Nursery attendance

[StrawberryMom]

Hello mumsnet fam :-) I searched for this in older posts, but couldn't find a definitive answer.

My DD is 4yrs old and is in a private London school that is a through school from nursery onwards. So she'll start Reception in Sept 2022.

Well, I would like to go abroad for around 2 months to visit my parents in Dec/Jan. So we're thinking of going away over Christmas, but would like to return to the UK towards end-Feb. My parents don't keep well, and we haven't met them for 2 yrs because of Covid. This is probably the last chance for DD to be with them before actual school starts and they get even older. I'll put DD in a local nursery for the 2 months while we're abroad.

What is the policy for nursery attendance and will this cause any problems? We are ok to pay the term fees to keep my DD's place, but will the school cause any problems, put a fine or even worse refuse her a place in Reception?

If this was a stand-alone nursery I wouldn't have cared much, but because it's a through school, I am wondering what to do. I'll welcome any suggestions. thank you!

You will need to talk to school. There is no way to know how a private school will respond to a request like this.

Talk to the school.

No they can't fine you - that applies only to state schools.

And the chances are they will wish you a wonderful trip. Yes, you'll need to keep paying to keep the place, but private schools are entirely outside of the attendance rules that apply in state schools and are able to look and see how a trip of that kind would benefit the DC.

Just talk to them, stress the benefits, say you're doing it now because you think it would be more disruptive later on, and that it's only trip thus late cos covid. And that you'd welcome their input on any activities she should be doing to keep her in step.

I honestly can’t imagine they will have any issues- school isn’t compulsory yet and you’re happy to pay to keep the place. Enjoy

They're unlikely to mind/do anything. It's probably less disruptive for your son if you go just after the end of term which is likely to be mid-Dec and come back at the end of the Feb half term. Just check too that you're definitely signed up for Reception there and won't be missing a hard copy letter needing to be signed while you're away!

Do you have the free childcare hours? They may no be able to claim them if you child isn't there for a long period, so you might have to pay them.