How does Primary School work?!

[SilverDoe]

Please help, feel so stupid. I’m English and native but I can’t figure out what I’m supposed to be doing with my DD’s school/nursery place.

I can find enough information about starting actual school, it seems slightly confusing but I can navigate it. I’m really confused though about nursery. I remember being a nursery attached to the local primary school and then going from there to reception. Is this still what happens?

Do you even get nurseries in that sense any more or are they all private now? If they do exist, when do I start applying? My daughter is turning 3 this September and the only thing I know that she will be entitled to her 30 free hours in January..

Thanks for your help!

you can get both private nurseries and ones attached to schools, they are both the same in terms of your free 30 hours, other than a school nursery only works within school hours (usually) and a private one is normally open until 6-7pm so more flexible with what hours you have your child there.

With primary school, you'll be asked to apply to a school in your catchment, the nursery will provide that information at the time, and its worked on out birthdays.

Have a look around your local area, get all the information you can on the nurseries and see what you like.

I did both private and school with my two. My eldest went to private nursery, then into reception and then yr1...etc

My youngest went to the school nursery, then into reception, it was just easier having them both in the same place.

Applications for nursery normally open in winter IIRC and you'll get a letter from your council telling you how to apply and when.

Do you get 30 free hours? This is only if you work, otherwise it’s 15 (sorry am assuming you don’t work due to unfamiliarity with nurseries!)

Pre schools attached to primary schools are often traditional pre schools that only operate a few hours a day. They may not suit if you need childcare full
Time

Having a place at a school nursery doesn't guarantee entry to reception at that school, although often lots of the children will move up. Some nurseries have a January intake, otherwise your DD will probably have to wait until next September to start at a school nursery. Nursery admissions are less strict than reception on timings etc. I would check the individual school's website or call up.

In Scotland you get a letter from your local authority around the time you need to register your child for nursery/school. Here you're allocated a place in your school's catchment automatically and only need to inform them that you have a preference for your child to go to a different school and then you go on a waiting list.

Nursery is completely separate from school. There are nurseries that provide all day child care and ones that just do sessional term times. You can use your free hours in either kind. Best idea is decide what you want and then go and look at possible nurseries. Some may have waiting lists, if your little one is nearly three you may be too late for a place for Jan in some nurseries. Ring them up and they will give you an idea.

Where they go to nursery has no relationship with where they go to school. Some nurseries may be situated in schools but it doesn't mean they automatically go to that school. Some kids go to school having never been to nursery. Some may attend more than one nursery. Some go to a nursery at one school but go to a different school for Reception. It depends on the admissions criteria for the school. Going to the school nursery does not increase the likelihood of them getting a school place.

If she turns 3 in September this year she will not go to primary school reception class until September 2020. Applications for that will open in September 2019 and the deadline is mid January. You apply through your local council, normally online. You won't find out where you have been offered until the following April.

In the meantime you can look at preschool or nursery. From January you are entitled to 15hrs or 30hrs for working parents, you can often pay for extra too. Nursery or preschool attached to a school gives no guarantee of a school place there I'm afraid. The best advice is to first work out what you need. Is term time only ok or do you need full time care? Then have a ring around settings and see what spaces are available. There is no application process as such, admission policy is down to each individual nursery or preschool.

Applications for nursery normally open in winter IIRC and you'll get a letter from your council telling you how to apply and when.

Where's this?

Not anywhere I've lived in England!

Applications for starting school happen in autumn / winter.

Nurseries on the other hand can get booked up months or even years in advance. There's no centralised application process.

Unless things have changed dramatically in the last couple of years.

Depends on the area to be honest, none of the primary schools in my area have nurseries attached. You can either use a private nursery or a state run pre school (not attached at all to the primary schools).
Even if your child did attend a school nursery, you still have to apply separately for a school place and being at the attached nursery does not make them more likely to get a place at the school.
Do you have any friends with similar aged children in the area who can help you?

You can use the 30 hours with many childminders as well as nurseries.

A CM can offer more flexibility and some work in groups so they're covered for sickness. Worth investing also IMO.

When we lived in London DS went to a CM who worked with 3 other CMs and ran their setting like a mini nursery. It was a lovely environment, and they went out somewhere every afternoon.

Your local council should have a list of local nurseries and registered CMs.

Use this government link to be directed to the info on your local council's website:

www.gov.uk/find-nursery-school-place

If you want her to go to the school nursery, then I think you’re going to apply to the LA. The closing date for application was in March but late applications will be accepted. You will be left with only those nurseries that still have places left though.

In terms of reception, I think she’ll start in Sept 2020. In which case you will need to apply to you LA. Applications will open in the Autumn term of next year and the deadline will be Jan 2020.

Not all schools have nurseries. My DCs went to a nursery attached to a primary school but it wasn’t the school I wanted them to go to as that didn’t have a nursery. Children start in reception (primary school) in the school year in which they turn 5 years old. Most schools around here take ALL children in the September but some schools take those with birthdays after Easter in the January (so a term less education).

Most of the nurseries I know that are either attached to primary schools or are stand alone nursery schools accept applications directly rather than through the local authority , so phone them up when they return after the summer, visit, fill in an application form and wait for your daughters name to get to the top of the waiting list.

Private nurseries would also accept direct applications.

Nurseries and Pre schools may use the 30 hours differently. Some use them term time only and some split them across the year.

With nursery/Pre school all I did was see what was good in my local area and then went and looked around. I put my DCs name down at the nursery I liked the best. Some have huge waiting lists. Pre school was easier as they didn’t have a waiting list. Mine did a day at a local Pre school as well as nursery when I worked for a bit of variety. You can split your hours across sites.

The gov website is a pain in the fucking arse. You also have to renew your code every three months. Do it now if you haven’t already.

Schools you need to know what’s in your catchment area and then whatever else is around you as you get to choose four schools. Use all four choices don’t just put one as if you don’t get a place they’ll put you wherever has a gap. You apply online but your nursery/Pre school will have loads of info at the time. If she’s not 3 til September you won’t be applying for a year yet anyway.

My eldest is the same age as yours. We will get 15 hours (I work but DH is a SAHD) from January. As we don’t need it for childcare, just the social side, she is starting once we have those hours. We checked the Ofsted reports for the local nurseries then visited the two best sounding (both private - the local one attached to a school was not rated well and there were things in the Ofsted report that concerned me). Both nurseries were really happy to show us round. We picked the one we liked best, and have booked DD a place three mornings a week from January (we’re paying to top up the hours as the 15 free are term time only but the nursery we want is open year round - if you have somewhere open all year the free hours equate to about 10 a week, plus we’re paying for lunch etc). Booking now meant we could secure the place we wanted.

DD will start school in September 2020. Our local schools have some open mornings in advance - looks like ours will be autumn 2019.

When I worked in a school with a nursery attached applications had to be made through the local authority.

The website for the school currently states...

“children can start when they are three or four years old, in the year before they are due to start Reception:

apply online [link to local authority website] for children born between 1 September 2014 and 31 August 2015
closing date is 6 April 2018”

Incredibly useful, thank you :)

Yes you’re right that I have no experience with nurseries yet; I do work but they have a SAHD. We moved mountains and sacrificed a lot to get the arrangement we currently have (me part time, plus a SAHD) but it was always going to be temporary and alas it’s due to come to an end over the next few months :(

Am fairly familiar with private nurseries and one near me splits the free funding across the whole year which I guess makes sense as neither of us work term time only.

Yes still get state funded nurseries, kids should be enrolled around 2 so they start at 3 or turning 3 as they only have limited space for kids in area

Local primary school should have something about nursery enrolments, phone them or look on their school page
If your going private contact the local ones

Oh they can start at 3? Is that like, proper pre school then? Yes I think I’d have to look into it

Paulruddislush you said that in Scotland you get a letter from your la but it clearly differs up here too as in our area you have to get forms from nursery and list preferences (school and private) and you don't automatically get catchment nursery (we nearly didn't) although you do still get catchment school but have to apply.

Fair enough can only speak for fife and Edinburgh council.

Just see what’s in your area and give them a ring. Most have Facebook pages they respond to as well.

Which country do you live in and rough area and maybe we can help more ?