School year if September born

[twinguilt]

Hi - I know I should be able to work this out but blaming brain fog, but can someone confirm for me that if I have a child born early September they would start school in England JUST before they turned 5 and go into reception? Or would they go straight into year 1?

Also, if they are born last week of August would they go into reception having JUST turned 4? Is there any way to defer their start to the following year and if so is it common?

I ask as we currently live in Scotland and have children in both the above situations and can't quite figure out whether they will be super young for their year if we moved to England (a possibility) and up here it's common for younger kids to defer to the following year - but the cut off is in March not September.

Thanks!

Just before they turn 5 and into reception.

yes you are right.
Say they are born Sept 10th 2018 then they will start school Sept 2023 just before they turn 5.
If they are born Aug 10th 2019 then they will also start school Sept 2023 shortly after thy have turned 4. However in this case you can apply to start a year later (still in Reception). Or you could delay starting for a year and go straight to y1 when they become of compulsory school age, but you wouldn't really want to do that unless you homeschool the reception year.

My cousin has a late aug born, she deferred a year.
Not exactly sure how she done it etc

Deferring has been made easier recently. In some LAs they accept all requests, in others maybe not so much. Some people don't want to defer due to nursery costs or if their child looks like they'd be bored by waiting, or don't think about it as an option. Others prefer their child to be older and more mature and so defer.

Parents have the right to ask to defer a Summer born child (April to August) so they start at Compulsory School Age (so just after they turn 5) and go into reception.

Whether or not is granted depends on the area and the needs of the child. Some areas are more agreeable than others

It's the first 1st September after they turn 4, if that helps.

So if they turn 4 on 2nd Sept, they have to wait all the way until the next year when 1st Sept rolls around.

(Please someone correct me if I'm wrong! )

Normally, yes an August-born child would go into reception just after turning 4.

People do defer but different local authorities may do things slightly differently so worth contacting admissions and asking about their procedure. Some may defer the start to reception or others may have the option to do reception for 2 years which essentially defers the start of KS1.

I thought it was from the 1st of September?
My littlest's birthday is 1st September, so I assumed she would be just turned 5 when she starts reception, no?

It is their age on the 31st August that matters. So a child born on 31st August will start school at 4 years and (roughly) 5 days old. A child born on 1st Sept will start school at 5 years and 4 days old.

You can defer. Some people have found this very easy. Some have found it very hard.

You ate both right there @Heckythump1... yours will start just after turning five, as would a child born on the 2nd like Helly said. But a 31st August child, although a couple of days older, could start a year earlier.

If their birthday is 31st August they start aged 4 & a day. If their birthday is 1st September, they start on their 5th birthday. The actual start of term is irrelevant, it’s the August / September divide that determines which year they start.

My son was born Sept 3rd... he didn't start til he was already 5 (term started around about the 5th)

A few areas start their Autumn term towards the end of August. I had a couple of pupils start in my class when they were still 3! They had their birthdays and turned 4 just before September 1st and the cut off.