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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Part time school for Reception in September

32 replies

domestichiefofstaff · 06/06/2016 23:09

school when DD3 starts reception in September? I'll have to take 6 days off work if I can't find childcare - tell me your reception starter horror stories so mine doesn't seem so bad - starting 2 days later than sisters and then 2 weeks of half days!!!

OP posts:
x2boys · 06/06/2016 23:18

I honestly dont know why schools di this ds2 attends a special needs school all tne children have complex learning disabilities and or autism yet they manage to start their reception kids full time from day one these kids need far more support then your average reception child and yet settle in full time from the startConfused

fatmomma99 · 06/06/2016 23:20

Twas the same for my (now) 14 year old. And a nightmare. I think it went on for longer than 2 weeks, though. I tried to point out she'd done 8 -> 6 at nursery since she was 5 months, but this is how they do it.

To be fair, it is massive in their lives and they do get very, very tired.

Original poster
domestichiefofstaff · 06/06/2016 23:20

The irony is that Dd1 is autistic but in the same school and she will flip out when she realises Dd3 gets to go home at lunchtime!

OP posts:
NynaevesSister · 06/06/2016 23:20

You know legally, the school can't enforce that. You can quote the School Admissions Code 2014 to them. It clearly states that a child has the right to a full time place the school year starting after their 4th birthday. They cannot force you to do part time.

I know a few people who have put their foot down over this and the school has had to take them.

ceeveebee · 06/06/2016 23:24

Thankfully our DTs school is quite sensible - 3 days settling in where only 10 out of the class attend (so they'll go for 1 day out of the 3) and then full time from day 3. Given my kids are used to 8-6 nursery in glad we don't have to go down to half days

WorraLiberty · 06/06/2016 23:24

When my eldest (now 24yrs old) started Reception, the school made them all go home for lunch for the first half term.

So six weeks of working parents, desperately trying to find someone to take their child home and feed them, before returning them within the hour.

Luckily for me I was a SAHM, but even I got the hump and complained that after a week or so, it was difficult to get my DS to settle back to school in the afternoons.

Not to mention the kids that lived a bit too far away, to be able to make it home and back in an hour.

Thankfully they saw the error of their ways and when DS2 started, I think it was just part time for a week.

OptimisticSix · 06/06/2016 23:25

As above. I spoke to the head regarding DC2 being part time and that iy would not work Head said "well we can't make you only bring then in part time, but..." never got to hear the rest of that sentence, DD2 started full time straight away :D

CodyKing · 06/06/2016 23:25

DD school split the class in 3 - youngest started Monday - middle Wednesday oldest on Friday all full time - helps settle the kids .... it works and only 4 extra days "off"

MustStopAndThinkBeforePosting · 06/06/2016 23:29

What NynaevesSister said about insisting on a full time place is true if all else fails.
Could you keep her nursery place open until those 2 weeks are up? I used a combination of flexitime and working from home, some annual leave and keeping 2 half days (down from previous 3 full days) open at nursery.

x2boys · 06/06/2016 23:33

Ds1 school starts their reception kids over a two week period which i was abitHmm about but it was a damn sight better rhan dnephews school who had a full half term of half days why?Confused

Littlefish · 06/06/2016 23:36

For the first time this year, the school where I work is offering all children the opportunity to start full time. If a parent feels that their child would benefit from a couple of weeks part time (or longer), then we will talk about it with them individually.

Last year, we did one week of part time, then full time.

It just didn't make sense to us to be doing an enforced period of part time as most children come from our onsite nursery and almost all of them do at least one whole day whilst in nursery.

x2boys · 06/06/2016 23:43

As ds2gets transport to school as its a special school logistically it would have been a nightmare having the reception children doing part time i can understand why they do full time from from the start but they all settled in anyway so i dont understand why some maimstream schools insist on a prolonged period of settling in.

LifeIsGoodish · 06/06/2016 23:50

They do it because they can - the children are not yet of statutory school age, so don't have to be there at all. If they don't have to have a teacher for afternoons for a while half term it saves the school some money.

OTOH A staggered start over the first few weeks, with each group going straight into full days, really does work well at settling the children in and giving them a chance to learn their way around (and for the staff to learn their names!)

scutergrrl · 07/06/2016 00:21

I feel your pain. I actually wept when I saw DC's settling in schedule - 6 weeks!!! Mornings one week, afternoons the next then alternating mornings/afternoons - basically until all possible permutations had been exhausted (along with both my and DC's patience). SmallScuter hated it - "why can't it be the same every day Mum" (a creature of routine that one). To be fair the school has since changed the schedule to a far more reasonable fortnight and they now offer wrap-around care via the afterschool club/attached preschool.

Whitedoor · 07/06/2016 00:38

Are some people missing the point of a settling in period though? Where the class is split into groups doing mornings / afternoons it effectively reduces the class size by 50% which is surely much better for your child as the teacher has extra capacity to get to know individual children. I realise some
DC may be used to full time nursery but I don't think it's all about the children adjusting to long days, it's allowing the teaching staff to give more focused attention than they normally can.
Totally understand it's a PITA though but it's over fairly soon.

NynaevesSister · 07/06/2016 01:35

LifeIsGoodish teachers aren't on zero hours contracts :). They are paid a salary, which they will get regardless. And if our school is anything to go by, it'll be more likely they will work a lot of unpaid overtime.

While it is true that children don't have to attend school until the term after they turn 5, this is a right for the parents. NOT for the school.

branofthemist · 07/06/2016 07:04

My ds went to his schools nursery half days from being three. As did all his class mates.

His first two days in reception were half days too, but longer and covered lunch. It was annoying but worked.

Since that had already been together for ages it seemed a bit odd, but we went with it.

LifeIsGoodish · 07/06/2016 07:06

Nynaeves, not if they're part-timers. Between them, my dc have attended 3 schools. Two had some form of phased entry, and in both of them the FS teachers were job-shares. One had the lead teacher doing 5 mornings, with the second teacher only starting after half term.

LifeIsGoodish · 07/06/2016 07:14

Fortunately we only had to experience one protracted chopping and changing 'settling'-in, the other schools either didn't do it or we joined them after FS. Dc and I all vastly preferred the mornings only for half a term (I was a SAHM!) or straight into full days in batches of 15.

flissfloss65 · 07/06/2016 07:27

This will make your situation look ok. My ds reception class was half days until Christmas for all those born before February. I was surprised at first but it worked well for him as he was born in July.

littlemonkey5 · 07/06/2016 07:40

When DS1 joined reception in September, the 2 weeks part time was a PITA. We only have 1 car so DH had to take time off work. I am a SAHM so that was both of us off and DH doesn't earn money when he isn't working.

We weren't used to it because DD went full time from day 1 and she had a longer day too (8.20-3.30). Plus, DD is a July baby, so one of the youngest.

Going part time is silly TBH. Reception is all about learning through play anyway. Do they think that the children come home and sleep for the rest of the day???? State is all about 'them' rather than 'us' and does not encourage working to provide a healthy work/life balance. :(

Basicbrown · 07/06/2016 07:55

We have been given a home visit that is smack bang in the middle of a week when dd2 is not at school at all. In terms of child care MIL would probably have her but then she'll be 100 miles away Hmm. I could have juggled it if it had been earlier or later in the week but this is just ridiculous.

Mumoftwoyoungkids · 07/06/2016 08:01

Dd started school at 8:45am on 2nd September 2014. Full stop. As did the other 89 in her year.

School has a thriving nursery and generally about 60-70 of the 90 kids have at least one session there a week so they are all very used to the place. Nursery is treated as "FS1" and all the settling is done there.

You can request part time starting but school are very clear that if you do then your child will be unusual and they only recommend it for those that are expecting problems.

They also have parents say goodbye at the door rather than all this going in with them malarkey.

Kids seem to have survived. Grin

Kerberos · 07/06/2016 08:05

It's a once in a lifetime thing and schools are only reacting to their experience in settling many 4 year olds into new classes. Yes you can insist on a full time place and LOL about it but at such a crucial time why would you be "that parent". It's about developing school/home relationship too.

sockrage · 07/06/2016 08:10

I take your six weeks and raise you September to FEBRUARY half term part time.
Staggered start so the September to December birthdays did part time till October then full time.
Then December to Feb birthdays went full time in January.
March to May went full time after half term
Summer babies went full time at Easter.

To make things worse
week A was mornings
Week B was Afternoons
Then mornings inc lunch
Then afternoons inc lunch

It was a freaking nightmare

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