My daughter's nursery won't let her leave till she's finished cleaning

An anonymous parent, believed to be from the US, has revealed her fury after she was told off by nursery staff for picking up her daughter before she had finished cleaning up with the other children (stock image) 

Posting on the forum, she wrote: 'My 2-year-old daughter has been in a home daycare for a few months now. The teacher, Sasha, is very nice. I am normally all for my daughter cleaning her own messes.'

'However, I find when I arrive, Sasha expects my daughter to finish cleaning up whatever she was playing with. Which again would be fine, but it delays us getting out the door and heading home, sometimes we have plans, etc.

'I started texting Sasha when I was so many minutes away, asking her to get my daughter ready and that seemed to work. 

'My daughter would be in her jacket and reading a book, easy to put away vs a huge duplo project or similar.'

She said on one recent occasion, things had been 'crazy' and she had been in a 'rush'. 

She added: 'We had a lot to do this afternoon and I was running behind because I had car trouble. 

'When I arrived, my daughter and some friends were in the middle of cleaning up a big mess. 

'I told my daughter that we had to go and to get her coat. Sasha said she needed to finish cleaning up her part. 

'I said any other day, sure, but I am running late and we cannot miss this appointment. 

'Sasha tried arguing that the kids need to learn responsibility and I flat out said no. I grabbed my daughter, put her coat on and left.'

She took to Reddit to explain her two-year-old's teacher Sasha expected her daughter to 'finish cleaning up whatever she was playing with' before leaving nursery

She continued: 'As I said, hectic afternoon so I only just now had time to check my texts. I had one from Sasha saying poor planning on my part doesn't mean I can break rules. 

'I pointed out this is not in the contract and I can bring my child home whenever I need want. 

'She accused me of undermining her authority. I was given "a verbal warning" which I found ridiculous.'

However other users were mixed on whether her behaviour had been acceptable, with some saying she had acted inappropriately.

One wrote: 'If those are the rules that all of the children are expected to follow, and you were aware of that, you and your daughter should be following them like everyone else.

'If you're upset, there are a lot of daycares out there, you should find one that has different rules.'

Other users were mixed on whether her behaviour had been acceptable, with some saying she had acted inappropriately

Another commented: 'I've worked in highly regarded licensed facilities for a long time. This is standard practice. 

'If you have problems sticking to your own schedule that is not her problem. It's also likely she has a waitlist and can absolutely (and should) replace your spot since you seem to have this idea of "it's her job."

'I wouldn't deal with you, nor would my administration. You get 2 warnings for disrespectful behavior or policy violations then you're out.'

Another added: 'If you knew you had an appointment you should have let Sasha know ahead of time. 

'Cleaning up teaches the child responsibility and she got to leave her mess with the other kids who now have to clean it up. 

However others confessed they sided more with the mother, with some saying it was her choice when she picked up her daughter 

'If you have plans, let the teacher know beforehand or when you are coming to pick up so she has reasonable time to get your child ready she has multiple other kids to care for not JUST yours.'

One wrote: 'Don't be surprised when she replaces you with a parent who's willing to make their kids follow the rules.' 

However others confessed they sided more with the mother, with one commenting: 'Would it be possible on days like this to let the teacher know "daughter needs to leave by x-time because of an appointment" so that she knows in advance that you will be picking her up and leaving by that time? 

'Not just texting ahead, but making it known that you will be out the door by a certain time, regardless of mess.'

Another added: 'Um no. NTA. If you say you're leaving with your kid, you can leave. She can't keep her there until she decides your child can leave.'

A third commented: 'I worked childcare and if you have a set time for pick up then there's no reason clean up cant be started before then. 

'Then give the kid an activity that takes a few seconds to put away when you get there.

'Its common practice in most care centres for easy pick ups for both kids and parents as its harder to get the kid to put things away when the parents are there.'