Annoyed at having to pay bank-holidays as work on mondays and i am self-employed.

[puddingandpie]

Is it legal for a nursery to charge for bank holidays when they are not open and not providing a service. I understand i have to pay holidays and when my child is sick. It is very frustrating to have to be out £30.00 a day for every MOnday as i cannot work but still have to pay and i only work 2.5 days a week and really only one full day and school hours the other.
i have signed a contract but any lawyers out there this seems unfair!! any advice apart from change day. am self employed and can i claim nursery vouchers myself or would have to become a company?

am in the same position....so sympathise.

but have just accepted it so far.

my nursery is always closed on BH, we still have to pay though. sorry.

Don't know if its legal or not but its certainly pretty unethical. If they aren't even open thats well out of order. Say you did have to work bank holidays could you demand they open to care for your child seeing as you are paying for the day? I bet the answer is "NO". I am in the sameposition to an extent as I only workmondays, but have a nanny (but she doesn't want to work bank holidays and we don't pay her for them (just the usual 4 weeks hols etc).

nurseries still have to pay their staff for bank holidays/sickness. did you bring it up when you signed the contract?

this is true, but it would be fairer to build in that cost to the daily fee surely?

I think is was brought up but i was so stressed and excited at getting back to work. A lot of emotions going on leaving D/d for 3 full days etc... plus i was in dispute over having to pay deposit for both 4year old and 2 year old and £25.00 admin fee for both even though they already attended part-time for near enough a year before. Nursery has recently gone full-time but still takes sessional and kids 9.15-2.45. My arguement was i am not full-time so therefore recieve no discounts or benefits . It is easier now as my d/d is at school but there is holidays looming summer what do i do? It's a nightmare if you thought about it you would never go back to work.

yes as they have to pay their staff, this shocked me when I first started ds at nursery too.
What has really pissed me off this yr is dd's nursery is usually closed xmas to NY (pay for bank hols but no fees on normal days as forced staff holiday))
last yr they trialled being open on optional basis parents could opt in
this yr its bloody mandatory
grrrrrr

I got my dd1 into a playscheme last summer for the 3 weeks I needed (the rest I took off in holiday from my 3 daya week job). having been involved in the finances of our nursery (unpaid, I'm a trustee), it's a very tricky job balancing the books and the nursery needs every penny it can get. is your nursery run by a management committee ? if it is you could join and suggest any changes you think would make life easier for parents.

(I worked mondays therefore paying for bank hols for a couple of years..i have changed my days now, but for work reasons rather than the fees iykwim)

At my nursery, we have to pay bank hols and they try to repay us by giving us an extra day later that month / next month for nothing. Not ideal and impossible if you work full time but better than nothing. Could you see if your nursery would do this? Would give you a few hours off even if it wouldn't fit in with your job, IYSWIM

We have to pay even when we are on holiday and they charge us for lunch even when DS2 is on holiday. Admin nightmare was there execuse.

I get my own back by dropping off 8.30 and picking up 3.15 most days - so an extra 45 minutes care a day over what I pay for. Reckon we are breaking even with them

P&P,

I presume that as you are self employed you can choose which days to work? If so the easiest thing to do is to change your days so that Monday isn't one of the days you use IYSWIM.

I am self-employed and i work in different places monday i get my best hourly rate this is the only day that suits them. plus I share the school run with my friend who works thurs fri so i like getting work over by weds IYKWIM.