Fee-Charging Policy

Childminder Name: Mrs Denise Barrett

EY Number: EY397753

DFE Number: 537895

This fees policy should be read alongside/forms part of the contract with the parents/carer and Mrs Denise Barrett.

Fees will be discussed with parents during initial contractual discussions and will be set out in the ‘Contract’ between Mrs Denise Barrett and person with parental responsibility.

Opening Times

Monday - Thursday 7.30am - 5.30pm. Hourly childminding rate £6.50

Friday 7.30am - 5.00pm. Hourly childminding rate £6.50

There is a minimum session of 8 hours.

Hours child minded outside contracted hours, occasional unsocial hours, occasional childminding, charges due to child illness, parent illness, occasional days off are all charged at £6.50 per hour for all contracted hours. No overnight care is available.

Invoicing and Payment

Payments are due 1st of the month - one month in advance. Payments can be made by bank transfer, through Tax Free Childcare, a childcare voucher provider or by cash.

Your invoice will clearly state which hours were taken as funded hours (the general extra contributions for services) and which were taken as additional hours.

Where possible I will be flexible to accommodate changing needs, so if hours need to be changed, reduced or additional hours required please contact me as soon as possible to discuss this. Four weeks’ notice must be given to reduce contractual hours. I am required to operate within statutory ratio’s (EYFS 2024) and am unable to go over those numbers.

In the case of non-funded hours, my fees include the following: all trips and entry fees including those to playgroups attended. Parents are only responsible for paying for contracted hours at the rate of £6.50 per hour. No other charges apply.

Late payment fee

A fee of £15 will be charged if you do not settle your invoice by the end of the month it is due. The late invoice will continue to incur a £15 a month late payment charge until it is settled. This is in the ‘Contract, between Mrs Denise Barrett and person with parental responsibility.

Unpaid fees

If fees are unpaid the following procedure will take place:

Parents will receive a letter within 2 weeks requesting payment of outstanding fees.

Should the fees remain unpaid:

A second letter will be sent to parents, requesting payment of outstanding fees within 7 days. The ‘Contract’ will clearly state that non-payment of fees which have been outstanding for 60 days or for reoccurring late payment of fees will mean that I will terminate the ‘Contract’.

Payment by cheque will not be considered as payment until cleared.

Late Collection

A late collection fee of £1.40 for every 15 minutes will be charged if you are late collecting your child.

Holiday and Sickness

I am closed all Bank Holiday Mondays, Good Friday, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and the days between Boxing Day up to and including New Year’s Day, plus other Public Holidays. No fee is payable as my service is not available.

Mrs Barrett can take up to 2 weeks holiday a year (not including the days listed above), where no fee is payable because my service is not available.

A parent may take up to 2 weeks holiday a year from my setting where is no charge is made (that is 2 weeks of contracted hours and not 14 days). If you take your child out of setting for a longer period, the standard £6.50 per hour for all contracted hours is payable.

Full contracted childminding fees of £6.50 per hour are payable if your child is ill and unable to attend, or if you (parent) are ill and unable to bring your child.

Covid-19 and fees

Full contracted childminding fees of £6.50 per hour are payable whilst your child is not attending Daisy Dolls, because they are self-isolating, or unable to attend because their family is self-isolating and cannot bring them to setting. If your child is receiving Early Education Funding for 3 or 4-year-olds, £1.00 per hour contribution for all funded hours is payable whilst your child is self-isolating, or unable to attend because their family is self-isolating and cannot bring them to setting.

If I or a family member test positive, my setting will close following Covid-19 Guidance. Whilst my setting is closed there will be no fees payable.

Bad Weather Provision

Childminding fees are still payable when a parent decides not to send their child because of bad weather conditions, but I am still open and my provision is available.

Reservation Deposits

When I am requested to hold a place for a child, a reservation deposit is required. Details will be discussed during initial contractual discussions and details will be set out in the ‘Contract’ between Mrs Denise Barrett and person with parental responsibility. The legal difference between Reservation deposits and Payment deposits will be fully discussed bringing attention to section 9 of the guidance on completing the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years contract.

Termination of the contract

I reserve the right to terminate the contract immediately in the event of a child’s behaviour that endangers the safety of other children and adults around them, the unsuitable behaviour of parents or non-payment of fees following the non-payment procedure. In any other circumstances 4 weeks written notice can be given by either party.

Help with childcare costs

Please visit https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/ for help understanding options available to help with childcare costs.

If you're a working parent with children under 12 (or under 17 for disabled children), you can open an online account to pay for registered childcare.

Tax-Free Childcare is for working families, including the self-employed in the UK, who earn under £100K and at least £167 per week (equal to 16 hours at the National Minimum or Living Wage) each over three months, and who aren’t receiving Tax Credits, Universal Credit or Childcare Vouchers. For every £8 you pay in, the government will add an extra £2. You can receive up to £2,000 per child per year - that's up to £500 every three months. If you have a disabled child, you can receive up to £4,000 per child - that's up to £1,000 every three months.

I am also registered with a number of childcare voucher companies including Care4, Edenred, Computershare, Kiddivouchers and Sodexo. Please ask about others. The Government closed the Childcare Voucher scheme to new entrants on 4th October 2018.

Early Education Funding for children between 9 months and 23 months

Eligible children between 9 months and 23 months are entitled to up to 15-hours of early educational funding, over 38 weeks of the year. The funding can be ‘stretched’ over 50 weeks per year, by using fewer hours per week.

I do not ask for a retainer to secure this early education funding.
There are no voluntary contributions towards the delivery of the early education funding for children in this age range.
All hours attended over and above the 15 hours a week will be charged at £6.50 per hour.

2-Year-Old Early Education Funding

Eligible 2-year-olds are entitled to: up to 15- hours of early education funding, over 38 weeks of the year. The funding can be ‘stretched’ over 50 weeks per year, by using fewer hours per week.

I do not ask for a retainer to secure this early education funding.
There are no voluntary contributions towards the delivery of the early education funding for 2-year-olds.
All hours attended over and above the 15 hours a week will be charged at £6.50 per hour.

3-4-Year-Old Early Education Funding

There are 2 types of funded childcare available for 3-4-year-olds:

15 hours funded childcare. Children are entitled to 15 hours per week of funded childcare, over 38 weeks of the year, from the term after their 3rd birthday. The funding can be ‘stretched’ over 50 weeks per year, by using fewer hours per week. This funded childcare is available for all children and is not means tested.
30 hours funded childcare. I offer 30 hours funded childcare for eligible working families, over 38 weeks of the year, from the term after their 3rd birthday. The funding can be ‘stretched’ over 50 weeks per year, by using fewer hours per week. 30 hours funded childcare has eligibility requirements and parents/carers must ensure that funded hours are applied for via the Childcare Choices website at https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/. Please note you will need to check your eligibility every 3 months (usually before the beginning of the next term), and provide your unique code each time for validation.

Early Education Funding for 3-4-Year-Olds

Places will be fully funded and general extras charge will not apply to the following:

If your child accesses Early Years Pupil Premium (EYPP)
If you access 15 hours funding but your child attends 30.25 hours a week or more per week

If you do not fall under one of the above exclusions, there is a voluntary charge of £1.00 per hour on all 15 and 30 funded hours. The general extra charge contributes towards outings, trips, entrance fees and car parking, entry to play groups, special occasional parties, educational subscriptions including IXL and Boogie Mites, consumables and services such as Tapestry etc.

All hours attended over the 15/30 hours of early education funding will be charged at £6.50 per hour.

The £1.00 per hour will be reviewed at the end of March 2025 for the academic year 2025/2026.

Please feel free to talk to me about the general extra charge if you are experiencing financial difficulties.

Although I can deliver all Early Education Funded sessions ‘flexibly’ the minimum length of a ‘session’ has been set by the Government as 2.5 hours and the maximum length set by the BCP Council as 10 hours in any one day and no more than two providers in any day.

Early Education Funding ceases on 1 September when a child enters the reception class of a school or academy.

Please note that sessions missed due to your holiday or sickness cannot be carried forward. If I am unable to deliver session/s through my sickness, I will endeavour to offer you other sessions, otherwise they will not be charged for.