What happens if infant class size is over 30?

[Pico2]

I'm curious. All I seem to get when I google it is how to win an infant class size appeal and how many children are taught in classes over 30. Other than where there is an excepted pupil, is there anything that is actually done if a school breaches the regulations?

They may employ an extra TA, this was our experience several years ago or split year groups. So Y1/2 mix of 16 yr1 and 14 yr2 and another class of 17yr1 and 13yr 2.

An extra TA would not make the situation legal, an extra teacher is required. Otherwise the class would need to be split with another year group to keep the number at 30 or under.

They would be made to employ another teacher.

Does that actually happen? Or is a blind eye turned? It looks like children are taught in oversized classes, at least from the published data.

Ds2 reception class has 38 children and 2 teachers, they are split into 2 groups of 19 with a teacher and 2 TAs per group

If the infant class contains more than 30 pupils because additional children have been admitted as "exceptions" then nothing happens.
If the school admits more than 30 pupils they must employ enough teachers so that there is one teacher per thirty children.

A blind eye can't be turned as the school completes census data which basically asks how many are in each class, who, what they are doing etc ( the manual is 141 pages long!) and a Head who submits false data would most likely be sacked as the data affects funding etc and to falsify the results would be misconduct

The census data does show some unlawfully large classes, though only 140 across the country in 2015. Would those schools be forced to address the issue once they declared that census number?

The large classes are legal if additional children were admitted as "exceptions"

Yes, but there are some which exceed 30 and those additional children are not exceptions. Not many, but a few.

My DDs class last year had 45 children, it does every year. The year group begin the the same class then split into 3 classes mixed with year 1/2 the following September.
They have a teacher HQLA/HLTA and a TA as far as I know.
It works well and there have never been any problems with it.
Poor teacher looks 15 years older than she really is. I bet she goes home and drinks lots of wine. I don't blame her!

The exceptions list is quite long. Don't forget that any child admitted by an appeals panel is also excepted, even if they wouldn't have been if a mistake hadn't been made.

Do exceptions only last for a year still or has that gone?

Do exceptions only last for a year still or has that gone?

That has gone. An excepted child remains excepted until either they leave infants or the class size drops to 30.

My DDs class last year had 45 children, it does every year

I'm not entirely clear on the staffing arrangements from your post. If they have 45 children with only one qualified teacher they are breaking the law.

Bridge I have often wondered that myself. I don't kno the ins and outs of the staffing but to the best of my knowledge that was correct.