These Terms and Conditions should be read in conjunction with Cybertots Policies and Procedures. We believe that they reflect industry norm and are designed to help promote stability, assist forward planning and enable proper resourcing of the nursery. These terms and conditions do not affect Parent / Guardian’s statutory rights.

1. Registration: Children will be considered for entry to the Nursery once a fully completed registration form and payment of the non-refundable £80 registration fee has been received.

2. Offer of a Place: If a place is offered, a deposit equal to £1000 or one month’s fees (whichever is lower) will be payable upon acceptance of the offer. Parents are not deemed to have accepted the offer of a place until the deposit has been paid in full. Failure to pay the deposit may result in the withdrawal of the offer. The deposit will be credited to your child’s last month fees, provided that two month’s notice is given in writing but will not otherwise be repaid. If there is any overpayment on the account, the money will be refunded 6 weeks from the last day of attendance by bank transfer. The deposit cannot be refunded if a secured place is cancelled.

a. Cybertots reserves the right to withdraw the offer of a place at any time upon provision of 2 months’ notice.

b. Cybertots nurseries have a minimum attendance requirement of 20 hours per week which must include a Monday or Friday.

3. Payment of Fees: Fees will be charged from the start day agreed between you and the Nursery, the date must be clearly stated on the registration form and cannot be changed without mutual agreement. All fees are charged monthly in advance and must arrive by the first day of the month to which they relate regardless of the method used to make payment.

a. Cybertots reserves the right to charge a late payment fine of £25 if fee payment is not received by the 1st of the month. We encourage parents to set up a standing order to avoid delays.

b. Where a sibling discount is offered, the discount applies to the lower of the fees and cannot be used in conjunction with other discounts.

c. In order to qualify for the full-time discount, the space booked must be full time all year round. Discounts will be removed if sessions are reduced for part of the year.

d. Fees are still payable during periods of absence from the Nursery, including sickness and holidays. The Nursery is closed during the Christmas and Easter periods and fees have already been reduced to reflect this fact and spread across the year. The Nursery is also closed for 3 staff training days per year to deliver training and all Bank Holidays. These days are considered chargeable and fees for these days have been included and spread across the year.

e. Transitions from one room to the next are flexible to reflect the child’s stage of development and the overall group dynamics. Changes to the amount of fees payable will be effective from the 1st of the month following the child’s birthday.

f. Fees are reviewed annually and are subject to increase to cover any increased costs. Parents/guardians will be given notification of any fee increase and the new fee structure will become effective a minimum of one month after such notification.

g. There will be no refund or waiver of fees in the event that the childcare facility is closed, or your child is released home early as a result of a Force Majeure event.

h. If fees are not paid by the 14th of the month, we reserve the right to terminate without notice the contract at the end of the month to which that payment is due.

i. Unpaid fees: Such items will be recoverable by action if necessary. Please note that if fees are not paid within 30 days, we reserve the right to pass the debt on to a Debt Collecting Agency which will incur additional charges. Once the debt has been passed to a Debt Collecting Agency, we can no longer accept direct payment as the debt has been sold on. This may affect your credit rating.

4. Early Years funding (15/30 hrs): We are registered to claim 15hrs and 30hrs Early Years funding on behalf of eligible children. If you require for your child to attend for just the funded hours, we reserve the right to allocate sessions as chosen by the Nursery manager. Each nursery offers a limited number of funded only term-time spaces and once full, the next space will only become available once vacated. All other spaces include our Consumable and Quality Supplement which is required to be paid in full regardless of absences.

a. Please note that children on funded hours only, can attend Nursery during school term time only, which is 38 weeks per year.

b. If your child attends more sessions than the funding entitlement during each week, the funded hours will be stretched and included on your monthly invoice with our Consumable and Quality Supplement added.

c. If your child attends funded hours only and their attendance is consistently low, we may need to offer the space to another child for the following term to ensure it is being fully utilised.

d. If your child is entitled to Early Years funded hours, you must declare any claims made at another setting. This information must be given to the setting at the point of registration. You must also confirm that you have given the required notice to your current provider, if you are moving from another childcare provider to our nursery in order to allow Cybertots to claim the funding going forwards. Failure to declare this information may result in you having to repay us any/all amounts not funded by the Local Authority.

e. If your child is in receipt of the funding and you choose to take an extended holiday of over 2 weeks, we are not permitted to claim the funding and full fees will be charged for this period.

5. Cancellation, Withdrawal and Fees in Lieu
a. ‘Notice’: means two month’s written notice to our Nursery, delivered to the Nursery handwritten or by email, and actually received and confirmed by the Manager.

b. Withdrawal: Two month’s notice must be given before the child is withdrawn or the deposit will be retained in lieu of notice. Once withdrawn, children will not be permitted to return within 6 months.

c. Removal: Parents may be required to remove the child permanently if it appears to the Manager that the continued presence of the child is incompatible with the interests of the Nursery or there is a breakdown in the relationship. There would be no refund of fees in these circumstances, but the deposit would be returned, and fees in lieu of notice would not be charged.

6. General Conditions
a. Children should be picked up promptly at the end of their session. If for any reason the parent/ carer is going to be late, please phone the Nursery ASAP so that we can arrange appropriate staff cover. Children who are picked up late will be subject to a charge of £1 per minute.  Late fees must be paid weekly.

b. Only persons on the registration form may pick up the child. Any changes will only be accepted in writing and the person concerned must be introduced to the child’s keyworker. Emergency carers will need to provide an ID and state the agreed password.

c. Under NO circumstances will a child be allowed to leave the premises unaccompanied or with a person who appears to be unfit to look after the child’s safety or who is under the influence of alcohol or drugs. In such an event another family member will be contacted and if not possible, the relevant department of Social Services

d. Extra sessions can be booked in an emergency if space is available, 48 hrs must be given if cancelling otherwise the booked time will be charged for. We can offer 5 Emergency swap days per year subject to availability where there is a health or childcare emergency. An agreed emergency day swap is to be used in the same calendar week as the absence. Bank holidays and nursery closures are exempt.

e. Reductions to your child’s contracted hours require at least two month’s written notice and must be at least 3 months in duration. Where the reduction has an impact on funding, Cybertots reserves the right to postpone the reduction to the 1st day of the following term. We are unable to permit a temporary reduction in booked sessions for the purpose of a holiday.

f. The Nursery staff and management will not tolerate unacceptable behaviour from parents or carers. Failure to comply may result in the offending person being excluded from site. Persistent anti-social/aggressive behaviour may result in your child’s place being terminated and your deposit being forfeited.

g. Learning Difficulties: Parents will be notified if it appears to the Nursery staff that a child may have learning difficulties or special educational needs. However, our staff members are not qualified to make any medical diagnosis and we shall endeavour to seek outside help if parents are happy for us to do so.

h. Insurances: The Nursery undertakes to maintain those insurances which are prescribed by law. All other insurances are the responsibility of parents.

i. Accidents and loss: The Nursery will not be liable for your child’s loss of property; parents are required to label their children’s belongings.

j. Concerns/complaints: Parents who have cause for concern in relation to any matters of safety, care or quality of education must inform the Manager as soon as possible. A copy of the Cybertots Complaints Handling Procedure is available upon request.

k. Data Protection: You agree to Cybertots holding and processing, both electronically and manually, personal data about you (inc. sensitive personal data) as defined by GDPR 2018 for operations, management, security or administration and for the purpose of complying with applicable laws, regulations and procedures: You confirm that you have received Cybertots Privacy Notice and understand the circumstances in which information may be shared without your consent, in particular when it is a matter of safeguarding a child or vulnerable adult.