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Preschool education

Get advice from other Mumsnetters to find the best nursery for your child on our Preschool forum.

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Original poster

Ds not allowed to start school nursery until sept he turns 4?

16 replies

Pandorassox · 08/04/2014 13:25

As I was dropping off ds1 to school I asked the receptionist if I could put youngest ds on the waiting list for nursery, he's two will be 3 on September 9th. I asked when he will be joining for his free 15 hours and was told he won't be eligible until September 2015? Is this correct? I imagined he would start the term after his 3rd birthday so next January.

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JodieGarberJacob · 08/04/2014 13:27

School nursery it will be the academic year in which he turns 4.

LIZS · 08/04/2014 13:29

School nursery may only have one intake each September, as that is when the 4yr olds move into reception Private and community ones may be less rigid and still take EY funding.

KatAndKit · 08/04/2014 13:29

Some schools only have a September intake once a year. Your son would be able to get his funded hours from January in a non school nursery and either stay there till he starts reception or transfer to school nursery in September.

KatAndKit · 08/04/2014 13:30

FranSanDisco · 08/04/2014 13:36

He would be going into the Reception class in the September after he turns 4 surely, not Nursery. My two dc are October born and started Nursery the term after they turned 3 (January). I work in Reception and we have 'babies'just turned 4 yo (by the end of August) starting with us each September.

FranSanDisco · 08/04/2014 13:38

Sorry,ignore me - read it wrong . Yes, sounds like it's one intake and he just misses out getting a Nursery place as his birthday is September.

Meglet · 08/04/2014 13:38

Our local school only admits nursery children for academic year before reception. Although in the end I kept mine at nursery so I don't know if there are any pros or cons with it.

duchesse · 08/04/2014 13:55

He would be starting reception just before his 5th birthday (ie Sep 2016) and nursery funding starts in the term after he turns 3, ie January 2015. If the school you want him to go to doesn't do a January intake, you may need to find somewhere else for him for that year and a half.

BackforGood · 13/04/2014 13:27

Traditionally school Nurseries have children with them for a 'block' of a school year, so the Receptionist is right, your ds will be one of the oldest in the year, and quite possibly already 4 (depending on the start date) as he starts Nursery, then Just turning 5 as he starts Reception.

Some school Nurseries do take children on - usually only in the Summer Term for a 4th term of Nursery. IME, these tend to be children 'in need' of a setting for a number of reasons though, not just parents who fancy a place.

If you want to take up the free place funding after Christmas, you will need to find another provider in the PVI sector.

whatcolour · 21/04/2014 14:13

My DD started school nursery in the Jan then did 5 terms but by the time my DS got to 2.5 they changed it so he can only go for 1 year before reception

ilovepowerhoop · 26/04/2014 11:51

how strange! They are supposed to be entitled to a free nursery place the term after they turn 3 and in most places I know they have 3 intakes so in your case he would get a place in January.

If they only do one intake then you would have to look elsewhere if you wanted him to start in january next year

ilovepowerhoop · 26/04/2014 11:52

And both mine went to a nursery attached to a school and got funded hours from the term after their 3rd birthdays. They both started in january (Oct and Nov birthdays)

RaspberryLemonPavlova · 26/04/2014 17:08

It depends if there are places though. Our school has January and and Easter intakes , but there aren't always places available. We have to apply LA criteria too, like school, so it wouldn't make any difference when you put your name down as long it was before the application cut off date.

whatcolour · 27/04/2014 19:02

Ours got more popular so they stopped taking from Jan and now only do one Sept intake

tumbletumble · 27/04/2014 19:04

Our school has the same system as yours OP.

ebwy · 01/05/2014 09:58

I'd actually prefer only one intake. My son's has 3 but I feel so sorry for some of the children who are playing with others who aren't going to be in the same academic year as them- there are a few who won't have any of their friends with them from September.

When I was that age it was one intake only, I was the youngest and I loved it.

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