Terms & Conditions
These terms and conditions reflect the best industry practice by private childcare providers of full and part-time day care. They do not affect your statutory rights. These terms and conditions allow us to promote stability and assist with forward planning, they enable us to offer the highest standard of care, so we ask parents/guardians to read carefully through the following.
Admission
- To register your child/children at Rathfarnham Daycare we ask you to return a completed child record form and deposit as soon as possible. Your place is not guaranteed until we have a full deposit paid. Please see ‘admissions policy’
- All start dates are the 1st of the month or the nearest working day after, unless otherwise agreed by management. Any changes to start dates are subject to availability.
Fees/funding
- All fees are payable by means of DIRECT DEBIT. Your child’s 4-weekly fee is debited from your account on the date noted on the payment schedule. An invoice will be issued 4 days in advance of your child’s 4-weekly fee being debited from your account. A valid direct debit mandate must be completed at the same time as the child’s registration form.
- An administration charge of €10 will be incurred for each direct debit that is returned unpaid on its due date and this will be charged for and included on the monthly invoice in the next available billing period.
- Fees are payable 52 weeks of the year with no exceptions during periods of absence, sickness, holidays, during public and bank holidays. January fees are due the Friday before the last day the crèche is open in December.
- The crèche closes each year for the first two weeks of July and the Christmas holiday period between 23rd December and 31st December – the actual days will be notified to parents each year. Our fee structure incorporates these closures and therefore no change/discounts will be applicable to fees due to these closures. We also will be closed Good Friday each year.
- Fees are reviewed annually. Rathfarnham Daycare reserves the right to review fees at any time, to ensure sustainability, quality, staff costs and overheads are appropriately met. We will give as much notice for fee changes as practical.
There are no refunds or credits given for illness, holidays, missed days or closures of the service due to unforeseen circumstances.
Full fees without subsidy, grants or funding deductions is payable whilst applications are being processed and during any periods these no longer apply or are withdrawn. Funding
Deductions may be adjusted from time to time depending on child’s funding approval, absence period, start date, finish date and where a change has occurred. We are not liable for funding from third parties and parents remain responsible for all outstanding fees. Please see ‘funding policy’.
Should a discount be offered to a family it is offered at the sole discretion of management and may be amended or withdrawn without reason or notice at any time.
The service will close if deemed by management to be unsafe to open i.e., extreme staff shortages or severe weather conditions. Full fees will be payable. Please see ‘Exceptional closure policy’
- Termination/cancellation
A deposit of one month’s payment is required for all places and this is payable when you register your child. Deposits are refundable if the place is not taken. If you wish to cancel your child’s place, we will require up to 6 months’ notice. - This deposit will be deducted from your last month’s payment provided you give one calendar months’ written notice (i.e., first day of the month to the last day of the month) and once your child has attended Rathfarnham Daycare for more than 6 months.
- One calendar months’ (i.e., first day of the month to the last day of the month) written notice is required when a child/children are leaving. Rathfarnham Daycare has the right to full payment whether the child/children attends or not.
- Management reserves the right to cancel any place and require a full month payment.
- A non-refundable Administration Fee of €40 is required for each child attending Rathfarnham Daycare, payable at the time of your deposit and registration of your child. An additional €40 administration fee will be required for any, and all, over payments made to Rathfarnham Daycare where a refund is required.
- If any account falls more than two weeks in arrears, Rathfarnham Daycare retains the right to issue a two-week notice period to these account holders and your deposit will be used to cover fees for this period.
- If management of the crèche deem that the day-to-day relationship with the parents is not working, the management will terminate the agreement without notice. We reserve the right to suspend or terminate care without notice, if necessary for the overall safety and well-being of staff and/or other children in our care.
Illness/Accidents
- Management have the right to refuse any child deemed too ill to attend the service. Please see ‘illness policy’
- In the event of a serious illness occurring while a child is in the service, we will immediately contact the parents/guardians and ask for the child to be removed from the service. This is to protect both your child and other children within the service. If your child has the need for an antibiotic, they must remain out of the service until better.
- Accidents can unfortunately happen, parents will be informed on collection where an accident form will need to be signed, all reasonable measures are in place to reduce accidents from happening. ‘See our accident policy’.
General terms
- Parents collecting children late from the service will be subjected to a late fee of €10 per half hour or part thereof.
- All children attending Rathfarnham Daycare must be up-to-date with their vaccinations as per the HSE schedule and we reserve the right to refuse access to children who have not been vaccinated.
- Management must be informed if a child has any Special/Additional Needs to allow us to assess and put in place the required resources that are available to us.
- We accept no responsibility for children whilst in their parents care on the crèche premises.
- We accept no responsibility for loss or damage to any parents or children’s property or belongings, we make every reasonable effort to ensure any parent or child’s property is not damaged. We suggest clothing is clearly labelled and toys and miscellaneous items remain at home.
- Afterschool places are NOT guaranteed. All spaces are subject to availability and allocated on a first-come first-served basis in April of the year that your child is due to attend school. Full day care for all inclusive afterschool places is subject to availability in line with our ECCE calendar. Sibling places are also not guaranteed and must be booked well in advance of required start date, please note sibling places are not secure without deposit being fully paid.
- Drops to and collection from afterschool activities are NOT guaranteed. This service is subject to availability.
- Parents of children who attend the crèche hereby agree that during the term of this agreement and for the period of 6 months after termination that they will not seek to employ, entice away any staff of Rathfarnham Daycare. We do allow staff to babysit for parents, please see ‘babysitting policy’.
- The crèche policies and procedures must be adhered to at all times, a complete copy is available for inspection at each reception area and from the office.
- It is of the utmost importance that staff and parents work in conjunction with each other, in the interests of the children and that all parties are treated with dignity and respect at all times.
Please note bullying will not be tolerated and is considered a very serious issue.
- The management have the right to refuse admission.