38 children in reception?

[DearMartha]

My DS has just started reception and I’ve found out there are 38 children with one teacher and two TAs. I had thought the cap was 30 so had a panic and met with the teacher to understand how this is being managed. She explained the PAN is 45 and that one of the TAs is actually a qualified teacher (secondary school experience). She teaches phonics etc in plenary with all 38 children at once supported by the two TAs.
I just can’t get my head around that number of kids- knowing what dreamers (and the rest!) they can be. How can three people be across that number of individual needs?
The teacher seems very confident that it’s working and even that it might be preferable to having a mixed year with Y1.
Would you be panicking too? Anyone had anything similar and seen it work?
Thanks x

Are they separated usually into two separate classes and just come together for phonics? Even so, 38 is a large number to be teaching at all once. I would raise this with the school - it doesn't sound right to me. DD attends a two form entry school and there are 60 in her year group (y1). The only time they bring the classes together is for special assemblies etc.

I believe outside of phonics and numeracy they are in 3 different spaces - I guess each group is with either the teacher or one of the two TAs. The teacher said it was better to teach all 38 at once rather than in smaller groups but sounds like recipe for chaos and children falling through the cracks to me.

My DC would have hated it. Feeling like one of many and all the noise and disruption...

That said, our school deliberately mixes year groups and sees huge benefit so clearly very different outfits. Why would being in large groups be better than mixing with year 1?

Of course she said that what else she could tell you? it might not be too bad but obviously smaller classes are better.
is it like a local village school and there is no other primary school near by?

We have 30 with one teacher and one TA in Reception. That's 1 to 15
38 with 3 staff means they get more attention than normal 1 to 13.

In most schools, Year 1 and reception run completely differently.

Reception teach the Early Years Foundation Stage curriculum, which emphasizes play and social and emotional development, with some academic learning eg. Phonics. It is considered the best way to educate small humans.

Year 1 generally run a more formal learning setup, with 5 lessons per day and limited time for play. So if 8 children joined them, the teacher would struggle to manage the two very different timetables and styles.

I wouldn't want my reception child to be in a class of predominantly Year 1s.

The limit is 30 pupils per teacher. Most classes only have one teacher, so should have no more than 30 pupils. However, if there is more than one teacher, there can be more than 30 pupils.

Like anything, it will depend how it is managed. Schools often have free flow between Reception classes or between nursery and Reception but then teach the formal bits in their classes. If there are 2 other adults to help those struggling with behaviour or learning it might be OK. I'd be concerned though that the teacher has 38 to keep track of. Is the other teacher working in a TA role or doing some of the teacher responsibilities?

Saying that I think mixing yR and y1 is tricky and not great for either group.

More of a grey area than we are led to believe.

Infant class size is maximum of 30 pupils with one teacher. Para 3.39. However, if you follow through the links to ‘47’ and ‘48’ this is more complicated than that. There are ‘excepted’ children in admission and staffing of another adult, not a teacher, is at the discretion of the headteacher. Also academy schools have different regulations about using non qualified teachers.
None of that makes 38 in a class good practice. Budgets are so tight, sadly, this is happening more and more.
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1170108/EYFS_framework_from_September_2023.pdf

So there are 2 teachers and one TA for 38 children ?
Equivalent of 19 in a class, but they run as one Unit ?

Sounds a lot better than 60 EYFS children to 2 teachers, as most are.

I TA across them all isn't as great as it could be, but is workable as there are two teachers.
I hope they are paying the teacher, that you know as a TA, as a teacher though.