at 3 yrs old how does nursery placemets work??

[sunshine185]

hi, ds turns 3 in may, bit confused about what is offered in terms of nursery grants?

i.e. if linked to a primary school does he get full time? or is it just morning/afternoon sessions?

also should i look now for a nursery that is linked to a good primary school that i want to get him in? will it make a difference

thanks!

if linked to primary school it's usually either upto 5 mornings or upto 5 afternoons.

you also get groups based in places like church halls which will be whenever they schedule them, usually mornings, sometimes just 3 times a week, sometimes 4 or 5.

then you have private day nurseries where they basically knock off the funding from your total bill. you can put sessions together though, so you could have 6 hours monday, 6 hours tuesday and 3 hours wednesday for example. anything beyond this you pay for. and of course out of term time you pay in full.

It will start in Sept 09 if DS is 3 in May 09

you'll find most primary schools have quite full lists by now so best get cracking!!

lots of schools don't have preschools though so may not even be an issue.

Your ds will only qualify for the funding from next September(term after turning 3). Up to 5 funded sessions which may be 2.5 hours or possibly 3 depending on whether your LEA has increased it by then. So even for an attached school based one it may only be part-time but you have the choice of using it at privately run preschools/nurseries or childminders who are registered instead. Primary school allocations at Reception age are not linked to Nursery attendance so there should be no advantage in that respect.

thanks for your replies!

ruddynorah, when you say full lists, should i be putting ds name down for primary school now or just for nursery?

what age do children start primary school or is it called reception class?

he's at a childrens centre now part time, so does that mean he won't qualify for funding until september 09 if he stays put?

sorry for sounding dim, pregnancy brain, ds2 due next month and all systems running a tad slow....

get his name down now if you want him to go to a preschool attached to a primary school. some are so over subscribed they can only offer people 1 term of preschool before proper school starts.

primary school starts the september after they're 4. but some schools offer later start dates, january intake usually, for children who don't turn 5 until after easter.

your children's centre may well offer preschool anyway, check that out too.

the funding starts the term after they're 3.

He'd start Reception during hte academic year starting Sept 2010,at 4 going on 5, for which you'd possibly apply as early as around his time next year. Nursery places are on a similar timeframe a year sooner so check your LEA website. The Children's Centre may simply claim the funding when he becomes eligible ,in which case no need to move if he is happy there.

thanks! v helpful info...