1.1 The purpose of this policy is to make the admissions process to Airfield Primary Academy’s Nursery and Preschool clear and open.
1.2 The Cabot Learning Federation (CLF) adheres to the statutory requirements and the principles expressed in the School Admissions Code [DfE December 2021].
1.3 The Nursery and Preschool are non-statutory phases of education.
1.3.1 Admission to our academy Nursery and Preschool are outside of the statutory framework for admissions in academies.
1.3.2 North Somerset Council is not the admissions authority for our Nursery or Preschool.
1.3.3 Our Nursery and Preschool are not encompassed by the academy’s Admissions Policy.
1.3.4 There is no statutory framework for appeals against an admission decision.
1.3.5 The responsibility for agreeing and implementing an admissions policy for our academy Nursery and Preschool lies with the individual academy: Airfield Primary Academy.
2.1 Children can be admitted to Nursery or Preschool after their 2nd birthday in term 1 (September), term 3 (January) or term 5 (April). If the Nursery or Preschool is full in Term 1, children cannot be admitted starting in term 3 or term 5.
2.2 Admission will be at the start of each term to allow for an appropriate settling in process.
2.3 Nursery age refers to children who are 2-3 years old.
2.4 Preschool age refers to children who are 3-4 years old.
3.1 Parents requiring a place for their child should complete the Nursery and Preschool Application Form and the Nursery and Preschool Parent Declaration Form. Parents also need to provide a copy of their child’s passport or birth certificate or bring this documentation to school where office staff will take a copy on their behalf.
3.2 Nursery and Preschool application forms will be available to any parent on request.
3.3 Decisions about admissions will be taken by the Principal and/ or the Operations Manager/ Early Years Leader
3.4 Parents will be informed of the outcome of their application in the term prior to being admitted.
3.5 It should be noted that admission to the academy Nursery or Preschool class does NOT constitute admission to Airfield Primary Academy, nor does attendance at the Nursery and Preschool give priority to admission to the academy.
3.6 The school will maintain a waiting list for pupils who require a Nursery or Preschool place during the academic year who have applied prior to the start of the academic year.
3.7 Places will be allocated on a ‘first come first served’ basis.
3.8 Once offers are issued, they must be accepted within 5 working days.
4.1 The over-subscription criteria listed below is based upon the criteria used for determining admission to the academy’s Nursery and Preschool only and is in priority order. This will only be used if the Nursery and Preschool is full.
4.1.1 a) Children currently ‘on roll’ within the Nursery and Preschool setting are given priority to extend their hours, paid or otherwise.
4.1.2 b) Looked After Children at the time of application and children who were previously looked after but ceased to be so because they were adopted (or became subject to a child arrangements order or special guardianship order) immediately following having been looked after.
4.1.3 c) Children with a sibling who will be attending the school at the time of admission.
4.1.4 d) Children living within Haywood Village.
4.1.5 e) Children living closest to the school. The distances will be measured in a direct line between the midpoint of the child’s home and the main entrance marker for the school.
4.2 Notes to the over-subscription criteria are set out in Annex A, including a map of Haywood Village.
4.3 The academy will maintain a waiting list. This waiting list will open and close periodically. Notice of this will be given on the website.
4.4 The academy will not discriminate against any child or family on grounds protected under the Equality Act 2010.
5.1 Regular attendance is required to maintain a place in the Nursery and Preschool. If there is an issue with attendance, we liaise closely with professionals within or beyond the academy This includes but is not limited to health visitors or social workers, as appropriate to address any concerns.
5.2 As funding is received from the local authority, it is necessary for children to maintain attendance to receive funding. Therefore, should there be a 3 week period of non attendance, we reserve the right to release the place and offer it to another child.
5.3 Before a place is withdrawn, the academy will make reasonable attempts to contact parents/ carers and consider any exceptional circumstances including illness, family emergency or safeguarding concerns.
5.4 If pupils are absent, we will follow guidelines as per our Academy attendance policy.
5.5 Persistent absence or inability to contact parents may result in safeguarding procedures being followed.
6.1 A child who is cared for by a relative or registered childminder will be admitted based on the carer’s home address. However, it must be noted that for admission to the academy the address used must be the child’s normal place of residence.
7.1 There is no statutory right of appeal against a decision regarding admission to the Nursery and Preschool. Parents wishing to object to a decision concerning their application should in the first instance put their concerns to the Principal.
8.1 Children attending the Nursery and Preschool for a whole day have the option of a paid school lunch, or parents/ carers can provide a healthy packed lunch.
8.2 School meals take place from 11:30am each day.
9.1 The Nursery and Preschool will offer free hours on the following basis:
o All Year Round (47.5 weeks per year)
o Term Time Only (38 weeks per year)
9.2 Our opening days/ hours are Monday to Friday 9am to 3pm.
9.3 The morning session is between 09:00 am and 12:00 pm.
9.4 The afternoon session is between 12:00 pm and 3:00 pm.
9.5 A full day at the Nursery and Preschool is between 9:00 am and 3:00 pm.
9.6 A full day’s Nursery and Preschool hours are viewed as 6 hours both in terms of a chargeable rate and/ or the government’s allocated childcare hour.
9.7 All Year Round (47.5 weeks) for a 15 hour funded place, equates to 12 hours per week, and a 30 hours funded place, equates to 24 hours per week. These can be booked only in blocks of 3 hours in either the morning or afternoon sessions.
9.8 Term Time Only (38 weeks) is 15 hours or 30 hours per week. These can be booked only in blocks of 3 hours in either the morning or afternoon sessions.
9.9 If there is repeated lateness in collection, children will be asked to attend after-school club, in which there will be an additional charge. Repeated lateness is more than twice without exceptional reasons.
9.10 Hours required outside of the morning or afternoon sessions are chargeable using the Breakfast and After School Childcare Club. Free government funded hours cannot be used outside of the morning and afternoon sessions timings.
10.1 Should you want to use the childcare voucher system, you will need to notify us on the Nursery and Preschool admission form, or later.
10.2 In order to qualify for your government funded hours, parents will need to undertake their own research by referring to the government and North Somerset websites:
10.3 Government Funded Hours and North Somerset Council
10.4 Pupils starting after their 3rd birthday, but prior to the start of Term 1,3 or 5 will have to pay for their childcare as the Academy will not receive the free hours until such time.
10.5 The cost of the childcare beyond the 15 or 30 hours will be detailed on the Academy website. Payments will be made using our online payment system, My Child At School (MCAS)
10.6 All payments for the Preschool will be through the My Child At School (MCAS) online system.
10.7 Payments are made prior to the end of school terms. Failure to pay the outstanding balance may result in a child ‘losing’ their place.
11.1 The Academy requires 4 weeks written notice if:
o parents wish for their child to reduce hours.
o parents wish for their child to leave the setting.
12.1 This policy must be reviewed by June 2027
Looked After Children* are those looked after by a Local Authority within the meaning of Section 22 of the Children Act 1989. Children previously looked after* are those who were looked after but ceased to be so because they were adopted1 (or became subject to a residence order2 or special guardianship order3).
* Documentation will need to be provided to North Somerset Council as proof of care status.
1 Under the terms of the Adoption and Children Act 2002.
2 Under the terms of the Children Act 1989.
3 Section 14A of the Children Act 1989.
Siblings: Children are defined as siblings if:
o they are full or half brother or sister; or
o they are adoptive brother or sister; or
o they are children of the same household; and
o they are living at the same address for the majority of the time; and
o the older sibling is already in attendance.
Location: Distances from home to school are measured in a straight line between the midpoint of the child’s home and the main entrance marker for the school.
Home address: The child’s home address is considered to be where the child lives most of the time with his or her parent(s) or carer(s). Airfield Primary Academy cannot accept an address of a business, relative, friend, childminder, a temporary address or an address of a house it is intended to move to. The only exceptions are for children of UK service personnel for whom special arrangements apply. Airfield Primary Academy reserves the right to seek documentary evidence to support a claim of residence.
Where a child spends time with each parent/carer at two different addresses, Airfield Primary Academy will ask for proof of the arrangements and will determine the appropriate address to be used in allocating a school place. In reaching this decision, evidence may be requested to show the address to which any Child Benefit is paid and from which the child is registered with a medical GP. Any other evidence provided by parents/carers will also be considered in reaching a decision on the home address for admissions purposes.
