Terms & Conditions

The Shepherd’s Hut Outdoor Day Nursery Terms and Conditions

The document and the terms and conditions within it govern the basis on which The Shepherd’s Hut Outdoor Day Nursery we agree to provide childcare services to you. 

Only a parent/guardian with parental responsibility for a child can register that child for a childcare place with us. We will ask to see your child’s birth certificate, or other relevant documentation, to confirm that you have parental responsibility for the child as part of our registration process.

Terms and conditions

1.0  Our obligation to you

1.1  We will inform you as soon as possible whether your application for a place has been successful. You must confirm within one week of receiving notification that you still wish to take up a place. If you do not then the offer of a place may be withdrawn. Once you have confirmed the place, a deposit payment will be required. This is detailed in the ‘Application to join’ form.

1.2  We will provide the agreed childcare facilities for your child at the agreed times (subject to any days when we are closed). If we change the opening hours, we will give you as much notice of our decision as possible and, if necessary, will work with you to agree a change to your child’s hours of attendance.

1.3  We will adhere to the principles of the General Data Protection Regulations (2018) when collecting and processing information about you and your child. We explain how your data is processed, collected, kept up-to-date in our Privacy Notice which is given to you at the point of registration.

1.4  We will try to accommodate any requests you may make for additional sessions and/or extended hours of childcare.

1.5  We will notify you as soon as possible of any days we will be closed.

1.6  We will treat your child with the utmost respect and dignity. We will never use or threaten any type of punishment that could adversely affect a child’s wellbeing.

1.7  We will provide you with regular verbal updates as to your child’s progress and we will agree times to discuss with you the progress of your child or any other aspects of our childcare services as and when required.

1.8   We will comply with the requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and our Ofsted registration in regards to the childcare services we provide for your child.

1.9  We will provide you with details of our policies and procedures on request. We will be available to discuss or explain our policies and procedures, and any relevant changes, at a mutually agreed time.

1.10  We will maintain appropriate insurance to cover our childcare activities. 

1.11  If places are available we offer priority to siblings of current nursery attendees.

2.0  Your obligation to us

2.1  You will need to complete and return our Application to Join and Registration Form before your child can start with us.

2.2  You must notify us immediately of any changes to the information you have provided and keep us informed of any other necessary information that may affect the childcare that we provide for your child.

2.3  The Registration Form includes medicine consent and emergency treatment authorisations which you will need to complete prior to your child attending.

2.4  You will make yourself available to discuss the progress of your child at mutually agreed times.

2.5  You must immediately inform us if your child is suffering from any contagious disease, or if your child has been diagnosed by a medical practitioner with a notifiable disease. Please refer to our policy ‘6.2’.

2.6  If a person due to collect your child is not usually responsible for collecting them, we will need a ‘password’ pre-arranged on your completed registration form.

2.7  You must inform us immediately if you are not able to collect your child on time. You must make arrangements for another authorised person to collect as soon as possible. We reserve the right to apply a late payment charge.

2.8  You will inform us as far in advance as possible of any dates on which your child will not be attending.

2.9  You will provide us with at least one month’s notice of your intention to decrease the number of hours your child attends or to withdraw your child (and end this Agreement). If insufficient notice is given you will be responsible for the full fees for your child for one month from the date of notice. If you are ending this Agreement, notice must be given by completing our Notification of Leaving Date form which is available on request.

2.10  You must inform us if your child is the subject of a court order and provide us with a copy of such order on request.

3.0  Payment of fees

3.1  Our fees will be notified to you in advance of your child starting. We may review these fees at any time but we will inform you of the revised amount at least one month before it takes effect. If you do not wish to pay the revised fee, you may end this Agreement by giving us one month’s notice and completing our Notification of Leaving Date form which is available on request.

3.2  Fees will be invoiced monthly in advanced and must be paid by the date stated on the invoice. In the event of severe financial difficulty please speak to us in confidence.

3.3  Late payments incur a late payment fee of £20. 

3.4  If payment due is outstanding for more than 14 days then we may terminate this Agreement. Such notice shall be regarded as a formal demand for outstanding monies.

3.5  Additional sessions and penalty fees will be added to your next monthly invoice.

3.6  No refund will be given for periods where the place is unfulfilled due to illness or holidays on the part of either party. We are closed on bank holidays so no charges apply. We accept no liability for other costs which you incur if we are unable to provide childcare for any reason.

3.7  In the event of late collection of your child, we reserve the right to charge for each additional 15 minutes.

4.0  Suspension of a child

4.1  We do not support the exclusion of any child on the grounds of behaviour. However, if your child’s behaviour is deemed by us to endanger the safety and well-being of your child, other children or adults, it may be necessary to suspend the provision of childcare whilst we try to address these issues with you and external agencies as appropriate. 

4.2  During any period of suspension for behaviour-related issues we will work with the local authority and where appropriate other welfare agencies to identify appropriate provision or services for your child.

5.0  Termination of the Agreement

5.1  You may end this Agreement at any time, giving us at least one month’s notice by completing the ‘Notification of Leaving Date’ form.

5.2  We may immediately end this Agreement if:

·  You have failed to pay your fees

·  You have breached any of your obligations under this Agreement and you have not or cannot put right that breach within a reasonable period of time

·  You behave unacceptably, as we do not tolerate any physical or verbal abuse or threats towards staff

·  We take the decision to close. We will give you as much notice as possible in the event of such a decision

5.3  It may become apparent that the support we are able to offer your child is not sufficient to meet their needs. In these circumstances we will work with you, the local authority and other welfare agencies to identify appropriate support, at which point it may be necessary to end this Agreement.

5.4  You may end this Agreement if we have breached any of our obligations under this Agreement and we have not or cannot put right that breach within a reasonable period.

6.0  General

6.1  If we are unable to open or decide to close early due to events beyond our control (extreme weather conditions) the Fee will still be payable in full and we shall be under no obligation to provide alternative childcare. 

6.2  If you have any concerns regarding the services we provide, please discuss them with your child’s key worker. Customer satisfaction is paramount and any concerns/complaints will be dealt with in line with our Making a Complaint Policy.

6.3  From time to time we will take photographs and video recordings. These photographs are used for on-going recording of our curriculum and for children’s individual development records. They are stored on our computer whilst your child is with us. We may use photo’s for marketing purposes, please advise us if you would like to opt out.

6.4  We reserve the right to refuse to admit your child if they have a temperature, sickness and diarrhoea or a contagious infection or disease on arrival at our setting, or to ask you to collect your child if they become unwell whilst in our care, in line with our Managing Children who are Sick, Infectious or with Allergies Policy.

6.5  Whilst food and drink is provided on the premises, we are not a commercial kitchen and may not be able to cater for the individual needs of every child. As cross contamination cannot be ruled out, a risk assessment is conducted for children with any known allergies. Every effort is made to follow recommended food preparation guidance and to ensure that all staff involved in the preparation and serving of food are suitably trained. 

6.6  Any personal information you supply to us will be collected, stored and used in accordance with the principles of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) (2018) and our Confidentiality and Client Access to Records Policy. We will always seek your consent where we need to share information about your child with any other professional or agency. We are required by law to override your refusal to give consent only in specific circumstances where the child or someone in the family may be in danger if we do not share that information.

7.0  This Agreement

7.1  We reserve the right to vary the terms and conditions contained in this Agreement

7.2  This Agreement contains the full and complete understanding between the parties and supersedes all prior arrangements and understanding whether written or oral relating to the subject of this Agreement except to the extent that we vary terms from time to time.

7.3  Acceptance of a place will be deemed as acceptance by you of these terms and conditions.