3 months ago
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A couple have been left £850 out of pocket after securing a nursery place for their then unborn son in 2021, but having to cancel when plans changed.
On average, parents spend a £71 to get their child on a waiting list for a nursery as they battle it out for spots at the most sought-after spots, according to new research.
The charges also often take the form of non-refundable registration fees. Other fees, like acceptance deposit charges, may also apply. In many cases, fees can be far higher.
Self-employed Kate Chisnall, 34, lives in Somerset with her husband, 35, and their son, who is two-years-old.
Kate Chisnall, who runs the Happy Birth Coach company, forked out upfront nursery fees
In total, the pair spent £850 to secure a spot for their son at a private nursery in Somerset. The acceptance fee came in at a hefty £750 and was only refundable if certain criteria are met.
Kate, who runs the Happy Birth Coach company, started searching for nurseries for her unborn son with her husband in September 2021.
The couple found a suitable private nursey in Somerset and stumped up a non-refundable registration fee of £100 in October 2021.
On top of that, in December 2021, and once their application was accepted, the couple paid an acceptance fee of £750.
Kate has no issue paying the £100 non-refundable registration fee, but thinks the £750 acceptance fee was high, particularly as plans for her son's education changed.
Kate told This is Money: 'As the nursery is part of a private school, the £750 is refundable if our son remains there up until year three of school.
'However, this is not our plan and we've chosen a state school for him to go to when the time comes. This means the £750 fee we paid will not be refunded.
'I feel the fee is unfair as it is not clear what this is paying for.
'However, we did know about the acceptance fee before joining the nursery so it wasn’t a surprise, and the nursery suited us best for lots of reasons so we have come to accept it.
She added: 'I feel the registration fee is fair, but the acceptance fee is on the high side and I’m not aware of other nurseries who charge both fees.'
She added: 'A single fee across all locations would make it more accessible for all to access childcare across the geographical area.'
This is Money has seen the terms and conditions where the fees are clearly outlines - but many parents feel under pressure to pay up in order to not miss out on a place.
It is now believed 70 per cent of nurseries in Britain are asking parents to pay a non-refundable upfront fee before their child has started, the data from Direct Line revealed this week.
With a third of nurseries imposing a non-refundable waiting list fee, the average fees imposed range from £5 to £199, according to the findings.
Childcare and parenting organisations have criticised the practice for placing further financial pressure on parents already dealing with spiralling living costs.
Parents of two or more children could be spending a three-figure sum just to place their children on a waiting list for a nursery spot that may not exist.
In London, average non-refundable upfront fees are £103, with 89 per cent of nurseries in the capital charging such fees.
> Have you seen outrageous nursery registration fees? Get in touch: [email protected]
