All Parents must observe our basic terms and conditions. Little Stars Pre-School operates as a family unit committed in providing a happy and stimulating environment in which each child can develop very much at his or her own pace also. The Provision is delivered cost effectively as part of developing children in the local community. Parents are therefore expected to give their support and encouragement to the aims of the Pre-School and to also comply with the following:

Registration / Secure a Placement
Children cannot be allocated placements without completing a Child Registration & Booking Request Form sent to the Office Administration Address. An initial registration fee of £15 is payable which is not refundable. To secure a placement a returnable deposit payment of £100 is required before a place can be allocated. The placement is subject to availability with the earliest date offered as appropriate to the age of the child. If there is no immediate availability, the name of the child will be held on a wait list until a suitable place can be offered. Parents interested in securing a place are advised to send the registration forms with a cheque of £115 payable to Little Stars Pre-School sent to the Pinner Office Administration address. A confirmation letter will be sent for earliest start dates or the name held on a wait list if there are no placements available. The deposit will be held until the child leaves the pre-school and refunded with a written notice period of 12 weeks sent to the Office Administration address.

Cancellation of New Placement offered
Once a place is allocated and confirmed, to cancel the arrangement, the parent must write back to the Office Administration Address within 14 days in order to cancel. In this instance, only 50% of the deposit paid will be refunded following cancellation within 14 days. Failure to communicate at all within this period, the parent will forfeit the entire deposit if a child does not attend the Pre-School on the start date as stated in the confirmation letter.

Payment of Fees
Parents or Guardians are jointly responsible for the payment of fees on time. All fees are to be paid in advance upon issuance of fee statements and prior to commencement on a term-by-term basis but billed in two instalments. For example, if a term is a period of 14 weeks, then the 1st instalment will only be for 7 weeks followed by half term break and 2nd instalment also for a period of 7 weeks. The calculation of the fees is based on the session rate multiplied by days attended and the number of weeks during the term. The instalments in two billing periods during the term make this Pre-School an attractive affordable provision offering value for money choice in terms of the learning periods deployed & the sessions offered. Fees however will not be refunded or waived for term time absence through sickness or holidays or any other cause during term time or If the Pre-School is closed in extreme bad weather conditions which are beyond control and safety of children is at risk. The Fee structures get reviewed every Summer in July and the tariff increases for September term are made in line with other costs and where possible kept stable with minimum increase.

Use of Childcare Vouchers to offset Fees
There are some employers who provide an incentive to the employee by giving them childcare vouchers to use. Parents are advised that Little Stars Pre-School only administer such a scheme to reimburse via Fee invoices processed using ACCOR services only which the Employer would have to register with. Parents can find out further information by visiting the website to contact ACCOR directly. Site reference http://www.childcarevouchers.co.uk

Late Payment of Fees /Defaults
Little Stars Pre-School operate on a tight budget to meet all the staff costs, rent and other overheads and given that each term is split in two instalments already, parents are kindly requested not to slip up on any payments due which is stipulated in Fee Statements sent. Any payments made beyond due dates will a carry a fixed charge of £5.00 to cover administration costs automatically. Any cheques which bounce subsequently will attract bank charges and billed on to the Fee Statements also. In the event where Fees are consistently paid late beyond due dates or defaulted, Little Stars Pre-School reserve the right to withdraw the child from attending. Should this occur, any deposit payment made will also be forfeited.

Purchase of Uniform
All Children wear a top uniform which is a polo tee shirt costing £8 and sweat shirt costing £10 bought as a set. This will be billed automatically in the Fee statement sent. The uniform can then be collected from the Group Leader upon commencement at the Nursery premises.

Non-Attendance Term Time
All children who are registered must attend the Pre-School during term time. If a child is off sick or taking holidays during term time, the parent should ensure that the Pre-School manager at the premises is aware of this. Please be advised that any term time absence is still chargeable in any case. Failure to inform the Pre-School or continual non-attendance can result in a child being withdrawn subsequently. In this instance, any deposit paid will also be forfeited.

Help with Nursery Education Funding
Little Stars Pre-School operates a Nursery Education Funding Scheme for three and four year olds via Early Years at Harrow Council. These get processed mid-way through the term automatically once a child is identified to be eligible and depending on the date of birth. The funded benefit will be passed in advance automatically via the 2nd instalment fee statement mid way through the term to offset any of the fees due which eases the burden of payment to the parent. A small administration charge of £3/term will be levied for providing an additional offset service against the second fee instalment due and transaction processing costs incurred. The maximum entitlement is 2.5 hours per day. If the child is attending 5 days a week, the maximum entitlement is £539 per term which can usually be over a period of 12-15 weeks. Parents are however reminded, that they must pay for any sessions over and above the entitlement which are not covered by this funding.

Children collected Late
All children MUST be collected on time especially as different session timings are in operation. Any parent arriving more than 15 minutes late will be liable to pay a charge of £10.00 to the staff member who may have to stay back. Parents are reminded for those Children who finish at 3:00pm to arrive by 2:55pm promptly at the door as afternoon staff have their own school runs to do too.

Leaving Notice
Deposits paid will NOT be refundable if a child withdraws during term time without proper written notice issued to the Administration office address. A written notice period of one full term - 12 weeks is still required to withdraw a child from the Pre-school for any reason or if a child is due to start primary school. If a child is leaving in the July Summer term to start Reception Year in a Primary School in September, you will need to advise the office latest by April to secure a full refund of the deposit. Failure to notify or a short notice will mean that any deposit paid will also be forfeited.

Amendments of Sessions
If a parent wishes to amend any existing session for the child, this must be done a term in advance by notifying the Administration office in writing or by email to make such requests as sessions may not be available. All such requests are subject to availability and Little Stars Pre-School will endeavour to accommodate where possible but cannot guarantee any session amendments or increase in sessions if the Pre-school is full. Session amendment must not be requested to the manager or staff at the premises but parents are advised to check availability by calling the Pre-School Office number on 020 89337422 weekdays daytime between 9:30am to 4:00pm only or leave a message.