the school nurseries in my area work the same as DS’s. It benefits them to have a nursery as it encourages applications for the reception places.

They are asking equivalent of £4 a day? Is that right.
I remember our state preschool years ago asked for £1 a day to cover snacks and expenses

The nursery which is attached to my school and very much included in our school, does not charge. They only charge 2.50 for a school lunch but that's optional as you can send a lunch in.

Our nursery runs differently to others, you can either do Mon 9-3, Tues 9-3 and Wed 9-12 or Wed 9-12, Thur 9-3 and Fri 9-3.

3 year old ought to be eligible for free fruit and free milk. How many snacks does he need in a 3hr session?