Pre school and potty training

[tholeon]

hi, does anyone know if a uk preschool can refuse to let my son take up his place if he is not potty trained? He is due to start this term and is so ready in other ways. We are trying hard with the training but I am worried in case we don't get there! Any advice/ experience welcome.

No they can't.

There might be accidents when he starts (even children who've been trained for ages sometimes get this, usually a combination of over excitement and becoming engrossed with toys/games!) so it is best to send a spare pair of pants/trousers/shorts.

I think it depends on the preschool. Our local one (which takes children from 2.5) does't mind, and is happy to support any potty training efforts that your making at home. The one in the next village (which doesn't take them till they're 3) says they need to be out of nappies.

We had a bit of trouble with DD1 (she's in reception now and still does accidents at school every couple of weeks), but I think they do suddenly just get it and then they're mostly fine. The preschool are going to really encourage him as they'll want him to be trained as quickly as possible, so I'd try not to get too worked up about it. At the worst you could just send him in pants and deal with a lot of washing! Good luck :)