The waiting list for school based care is long and hard to get in most areas and yes she has likely been on a waiting list for a long time. Once the chance comes up parents will normally take it because it is the only way to guarantee that she will have a spot there for next year when she is in school. They only get a few days to say yes or no and must start paying right away or the space goes to the next person on the list. So for them they are paying a lot right now and being Christmas that may have a lot to do with the demand for a refund right away - they need the money. Well we do too and base what we do on anticipated income. They gave you a week's notice so refund them a week of money since they paid for 4 weeks in January so are now paid up for 5 weeks (1D + 4J). A request for any more refund then that and you show them the contract and stand by it.