I want to ask the school to allow my daughter attend p/t until she's 5, please help!

[dillite]

She is knackered after a full day, and I mean knackered. Her behavior is intolerable, she's too tired to eat (dinner at 4!) and has to go to bed at 6 as she just falls asleep otherwise. Also, she's not happy there. I am yet to hear her reflect positively on a school day, she herself is saying that she can't manage it and that it's too long and too much. So, I want to speak to the school and ask if she could go there part-time until she is 5- in 6 months time. I approached her classroom teacher about it today and was told that although he was aware of such option, I should expect "school playing games" in this regard and just withdrawing her place completely. So, I have made an appointment to see the head and would just like to go there well prepared and know exactly what to say. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

I am not an expert.

I don't think they can withdraw her place - if she's going at all they get their funding. They might game-play by asking you to pick her up just after afternoon registration so she doesn't appear absent in their statistics, though.

Are you not worried about her missing out? Lots of new Reception children are still very tired at this stage but get the hang of it during this term.

They can't withdraw her place - you could even keep her out entirely until the term after she is 5 as long as she still does a term in Reception.

No, I am not worried about her missing out. I am more worried about her general well being though. I have no issues with catching up on stuff with her myself if I have to. I'd rather that than an exhausted and an unhappy child.

Thanks hollie. Are there any official guidelines saying that? Where would I find them?

They can't withdraw her place. Ofsted look at absence data for y1 up....

It is a slight grey area in that the Admissions Code gives you the right to defer entry until later in the year. Provided you don't defer for a full year they cannot withdraw the place. The complication here is that your daughter has already started school so they could argue that it is too late to defer, although I think they would be silly to try that.

The Admissions Code also gives you the right to request that your daughter attends part time. The draft of the new version of the Admissions Code beefs this provision up a bit and makes it clear that it is your choice - if you want your daughter to attend part time the school must accept that. The new Admissions Code has not come into force yet but if you choose part time attendance and the school say no I would point them at the new Code.

If the school is silly enough to try and withdraw the place I would kick up a fuss with the council. Someone there should know the rules well enough to make sure the school gets it right.

In yr1 with a Aug born and I'm looking wistfully back on foundation and wishing we could return to the more self exploratory play model! Behaviour at home is worse and ds saying doesn't want to go. Just saying that turning 5 didn't mark a big improvement in our case, more the opposite at the moment.

And wonder if he would now find yr 1 even more tricky adjustment if hadn't done full time the year before iyswim

Thank you! I will look into the Admissions Code and bring it up when I'm discussing it. I am going to wait until half term to see whether how she feels/ copes gets better and speak to the head after then. She's 5 in the spring, so there will still be time to get used to full time over the summer term. It's just so hard seeing her this exhausted and it taking the whole weekend to rest, only for exhaustion to return on Monday.

I insisted on doing this with my ds- he was going to be 5 in the February. I was just firm and calm and unshiftable, and they agreed. Then in the November, he asked to stay for lunch then come home, and by mid Decemeber he was, at his request, staying all day. He most certainly wasn't ready in October- but was by December.

Oh good to hear that Hakluyt. It's very likely that it could be the case here too. I just want to make it a pleasant experience and just for her to be ready for a long day too.