A nursery in Bristol has issued a refund of nearly £1,200 to a father after it was discovered that he had wrongly been charged for additional “top-up” fees for childcare hours that should have been provided free of charge. The child, Tiago Gomes’s daughter, was eligible for government-funded childcare at Lake House day nursery and preschool, yet the father was told he had to pay a compulsory fee for “consumables.”
Under current legislation in England, children aged three and four can receive up to 30 hours of free childcare per week, while children between nine months and two years are eligible for 15 hours. Nurseries are legally required to be transparent regarding additional charges and these must be voluntary, not mandatory.
The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman, which has investigated numerous complaints regarding such fees, won a case in the High Court earlier this year. The court ruled in favor of the ombudsman against the Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole council.
Gomes, who paid for extra hours, was ultimately refunded £1,173 after he disputed these charges with the ombudsman. The high court ruling has reinforced the ombudsman’s stance that providers cannot levy mandatory charges on free childcare hours.
Grandir UK, the company that operates the Lake House day nursery, has pledged to maintain transparency when providing the funded entitlement and any additional chargeable services. However, they did not comment on whether similar complaints have been made or if there have been other refunds.
The ombudsman found that the nursery had delayed providing information to the council’s audit after the complaint. The council’s children and young people committee has received two complaints against the provider and is taking appropriate action, including a financial audit, according to Councillor Christine Townsend.
The council has also committed to ensuring affordable, high-quality childcare for Bristol families and is examining whether the nursery has correctly represented consumables as an optional charge. Many providers have expressed concerns that the funding given for nursery hours is not sufficient to cover their costs, particularly with wage increases, and some have even said they may close due to these pressures.
The Department for Education is addressing these concerns by increasing early years funding to over £9 billion next year and has provided guidance to parents, which confirms the legal requirement that funded hours should not have additional charges attached. The aim is to support families and ensure that the government-funded childcare can be delivered without cost, a goal that has the backing of the ombudsman and the high court.
Source: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/jul/12/father-refund-nursery-in-england-fees-investigation
