Summer-borns - Would anyone be willing to send this to their MP?

[bananasontoast]

As per the title:

Dear [MP],

I am concerned about the inflexibility of the school admissions process for summer-born children in England.

Section 8 of the Education Act 1996 states:

"A person begins to be of compulsory school age when they attain the age of five"

The important words here are;

1. "a person"

Each child is a person in their own right and deserves to be treated as such and the child's best interests are what should be driving any admissions discussion. Not what the admissions authority administrative system wants to happen for its convenience. And;

2. "compulsory school age"

Summer-born children don't reach this until the September term after they have turned five.

Reception class is defined by Section 142 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 as:

"A class in which education is provided which is suitable to the requirements of pupils aged five and any pupils under or over that age whom it is expedient to educate with pupils of that age".

Reception Class is therefore aimed at children aged five, yet parents are being forced to enrol their child a whole year earlier than compulsory school age or have their child's education entitlement reduced by one year with obligatory entrance into Year 1, completely missing Reception Class.

When forced to enrol at just four years old, these children NEVER reach compulsory school age during their attendance during that academic year.

There is a wealth of empirical evidence that clearly demonstrates the harm that can be done to summer-born children should they start school too early.

The current system of inflexible cut off dates for school entry does not allow for the normal range of children's development, every child is different after all and needs to be considered in that light if their best interests are to be ensured.

Administrative constraints take precedence over the well-being and future life chances of a substantial number of our youngest children.

I would like to see admissions authorities adopt a more flexible approach so that parents are given more choice, to enable them, if they so wish, to enrol their child in school after they reach the age of five and in Reception Class.

I would be grateful if you could raise these concerns with Rt Hon David Laws MP, Minister of State for Schools.

Yours sincerely

[Name]

[Adress]

[Contact Number]

[Constituency] Constituent

I just cant my head around it to be honest, my other two dc are winter born so are the older ones in their yr groups, I swear neither started school till almost 5. this time however dc is 2 at the moment, only just started trying to potty train and cannot get my head around the fact they expect her to start sept next yr, she will have just become 4, I think that's quite wrong given a choice. I know some will have been at nursery, but even then, it doesn't equally compare as the ratios in schools are far higher so the child is going to get less time/attention.

I have been considering wether to hold her back till 2015, but have read snippets on mn about LAS not liking it and forcing a missed yr or something. I definitely think there should be a choice,I should be able to hold her entry till the term shes five-sept 2015 and for her then to progress through the yeargroups as normal. I agree though that the letter above needs work-as per others suggestions.

Flinstones
DS is 25th August : he thrived on school at just 4 ....

Mine is 26th August & was not ready he should of been at home & pre school for another year. Emotionally children are not ready for school at that age unless having had to cope at full time nursery. Parents should have a choice.

A wee point to other scottish posters- The Scottish situation is this- as a parent you have the absolute right to decide NOT send your child to P1 until the August start date AFTER their 5th birthday ( ie they could be about to turn 6 at the end of August. It is NOT up to the school or the council to decide on whether a late August, sept, oct nov dec child starts in the "expected" year or defers, it is legally up to the parents (check the council and the gov entry to P1 info and you will see this). However, free nursery place may be withdrawn if you make this choice.

We are choosing to send DS4 to p1 at 5 3/4, not because we want him to be "old" for the class but because we think kids start formal education far too young in all parts of the uk. We are lucky there is a bit more flexibility in Scotland!

The Scottish system sounds brilliant to me & seems to take into account the Children!! Why can't our government see the sense in this???

This is not new. People have always known about the potential disadvantage of a summer birthday.

And yet they still conceive babies in Oct and Nov.

Each time I have been ttc I have avoided Oct and Nov for precisely this reason.

is-Are you for real! lucky you that you conceived as planned! I think its madness to send an only just turned four yr old to school, particulary if they haven't been in full time nursery. In Canada they go from 6 and even then they do half days for a year-unlike here where they do staggered starts but only for 6 weeks or something.

Isthisagoodidea are you really that stupid you think everyone is as lucky as you to conceive a baby when they choose??? It took us a long 5 yrs to conceive my precious baby, do you think I gave the start of school a second thought when I realised at long last I was pregnant!!!

I didn't conceive as planned actually. 2 mcs and an ectopic pg but still felt strongly about summer births.

No Flintstones, you obviously didn't. But others do give it a lot of thought, even with fertility issues to factor in.

The youngest girl in my old school (born august 30th) was the most cleverest in the class and is now Head of Science at my sons secondary school.

People with fertility issues DO NOT AVOID CERTAIN MONTHS because of school!!! You flabbergast me to suggest such a thing, you obviously have no idea of the impact of not getting pregnant when you want.

Well I'm afraid they clearly do.

Both parts of your post are wrong.

Fact.

My twins born two months premature on 31st August have done fantastic through school and have recently left with brilliant gcses, my April born child has by far struggled so much more than my boys, I was initially worried about them being the youngest and premature but they thrived going to school, they came on in leaps and bounds.

What on earth are you talking about nothing I've said is wrong FACT.

Back to the point ladies.

THe letter is a waste of time.
It ain't gonna happen.
Support your kids as best you can and get on with it.

what I also cant get my head around is why is it the requirement to send your school by the term after their fith birthday yet if you abide by that although defer, your child then goes into yr one?! how does that make any sense?!

My August born Ds and his September born cousin are in the same class. When he was a newborn, she was learning to walk. He always struggled with writing as his grip hadn't developed. He has near enough caught up with her now in yr7. Now tell me there is no disadvantage.

IsThisAGoodIdea, I have to ask myself what makes more sense. A system in which even women suffering from fertility problems feel they ought to avoid conception at certain times of year or one in which we manage to arrange a certain flexibility in school admissions like many other countries do.

Talkingpeace, there is no eternally, immutable law that means that the English school admissions system must remain forever unchanged. Of course we all should support our DC but good luck to the OP trying to improve things.

givemeaboost

what would you have schools do?
bearing in mind resources are VERY VERY tight : ther is no funding for emply places in classrooms

DD is end of August and always the youngest in her class. She was more than ready for school when she was just turned 4. The school she went to insisted that the younger ones were only allowed to go for half days for yhe first term, and were not allowed to wear school uniform. Horribly divisive. It had the most awful effect on her, and encouraged some of the older children in her class to taunt her. The whole thing was dreadful.

So I agree that each child should be treated as an individual but for the opposite reason to yours, op.

Dingit you are so right, there is a massive disadvantage to summer born children, the teachers make no allowances for these children, my son & his best friend are in same class with almost a year in age apart it dosnt make any sense that they should be same academically.

there is a massive disadvantage to summer born children
proof please : research evidence among those under 16 - as per my Child Centred Learning point above.

sorry but you are talking anecdote not evidence

and what is the alternative?

Apologies if this has already been pointed out, but in every school year some children have to be the oldest, and some have to be the youngest. So if, say, all the June, July and August children are allowed to delay entry until the following year, the April and May born children will become the equivalent of the current summer borns and someone will want to change the rules because they have a disadvantage age wise. So where does it stop?

You could have in a three class entry school an autumn term birthday class, a summer term birthday class and a summer term birthday class, all with different start and end points for the year (ie autumn babies start school in the autumn term and finish year R that summer, spring term start in the spring term and finish at the end of the following autumn term, etc etc) but then someone would argue the December birthdays in the autumn class were at an age disadvantage, the April birthdays in the spring class and the August birthdays in the summer class. There is no fair way of doing it, because whatever happens, someone has to be the oldest and someone has to be the youngest. If you have a summer born child and you don't like it, move to South Africa where the cut off date for entry into each school year is June, for the academic year starting in January.

I say this as mother to a child with a 31st August birthday who is struggling academically.

What I would like them to do is take dc end july born in the sept after shes five, into reception, then to progress through yr groups accordingly. why does that mean empty places? can you explain?
the other thing is dc still has 2hr mid morning nap!-and at nursery cant imagen she'll be dropping that soon as my older two napped daytimes up until they started school!