Discrimination against child with special needs at nursery

[lizzylou1]

Hello

Is it normal for a nursery to charge you extra because your child requires more attention than other children in the setting ?

Giving that they are suppose to run the nursery with EYFS standards , they are suppose to provide her with the support she needs right ?

After complaint I had sent to the nursery as they had tampered with a SENCO report then forwarded it to me. They seem to be finding excuses for what ever concerns I raise which is really frustrating. They have gone on to state she is receiving more attention and that we should have been charged for this . Discrimination??

Look forward to hearing your views

Xx

It entirely depends on whether your DC requires 121 care or substantially additional care than other children the same age.

If they do then they are NBU to charge extra as they will have to employ an extra member of staff on the days your DC is in.

If they don’t require additional care then YANBU to expect the same fees as everyone else and I would fight against the extra charge.

unless your dd has an extra designated member of staff it doesn't sound right.

If she requires 121 support then I can understand the extra charge - think of it from other parents perspective if they're child has no SEN but Nursery doesn't provide extra staff they are receiving a reduced level of service too

Is this a school nursery or private one? If it’s private they could argue it’s not financially feasible for them if it’s a school nursery they should provide all additional care required.

They should be applying for extra funding from the local council - although I think this does depend on the age of the child. Ds attended nursery from age 2 - he has autism and learning disabilities and an ehcp (apply for one of these through your local council now, if you google ipsea it will tell you all about ehcps and the process etc), the nursery applied for extra funding through the council, which enabled him to have a one to one.

Hello lovely people
Thanks for your replies. Sorry I might not have explained properly.

So SENCO have confirmed they observed nothing concerning, she just is having trouble processing instructions due to being a late talker. So she has no special needs and does not require a 1-1. They said that her key worker is spending more time with her than the other children in the group. They have basically said that because she requires more attention and observations they could charge me for this. She has been attending since October 2018

They are private setting.
Thanks again xx

Ask them to detail their concerns and take them to your GP

Sounds like they're contracting themselves. Have you had a report of where's she's at in relation to EYFS? It's such wide age brackets if she's behind this should pick it up, it includes attention and behaviour too so should highlight and needs.

No that’s not right
Complain to whoever will listen

Phone up the Equality commission but I'm fairly sure that's illegal m.

How old is she and where about a in the EYFS have they assessed her at?
I’m a nursery manager and have never heard of a nursery charging parents more
I’m pretty sure it’s discrimination
Complain to ofsted and the local education authority

Thanks April !
She seems to be on target for everything she except speech and language and behaviour, she's not quite were she should be but SENCO observed nothing concerning

Hi ineancarree
Thank you for replying! She is 3 in October, she's obsessed in those areas above. It really does not sound good does it. I have spoken to ofsted and also informed SENCO who are going to get in touch with the setting .

soapona thank you , do you think I should inform quality commission or will ofsted have communication with them ?

Thanks all xx

My DD has a diagnoses delay and attends a private Nursery/ She has some 1-1 and extra help but they use Pupil Premium and a grant they applied for from the council to fund this. The only thing i am charged for is extra hours above the 15 hours, food, and a couple of other extras.

Sounds wrong to me. My DD is delayed in all areas by between 9 and 12 months but has the help she needs from Nursery.