Originally Posted by MarinaVanessa:
But it isn't punishing at all, at least I don't see it that way. My policies are very similar in the sense that tuition is based on enrollment and not on attendance. If any child misses daycare for any reason whether illness, personal etc. there is no credit or reimbursement for that day. I do not charge by the day, it is a weekly rate and many providers choose to do it this way as well. If this policy is in the contract and the parents are aware and have signed the contract then it is their obligation to follow through with the agreement that they chose to sign and you can't punish someone by enforcing policies that they agreed to follow KWIM? That being said, I am sure that if the parents want to to they can look for childcare arrangements that do give credit for days missed.
Back to the OP. The letter good although I would have personally "softened it up" a little bit. To me it does sound a little harsh and I would have made the following minor tweaks.
[Beginning of letter]
Jason,
You are more than welcome to keep Gavin home from Day Care. Before, you make that final decision I think you should keep the following things in consideration.
1. If Gavin was exposed to head lice it was last week before I was aware of the situation. There is no guarantee that this child was here at the same time and day as Gavin or that the two of them interacted in a manner that would result in Gavin getting infected. Preventative measures are already in place for this situation and for other communicable diseases to prevent this sort of thing from spreading and now that I am aware of the situation I have taken measures to ensure that no other children are carriers and we have seen no signs of the lice being at my house.
2. I have dealt with this issue before, both from a teacher and a parents aspect, and I am aware of what can be done to prevent further infection. The last time I was faced with this issue (before the day care was open) it did not spread past the initial carrier.
3. All of the children that come into and my house attend a public school and that is most likely where the infected child contracted the lice and the school also has a protocol in place to reduce and prevent the further spread of lice.
I understand your concern from a parent's perspective and I respect your decision to keep Gavin home. I must remind you that as per ourcontract agreement your rate is paid weekly and is based on enrollment not on attendance and so any days missed are not deducted from the weekly fee. Our contract agreement states:
"This is a guaranteed rate, with no credit for non-attendance regardless of reason. Payments are due on Fridays for the following week."
Thank you for your understanding in this matter. If you have any more questions or concerns or if you decide to have Gavin attend afterall please don't hesitate to contact me.
[end if letter]
I took out #5 entirely because I thought it was going somewhere that it didn't need to go yet (cross that bridge when it comes sort of thing). If they bring up the "paying for the day that my child missed" again then you can address and remind them of #5 if it seems like they really don't want to pay for this day.
I suppose that for me my stance is that we as providers know what our policies are but most parents don't know or remember them all. Sometimes the parents try to pull a fast on on us but they are testing the boundaries and a simple courteous but firm reminder of the policies is all it takes to show them that you will not bend your policies KWIM? For me anyway, the letter in the OP sounded a little harsh and forceful which can sometimes create a bigger conflict (from a parent feeling attacked) when being firm yet polite can prevent and defuse these situations. But again, that's just me and that's just the way that I do things 
.
Good luck and don't forget to keep us posted.
Thank you for your in put and I have already made most of the changes to the letter/E-mail.
Just because I am enjoying the conversation this has started the two major things I was not comfortable saying was
1. "the school also has a protocol in place to reduce and prevent the further spread of lice"
Because, I do not consider the way the school handels this to be preventing the spread I actualy think the school is helping to spread it.
2. "I understand your concern from a parent's perspective"
Because, I do not understand his concern children get headlice and other things, it is part of being a child.
Any way with all that being said if anyone has any other constructive in put about the letter itself please give it soon as I will soon be sending it out via E-mail will send it certified mail if I have not gotten a response by 9:00 Am on Friday.