The LGO has told Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council to write to all nurseries in its area to remind them that they must not charge a mandatory top-up to families as a condition of accessing the ‘free hours’.
The council has also been ordered to pay a father back for wrongly charged “general extras”, plus a further £200 to cover his “time and trouble in bringing the complaint”.
If the nursery refuses to change its pricing policy, the LGO said the council should “consider its powers to terminate the agreement and withdraw funding in whole or in part”.
The decision follows a row sparked by the Department for Education’s social media campaign in February 2025 promoting policy changes that would deliver “cheaper childcare”.
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