We must charge you for these services because otherwise we wouldn’t be able to pay the cook or buy the food they prepare. We do not currently accept packed lunches or snacks from home for each child because:
• Nurseries like ours are inspected by Ofsted against providing nutritional balanced meals and snacks for all the children at our settings
• Some children are in nursery for long days, from breakfast to teatime so time for parents to prepare nutritious meals before children are ready for bed could be limited
• If parents wanted to provide packed lunches, we would not have storage space to keep food at the temperature required
• We would have less control over the food brought into nursery and the allergens they contain. We have several children with food allergies at the setting, and we carefully monitor and cater for their dietary requirements.
Please see our pack lunch policy.
In addition to the early education and childcare places that the Government pays for, our nursery offers Forest School, Zoo Lab, Life cycles of chicks, butterflies which we would also have to start charging you for. This is optional for your child but a great opportunity to boost their learning opportunities and personal, physical and social development.
The Government is requiring us to be open and transparent about these charges and ask you to agree to paying these. We want what’s best for your child while they are at nursery, but meals, consumables and activities do come at a cost. We hope this helps you understand the reasons for and the benefits to you and your child, of the current charges we have in place. What it would mean to opt-out of these is stated below.
At Hill Top we have always funded our enhanced provision through a funded daily charge of £11.00. This has allowed us to offer children in funded places a rich, engaging curriculum filled with valuable learning opportunities and experiences. Hill Top have only every charged additional cost for funding of meals -£7.75 and extra hours at -£3.25. As stated above the government funding is not expected to cover these costs.
Additional resources such as art supplies, nappies and wipes have never come at an extra cost.
Parents/ Carers will have the option to opt out of the charges for meals but would be required to provide a lunch box for your child in line with our policies, regarding food allergens, safe storage (lunch box policy).
If you would like to opt out:
Parents/ carers would need to provide all meals (breakfast/ lunch and tea) in line with our polices.
All food waste would be bagged up to take home.
Charges for special events such as parties, graduation, zoo lab.
All dirty nappies will be bagged to take home.
Nursery has the right to stipulate any changes in funded attendance at any time.
Basic provision of the EYFS which meets the statutory requirements
Opt in everything remains the same.
Kind Regards
Kylie Bardsley
Nursery Manager
