Some employers offer childcare/nursery voucher schemes which allow you to benefit from a reduction in tax. Some employers agree to pay us directly on your behalf.
We are pleased to accept vouchers if it helps you – although doing so creates an unbelievable amount of extra work for us. Please understand our need to have some conditions, to ensure a smooth a process as possible.
- The amount of any vouchers or other payments received will be deducted from the following month’s bill as long as we receive it in our bank account before the 15th of the month prior to the direct debit.
- We can only reduce the direct debits for vouchers we have actually received, so if we haven’t received a voucher payment into our bank account by the time the direct debits are sent to the bureau (about 15 days before the end of the month), we are unable to reduce the direct debit collection. Voucher companies DO NOT send us the money the same day you authorise the payment – we strongly recommend you send us the money at least a week in advance to avoid disappointment.
- As long as we receive a voucher in the first half of the month (say early September), the amount will automatically be deducted from the following month’s direct debit (e.g. October).
- The “worst case” is if you miss the direct debit deadline, (say voucher arrives 20th September) in which case it will be deducted from the direct debit collection the month after (which in this example would be November).
- We are unable to chase up voucher companies ourselves on your behalf. Since they collect the money from you or your employer, only you can ask how much they have collected on your behalf, and what they have paid to us. We have tried and failed many times to chase voucher companies ourselves, it remains your responsibility!
- To set up a new voucher please (1) find out which voucher company you or your company will use, (2) ask the manager for our voucher-account number for that voucher scheme. (3) Ask the manager for your child’s individual’s reference to put on the payments (it’s the same as the individual Direct Debit code we use for your child.) This must be included so we can allocate the voucher payment to your child’s account! You should now have enough information to set up your voucher payments.