Conflict with Nursery over fees

cocoloco123

Good Morning all,

I am looking for some advice.

My daughter has been registered at a private Ofsted registered day nursery since she was 7 months old (she is now nearly 3). When I signed her up, I paid a month in advance as a deposit. During her time, her contract has been changed that many time I have lost count, and I no longer have a copy of her contract.

I am pulling her out of nursery from the end of December as she will be moving to a childminder. I gave notice to nursery on Monday 28th October 2024 for her to finish on Friday 20th December.

I was under the impression, I would pay my final payment this month (i pay on 15th of each month) and this would be my final payment. I received a recalculation from the nursery which claims I owe them £1700. I just want to be clear I have always paid my bill on time or early, in full. 

In the recalculation, the owner said my weekly cost is £232 (1.5 days a week are funded) and this has been spread over the Autumn term. They have also added 15x half days on the recalculation that she has never done, and the breakdown shows that the half days have been included in the weekly cost.

I have gone back to the owner, querying the additional 15x half days totaling £645, i have also reminded her and provided the invoice confirming I paid a month in advance.

Since I have had this issue, it has come to light that the owner is known for 'ripping people off' and not being transparent about fees. I have had a few issues over the time my daughter has been there, but the room staff are generally great and my daughter seems happy. The issues with the management and our relocation is the main reason I am pulling her out.

I am angry with myself for not questioning her more or pushing for the correct paperwork but I wanted to keep the peace as my daughter is in their care.

I am just wondering, who if anyone I can escalate my concerns to if they do not resolve them. I have also noticed that in 2023 they closed to Ofsted and re-registered themselves, conveniently at the time they were due an inspection. I have drafted a formal complaint, awaiting for a response to my queries, and I have not made any further payment until this is clarified.

Who can I ask for help, and if I pay what I know is correct, can they do anything to me? I have organised for the childminder to be on standby in case I need to pull my daughter out last minute.

Please help!
Thanks all

Newbie_John

What's your notice period?
Did you pay deposit and month in advance when she started? How much was each of them?
How much is it now?

If you don't have a contract then they should have one - a copy which you signed. You can always ask your bank / child tax account to show how much you've paid back then.

I would personally recalculate the final fee - and pay them just that. If they don't have your contract then it would be really hard for them to prove how much you owe.

We find nursery fees extremely overcomplicated especially when you combine "free" hours..