Rea Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 Birmingham Council recently sent a reminder to everyone via email regarding the free entitlement and what isnt allowed. 2.1.10 Providers must not charge for other services in relation to the early education entitlement such as a registration fee or uniform. I asked them to clarify, that as a private business we can make a charge for any uniform should the parents be happy to buy it. This is the response, Thank you for your email. Please refer to the EEE Terms and Conditions page 5 section 2.1.10 where it does state that “no charge can be made for other services in relation to the early education entitlement such as a registration fee or uniform” Have i missed something? Is that an answer to my query?
eyfs1966 Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 can you ask them where they have got that from....ie is it a condition set by central government, and does this also apply to schools who now take up the free 15 hrs entitlement in their nurseries????? 1
louby loo Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 I would simply say - It isn't uniform, it's just a jumper with our logo on- if parents want to buy one its totally up to them, it is not a condition of entry! (I would write this very clearly, somewhere on the admission form, and totally remove the word 'uniform' from any paperwork, I'd just call it *setting name* jumpers!) PS- I often tell parents to just buy a sweatshirt/polo top from Primark anyway. 1
louby loo Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 (edited) Actually, ours have said you can charge a 'reasonable' admin fee- however they do not give any indication as to what is a reasonable amount. They say it should only cover time, phone calls postage and any printing costs etc, and not include any profit for us. And we have to state clearly that it is 'admin' and not a registration fee! Edited May 14, 2015 by louby loo
thumperrabbit Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 Same with us definitely no uniform, admin fee, registration fee either if they are 3 and funded no mention about charging 2yr olds though. Good point about school nurseries, never thought about their uniform.
Inge Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 No not answering the question, but nor do Ofsted, all they do is quote back the 'rules' and are never ably to clarify anything.. It is likely to apply to a compulsory uniform.. We used to call it a preschool jumper, and not compulsory, so parents choice.. we were never able to charge for anything at all , no registration fee, or admin fee.. bit the way we did the jumpers etc was ok.. change the words and that if is not essential - and argue the point that it is not a uniform. 1
Foreveryoung Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 We have same clause in our funding agreement we do not take registration payments or have uniform as compulsory but we do have uniform which is available for parents to buy but it is not a condition to do so to be able access a place so we are allowed to do it that way, it is same for our lunch club and extra sessions- it's not q condition of access it's an option x 2
Rea Posted May 14, 2015 Author Posted May 14, 2015 (edited) can you ask them where they have got that from....ie is it a condition set by central government, and does this also apply to schools who now take up the free 15 hrs entitlement in their nurseries????? Birmingham make up their own conditions, 2 years ago a condition was that ALL committee and staff renewed their CRB every 3 yrs, that got dropped, now we've just been going through a consultation on one of the conditions being that everyone in receipt of the funding pay the living wage to staff. No doubt they 'll think up something else next year Edited May 14, 2015 by Rea
Rea Posted May 14, 2015 Author Posted May 14, 2015 Same with us definitely no uniform, admin fee, registration fee either if they are 3 and funded no mention about charging 2yr olds though. Good point about school nurseries, never thought about their uniform. School nurseries and reception, thats not a compulsory school year :rolleyes:
lashes2508 Posted May 14, 2015 Posted May 14, 2015 Uniform purchase is optional as are lunch clubs , but we do charge a registration fee which includes free t shirt but not for 2 yr funding .
lsp Posted May 15, 2015 Posted May 15, 2015 In our area any charges that are connected to the 'free' entitlement hours must be optional and not a condition. So if we provide meals that we charge for, we must allow parents the option of providing a packed lunch. We are not allowed to charge registration fees - although if they did over the 15 hours i suppose we could charge a registration fee for that but it would have to be very clear on the paperwork. We do sell uniform but it is optional. All a bit of a minefield!
Guest Posted May 15, 2015 Posted May 15, 2015 To be honest I sometimes wonder how we're all expected to survive!! Our original contract was a mere 2 sides of A4 paper - it is now a short novel!!! It's laughable really as we are unable to contest or refuse to sign or the funding is removed! As each LA devise their own "conditions" none of us really have a leg to stand on wherever our settings are!!
Recommended Posts