Bookings and Fees

Age of Admittance: 3 months to 5 years.

Opening Times: 7:30 am to 6:00 pm Monday to Friday.

Fees:

Nursery Sessions

Available Sessions:	Under 3	3-5 years
Morning 09:00-12:00	£16.80	£15.60
Afternoon 12:00-15:00	£16.80	£15.60
Hourly extensions to sessions	£5.60	£5.20
Full day with 5% discount	£57.63	£53.71
Full week with 10% discount	£264.60	£245.70
Hourly rate for additional hours	£5.60	£5.20

We close on Bank Holidays and for one week at Christmas.

The fees are inclusive of a healthy snack consisting of fresh fruit, cheese and crackers at the midway point of morning and afternoon sessions.

Fees are payable for every session booked, including sickness & holiday regardless of whether your child attends or not.

Billing of Fees:

The setting’s administrator will issue an invoice at the end of each month for the following month. Invoices are payable monthly or weekly in advance. The invoice contains a monthly payment breakdown and a date for payment to be made. Payment by bank transfer, tax free childcare, childcare vouchers, grant funding only.

An alternative payment plan can be arranged if required, ie Weekly, Fortnightly. If this arrangement is required parents are to contact the setting’s administrator.

These are payable in advance by direct payment into our bank (please ask for details).

The group reserves the right to suspend children’s places in the event of fees still being outstanding after 4 weeks and the relevant action will be taken (see fees policy).

Late Payment of Fees:

If fees are not paid by the latest date set out on the monthly invoice (or alternative pre-agreed payment plan) a reminder will be issued by the setting’s administrator. Payment is to be made within 4 working days of this reminder, if payment is made no further charges or action will be taken. Failure to complete payment in the specified timeframe will incur a £10 administration charge and you will be informed by letter of the requirement to pay all outstanding fees within 7 working days of the date of the letter.

If payment is not received by the deadline laid down in the letter all unfunded hours attended by the child will be withdrawn with immediate effect and the setting will seek to recover unpaid fees via the setting’s debt collection agency inclusive of costs.

A parent may request, in writing, for an extension to their fee deadline. This request is to be sent to Chard NNI’s Committee and is at the Committee’s discretion whether an extension may be granted. A request must include a proposed payment plan for it to receive consideration.

Removal of Child from Clare House:

Should you wish to remove your child from the Nursery, a notice period of 4 weeks term time, is required to cancel a child’s placement. Failure to give adequate notice means the placement cannot be re-allocated and therefore you will be charged or funding will be claimed for all sessions. Only in exceptional circumstance and at the Committee’s discretion will this period of notice be waived.

Late Collection of Child Charges:

Late collection of each child will be charged at £5 per 15 minutes, with a minimum charge of £5. These charges will be determined by staff records and the signing in and out procedure. An invoice will be issued and is payable on receipt.

If a parent has informed staff that they will be delayed, a 15 minute window will be allowed before charges come into effect. This should only occur in exceptional circumstances, and frequent occurrences will be treated as an abuse of this facility and charges will be incurred at a rate of £5 per 15 minutes.

Government funding:

childcare/Funding support

Sharing settings:

If your child is going to attend another setting as well as us and you are in receipt of government funding, we would ask that we are firstly made aware of this so that we can arrange for appropriate allocation of grants across both settings to make this fair.

to attendance at each setting and reserve the right to charge the value of the lost grants if this is not adhered to.

Payment of Fees:

The setting is in receipt of Nursery Education Funding. Funded hours are available to children the term after their child turns three. You can claim 570 hours per funded year. You can claim a minimum of 2.5 hours and a maximum of 10 hours per day up to a maximum of 15 hours per week. If you claim 15 hours per week this will be a term time only place (38 weeks of the year). If you wish your child to attend all year round grants will be allocated at 47.5 hours per month and additional hours are paid for at the current rate.

The setting can also accommodate 2 year funded children. There is a set criteria for claiming this, application forms and further details are available at the setting or from Somerset County Council.

To claim funding, the setting must have a copy of your child’s passport or birth certificate, without these funding cannot be claimed and you will be charged for any hours your child attends.

Fees when a child is absent are payable, as running costs still need to be met by setting and the placement is booked for that child. In the event of a long term absence, in excess of 6 weeks, the Committee may waive fees; this is however at the Committee’s discretion and dependent on circumstances.

Emergency Closure Days (due to unforeseen circumstances) are not subject to charge in accordance with Somerset County Council’s ‘Code of Practice’. In the event of an Emergency Closure the setting will waive the fees for that day or offer alternative sessions if possible.

Late Payment of Fees:

Failure to complete payment in the specified timeframe will incur a £10 administration charge and you will be informed by letter of the requirement to pay all outstanding fees within 7 working days of the date of the letter.

Changes to Booking patterns:

Due to the limited amount of spaces available for the under fives all attendance patterns need to be booked on a long term basis with the same pattern each week. We require at least 4 weeks notice of any changes of times/days or cancellation of the place. Changes to times/days must be made in consultation with Room Supervisors/setting Manager and is subject to availability. We cannot offer any concessions for absence (Sickness or Holidays). In the event of less than 4 weeks notice of cancellation the full amount of fees up to that date will become payable.