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Fees for Non-funded children


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Hi everyone

Just curious what everyone is charging for your non funded children, although I am aware it will be dependent on areas. We haven't put up our fees in over 3 years and currently charge £7.80 per 3 hour session - equating to £2.60 per hour - which does seem ridiculously low when the ratios are higher for the littler ones.

 

I have made some enquiries and the local childminders, some who are not qualified are charging £3.50 per hour. We are waiting for Ofsted, but last month had our quality review and got Outstanding, and I feel the staff well deserve a raise for all their hard work, and dedication as they put in so many unpaid hours of work doing setting up, staying late if need be, the paperwork etc. This September, I introduced a yearly £15 administration fee to help with the cost of the Learning Journeys .... ink, enless photographs, paper... toner for the photocopier etc etc, trying not to put up the fees but it just seems inevitable. I know some settings are now charging their funded rate for the 2 year olds, but this seems too big of an increase at one time. I would love to know what others are doing. Thanks

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We put our fees up this september, we were on a session fee of £8 for a 3 hour session and £10 for a 4 hour session but we now have a fee of £3 per hour instead which the parents have been fine about - well we've had no complaints anyway!

 

How were the parents when you brought in the dmin fee? I've been toying with the idea for a while now but I can imagine some parents just turning round and saying don't bother with the learning stories!!

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We charge a £10.00 registration fee when they start, this is to cover admin but it's no where near enough. Fee's are just below the funding £8.50 for a 2,5 hour session, although that hasn't changed in 2 years . Funding is currently £3.56 per hour so we'll probably match fee's to that.

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This September, I introduced a yearly £15 administration fee to help with the cost of the Learning Journeys .... ink, enless photographs, paper... toner for the photocopier etc etc, trying not to put up the fees but it just seems inevitable. I know some settings are now charging their funded rate for the 2 year olds, but this seems too big of an increase at one time. I would love to know what others are doing. Thanks

 

Hi Carol

 

Really interested in the above.........are you 'allowed' to do that.........in my area we not permitted to charge anything over and above NEF.........does that make sense?

 

Anyway - to answer your question - I charge £4.50 per hour for my non-funded children - I am a small rural pre-school

 

HTH :1b

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We were charging £2.60 per hour too, and decided to put it to £3 per hour from this September. Not one person has commented, although I did write to everyone around April/May time informing them of the increase, so they had plenty of warning. I do think the fees should be the same as the funded rate really, but as you say, that would have been way too big an increase all in one go.

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We charge £3.89/hr which was our funding rate 2 yrs ago - now been cut to £3.30!! - I went on a very interesting course last week about sustainability of settings - and they explained NEF really well - basically you cannot charge a family who only use their 15 hrs anything - no registration fee etc - they have to be able to access 15hr without it costing them a penny. If a child accesses more than 15 hrs you can charge what you like - and can charge a registration fee etc. They also said the way to stay in business is to specify when you are offering your funded hours - we are open 08.30 - 15.00 - they suggested we say our funded hours can be accessed between 0900 - 12.00 - and then we can charge extra for anything over and above that. The parents then have the option of only taking mornings and being funded or if they want all day they have to pay the extra (if that makes sense)- at the moment parents can access their 15 hrs however they wish. They also suggested we move our forest school which is our busiest session to an afternoon and charging extra. Not sure how it would go down with the current parents but it is certainly worth considering if it saves us from closing.

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Which goes to show that we should increase fees gradually each year to keep up, rather than face a huge hike in prices - our costs go up year on year, the minimum wage goes up year on year, we just have to keep fees up in line too. I've charged the same as our funded children per hour for the 2 yr olds, but from next Sept. I will increase this.

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We have charged a registration fee for years. I asked if it was ok to continue and the answer was 'yes', because we charge it to non funded children its a universal fee.

 

Yes, of course - so just for non-funded children - right got it now! :blink: :1b

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No, sorry I didnt explain it well at all.

We can continue to charge it for all children even the funded one's. Afterall, we dont know if they're eligible for funding when they apply for a place, it could be they go to another setting too.

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No, sorry I didnt explain it well at all.

We can continue to charge it for all children even the funded one's. Afterall, we dont know if they're eligible for funding when they apply for a place, it could be they go to another setting too.

 

Ok - thanks - think maybe I have lost the plot here :ph34r:

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Two years ago I hiked the fees from £6.50 per 3 hour session to £10.56 in line with funded children. Gave a terms notice that this was happening and basically said I can no longer subsidise non funded children, after all thats what most of us do. Really thought I would have a mass exodus but no, no- one said anything! Must have pleaded a good sob story. In the long run I have crumbled and now offer a first term 2 hour session ( but thats for our benefit too as two year olds can struggle at first to maintain play for 3 hours ) and most parents have only two sessions a week, so not quite raking it in!

 

Do like the admin registration fee, wish i'd done that this term, the eyfs remix has cost me a small fortune that i just dont have this term.

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our funded rate is £3.25, and we have put our fee's up to this , this term. We have managed to gradually increase the hourly rate over the past couple of years ( as we only charged £5 odd per 3 hr session )

luckily, the price rise in Sept didnt affect any of our returning children-as they were all funded -so all the new children coming in didnt know about the increase and seemed happy to pay the £3.25ph.

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We weren't allowed to charge an admin fee at all either. Well we could charge what we liked for non-funded children but not a single penny for funded children as we only offered the 15 hours a week. Interesting how different LAs interpret the regulations isn't it?!

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We always reflect the grant money in what we charge for any extra hours which is £4.03 ph at the moment. We do have a cheaper 2 hour session between 1-3pm at £6.50 for 2 years though. This helps fill the sessions which feed the preschool year by making it affordable.

 

I have just applied to take 2 year old funded children at £5 ph though.

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we used to have a registration fee but were told we were not allowed to charge it to children that were funded so this meant very few would pay and we therefore gave up on the idea as it wouldnt be worth chasing the few who would have to pay.

think now we have to print off lj etc we might have to think about a charge somewhere but not sure where.

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We have thought about an 'Ink fund' and a 'toy fund'. just a couple of pots on the kitchen hatch to collect donations of loose change.

Actually, for a professional organisation with one level 5 and 3 level 3's that a really sad thing to have to admit to trying in order to keep up quality.

 

And there's the council thinking it's all down to CRB :huh:

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We charge £5.00 per hour for non funded children and a registration fee of £10.00. We are not allowed to charge any registration fee, deposit etc for funded children who only take their free hours. I'm amazed that some LAs are saying this is OK. Oh for some consistency....

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Well, if they take an application form they leave the money when they bring it back. We dont usually know the age or if the they're eligible for funding until they start. They also get a T-shirt thrown in. But I did check so thats a big thank you to Birmingham City Council :1b :1b

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We are allowed to charge a 'realistic' administration fee - but not a 'registration fee' :huh:

 

This is to cover paperwork, phone calls, postage etc.... but a big 'no no' to registering name on list!!!

 

We do not take the fee unless we are 100% sure we can offer place though.

 

x

 

 

not sure what all those numbers are for - but they disappear when I hit edit..........

Edited by louby loo
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I'm sure this is a nationwide thing not a local one. Doesn't it say somewhere in the Code of practice about the funded places being free at source and no charge for anything? I dont have a book to hand at the moment so cant check.

We have charged a deposit (after parents have confirmed they want the place) of £30 for years- mainly to deter folks from accepting places at 2 or more groups and then messing us about. However (this was non refundable ) years ago before the EYFS came in the CoP stated that you couldn't charge anything- so our LA said it was ok to charge providing it was re funded- So we carried on charging and re funded in their last half term- providing they dont owe us any money.

The last couple of years we have sent a letter to parents reminding them of the deposit- most have forgotten it two years down the line- and saying if they wish for this money to be re funded they need to sign and return the form by a certain date- usually within the week. I was astounded by the amount of parents who dont bother. previous to this I just used to give everyone an envelope with £30 cash in and ask them to sign a receipt form.

 

I'm going to try and find this stipulation again though as I have noticed that quite a few groups in our area are charging not just an administration fee when children start but a couple are also charging a fee to just register the child, mainly the daycare nurseries.

I just cant imagine paying out £!00 just to put my childs name down on a list!!

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Well our NEG basic is £2.73 or something around that figure, so keeping our fees in line with that is pretty tough. We do charge a registration fee, but they get a sweatshirt, polo shirt and book bag when they start. If they never turn up then we've still got the money. If we can't give them a place then we refund the money.

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We are £4 an hour - no registration fees or deposits for any of our children and our LA funding contract states no charge including reservation fees can be made for funded children who just want the free entitlement as this could be seen as blocking the low income families choice of where to send their child if they can't afford the deposit/registration fee ? Possibly indirect discrimination and could be challenged ?

Edited by redjayne
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We charge £4.00 per hour for our non funded children, i to attended a course a few weeks back that states funded children weather it be 3/4 year olds or the Free for two scheme get an entirley free place, no admin/ registration or lunch fee (if you do) can be added for the 15 hours they are entitled to by the governement it has to be completly free.

 

Not had any effect on us as we did this anyway we do however charge a £10.00 registration fee to non funded children.

 

:D

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£13.50 per session (3 hours) is what we charge. If you make a charge to funded children it has to be asked a voluntary contribution, so not sure you can charge funded children for LJ, photo's etc without those 2 little word infront of the amount:)

 

we charge for forest school but of course it is voluntary!

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