Early years settings are being warned by councils about charging parents ‘top-up fees’ for the funded hours.
It comes after a number of local authorities and nurseries have been told to reimburse fees to parents by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman after it found the way settings were invoicing looked like they were charging a 'top-up'.
The National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) said that it has heard from members that ‘several local authorities have been looking more carefully at providers’ invoices, making sure they are clear and itemised’.
One of these local authorities is Sefton Council, which sent a letter to providers in April stating that it had been ‘brought to their attention that some providers may be charging parents top up fees through extra hours or consumable charges as a condition of accepting a funded place.’
