local preschool effectively not taking summer borns

[childcarehell]

More of a rant than a aibu.

My local preschool is very oversubscribed. Unlike neighbouring boroughs the Nurserys only take children in September, regardless of date of birthday, unlike other boroughs that take them the term after they are three.

The only pre-school within reasonable walking distance takes children off the waiting list by age, so come the September intake if child y had been on the list for 2 yrs and was born on 3th May they would lose out to child y who came on the list days before who was born on the 2nd May.

I have been told because my son is born in June he has 'no chance' or getting in because they generally fill up with children born before March when it comes for the new September intake.

It just seems very very unfair, knowing that they are oversubscribed, to effectively not take ANY summer borns, the ones who are probably even more likely to find settling in at school difficult being the youngest.

It's made me angry again after a friend has told me their ds has got a place at 2.5 (they take from 2). If you phone them or ask for a form for a summer born they tell you there's no chance, but then he got in being a September born.

ONly a month ago I expressed wrote in a formal letter that I wished my son to go on the list and I got this reply:

'Many thanks for your enquiry. We are now currently full, so unfortunately we would not be able to offer your son a
placement with us.

Sorry we cannot be more helpful.'

I had written 'I would like my son xxxxx born on xxxxx to be added to your waiting list as I am aware you are full.'

So they fob off parents of summer borns but have been taking in Autumn born children on their waiting list quite happily way in advance.

[BoysRule]

I had exactly the same problem. My DS1 was born August 26th. I tried to put his name on the waiting list for two local oversubscribed preschools and was told that the waiting list was shut for his school year. So basically the children that had been born the previous September onwards got on it first.

I don't see how this is fair.

[StarvingBookworm]

With you on this. My DD (June baby) didn't get into the nearest preschool. What worried me more was that it was attached to our catchment school and if she went there my DS - an end of August baby - would probably not get to go to preschool at all, as he wouldn't get in there and the other options would be too far from her school, if that all makes sense??

I was told that summer babies aren't even conceived when the september babies are born so putting names down at birth wouldn't help, but it still seems unfair.

It's all worked out for the best here, DD is at a lovely preschool and isn't going to our catchment school (which we didn't like anyway) so DS will go to the nice preschool at her new school.

[childcarehell]

Ours though not officially is attached to the school he will go to (it's a faith school, we are of the faith and live 3 doors down so pretty sure he'll go...)

I don't know if I'll be able to send him to another because of childcare difficulty, the others are a long walk from home and I have another child cared for locally. I'd have to drive them both to another area, then have the eldest already at the school collected separately.

[DeWe]

I had that for ds. he was down on the list 2 weeks after birth (dd2 was there at the time) but he didn't get a space until the Spetember he started school, whereas a September born child might well have only had to have a couple of months before they make the list.

However it's not just to do with taking the older ones. It's also to do with numbers. Because they have to have more adults per child with under 3s than 3s and over. (1 in 5 rather than 1 in 8???) So if they took the summer borns they would either have to employ more adults or take fewer children. (15 under 3s =3 adults, 15 over 3s = 2 adults)

I also think it's strange that the funding comes in the term after they're 3yo, rather than a length of time before the September they start school, because now most seem to start in Spetember. That meant my older 2 girls (Winter born) got 5 terms of funded preschool, as ds as a summer born would only have 3 terms.

[childcarehell]

Dewe, they wouldn't have to change the ratio as all the summer bors would be three before the September intake.

[Fillyjonk75]

That seems very unfair. I could understand some kind of order for starting children off the term after their 3rd birthday, but surely it should be in the order you were put in the waiting list under any other system. Otherwise it's the same as saying we only take up to M in the alphabet, so the Williamses have no chance.

I also agree every child should get the same number of terms funded before school.