Children, Early Years Education, Education, Nursery, Parenting, Preschool, Primary School, School, Under-5s

Applying For a Primary School Place: a Guide for Parents (Time-Sensitive!)

If your child is 3 or, at the latest, has just turned 4, it’s time for you to apply for their primary school place. What’s more, you only have until about mid-January to do so. That’s all true whether you intend them to start school at 4 or leave it until they’re 5. In today’s guide, we explain the rules around applying for a primary school place, the key dates you need to know, what to expect, and the various options open to you and your child.

When to Apply for a Primary School Place

Applications for starting at Primary School need to be made when your child is 3 or, as we said above, has just turned 4 at the very latest. When they have reached this age range, the application needs to be submitted during the period between the 1st of September of the current year and the 15th of January of the next year. So, at the time of writing (October 2024), applications are already open and parents have until 11:59 pm on the 15th of January 2025 to apply. Don’t leave it until the last minute, though, just in case there are technical issues if applying online or postal delays if using the paper version of the application form.

Legal School Age & Your Child’s Starting Options

‘Compulsory School Age’, the legal age by which children must begin school, is the 31st of December, March or August (whichever of those arrives first) after they’ve turned 5. However, starting earlier is also an option and one that is taken up by many.

Starting ‘Early’ at 4

Compulsory School Age begins on the 31st of December, March or August (whichever arrives first) after children have turned 5. Most children in England start primary or infant school earlier, in ‘Reception’ year. For most, this will be in the September term when they’re still only 4. That’s just one reason why applying for a primary school place is so important while they’re only 3 or, at the very latest, have just turned 4.

Whether a child begins school at 4 or 5 depends on several factors including the preference of the child’s parents. Some parents, particularly those with a child whose birthday falls between the 1st of April and the 31st of August (a “summer-born child”), may simply feel that their child is not ready to begin school at the age of four. If born during this date range, they would be amongst the youngest in the year. In such a scenario, parents can decide to defer the child’s start to the later, legal, age of 5 if they so wish.

Deferring Until 5

Where parents do decide to defer their child’s school start to the age of five, it’s worth noting that local admission authorities and schools can decide whether the child will begin school in Reception Year (effectively Year Zero) or Year One. This decision will need to be carefully made, taking into consideration the best interests of the child. For example, their specific needs and abilities will be a factor. Whether it’s best to begin school in Year One with contemporaries mostly of the same age or go into Reception Year with children who are mostly younger, to ensure they have the basics, will be among the various deciding factors. Learn more about deferring until five here.

Note that summer-born children deferring until the following year may be required to submit an extra application form by the same mid-January deadline.

How & Where to Apply for a Primary School Place

Registering an interest that you’re interested in a particular primary school is sensible and, indeed, may result in the school supplying some useful information. However, it will not guarantee your child a place even if it’s attached to their nursery or preschool. You therefore need to make your official application through your local authority, which can be identified here by entering your postcode. Once identified, navigate to their site using the green button supplied after your postcode search. For example, if you live locally to Little Acorns Nursery near Chorley, you would arrive at Lancashire County Council’s primary school portal. As that example shows, local authorities supply lots of information about applying — indeed it’s an absolute mine of information – along with a simple button or link to actually begin your application for a primary school place for your child.

You may need to quickly first register with the system if you have not used it before, or enter your User ID and password if you already completed that process. Once applying for a primary school place, you’ll need to enter the kind of information you’d expect (name, address, details about your child including their permanent address, etc.) along with confirmation of whether they will already have a sibling attending any of the schools you are applying for once they start, plus the name of their Local Care Authority if they are receiving care, and so on.

Note that you may need to submit a supplementary information form in some circumstances, for example, with some church/faith schools.

Top 5 Tips for a Successful Application

Research your local primary schools, visit them to get a feel for them, and ask teachers and heads any questions you may have. Schools often have open days or evenings or accept appointments for these purposes.
Check if any of those that you’re considering applying for are usually very oversubscribed before submitting your application. Doing so will help to ensure that you submit choices that are more likely to succeed. You can usually contact your local authority and/or schools to discuss such likelihoods as they will be able to access historical data. Ensure at least one of your three choices stands a realistic chance of success i.e. is unlikely to be oversubscribed although, of course, nothing is guaranteed.
Make use of all three of your school preferences available during the application process. Don’t be tempted to put the same school for all 3 of your choices. Doing so will not increase your chances of obtaining your top choice and will obviously mean you have no viable second and third choices, leaving you more open to disappointment.
Be sure to enter a valid email address that you have access to during the application process. This will allow you to receive your school offer as soon as possible once released in April of the following year, rather than having to wait for a postal notification.
Don’t be late with your application. Priority for school places is given to those who applied on time.

What Happens if You’re Late With Your Primary School Application?

What happens if you are applying for a primary school place for your child, want them to start in the standard September term, but miss the mid-January application deadline? In this scenario, you’ll need to fill in a ‘late application’ form. This will be available via your local authority website. Note, however, that priority for primary school places will be given to those who applied on time. This means that late applicants stand less chance of achieving their desired choice of schools because, potentially, there may no longer be available places by the time the late application is processed.

What if You Want to Change Your School Choice After Applying?

Sometimes, for one reason or another, a parent will wish to change the choice(s) they originally applied for. In such a scenario, check your local authority website for guidelines, which may require use of an alternative application form or, if beyond the mid-January deadline, even a ‘late application’ form. Again be aware, though, that applying (or re-applying) late may lower your choice of achieving your preferred choice(s).

Criteria for School Place Offers

Criteria by which admissions are judged vary a little from school to school, so parents will need to do their own research. However, such criteria have to be transparent and fair and adhere to legislation laid down by the Department of Education (DfE). Generally speaking, the following are typical factors that will usually affect admissions:

The child’s proximity to the school;
Whether or not the child will have a sibling already at the same school;
Whether or not it’s a church/faith school and whether that matches your child’s faith/religion;
Whether the child has a parent who has worked at the school for 2 or more years;
Whether the child qualifies for the Pupil Premium grant, for disadvantaged pupils, or the Service Pupil Premium (‘SPP’), for children of parents in the armed forces. (More info).

‘Offers Day’ for Primary School Places

For primary** school places, offers are released around the 16th* of April each year, the exact date depending on whether the 16th otherwise falls on a weekend or public holiday. For 2025, 2026, and 2027, primary school ‘offer day’ will therefore fall right on target on the 16th of April as each is a weekday for each of those years. Those applicants who had applied online, on time, and supplied an email address during the application process, will be the first to receive offers via email. Later the same day, others who supplied an email address will also receive offers via email. Those who applied without supplying an email address will have their offers posted via 2nd Class post, meaning they may find out what school their child has been offered a day or two later than the 16th of April. That said, some local authority portals allow all parents to log in to view school offers online.

** ^{The date of ‘National Offer Day’ for secondary school places is a little different, but today we concentrate purely on primary school places.

* Those parents who apply late, via post, or for a primary school place starting ‘in year’ (rather than in the September term) are likely to receive offers for their children on a different date.}

What to Expect on Primary School Offers Day

Closer to April and the Offers Day for primary school places, we’ll publish more details about what to expect on the day. We will include details about how and when to accept offers, what happens if you don’t accept an offer in time, how to reject them if you feel they are unsuitable, and what your options are if your child has not been offered the school you had hoped for. The latter will include how to appeal a decision, waiting lists, and more. Bookmark this post and our main blog page and we’ll supply links to all the information you’ll need around March/April 2025.

The vast majority of parents secure one of their three preferences.

Our Clayton-le-Woods Nursery Gets Children ‘School-Ready’

Little Acorns is a fabulous nursery and preschool in Clayton-le-Woods, near Chorley. With wonderful facilities, extensive grounds, and caring ‘early years’ practitioners, we nurture children to bring out the best in each area of their learning and development. In this way, we help them to become as ‘school-ready’ as possible by the time they leave us to begin primary school.

If you would like to explore the possibility of a nursery place for your child at Little Acorns Nursery, get started by choosing a button below:

Apply Today Book a Tour Message Us 01772 696288

Little Acorns is a high-quality nursery in Clayton-le-Woods, near Chorley. As such, we may also be a convenient choice for families in Clayton Brook, Clayton Green, Thorpe Green, Pippin Street, Buckshaw Village, Whittle-le-Woods, Farington, Bamber Bridge, Lostock Hall, Euxton, Leyland, Penwortham and Central Lancashire.

15th October 2024/by Mark

Early Years Education, Education, Nursery, Parenting, Preschool, Preschoolers, School

How to Help Your Child Transition to School

Beginning school is a huge milestone for any child as well as for the child’s parents or guardians. Whether transitioning from nursery/preschool or straight from home, beginning school can be a daunting step in a child’s life — especially if they’re unprepared. Today’s post therefore aims to help parents/guardians make the transition to school as easy and stress-free as possible for their child, so they are empowered to feel at home and hit the ground running from the moment they begin. Take a look, therefore, at our guide on How to Help Your Child Transition to School. Following the advice should help make this milestone plain sailing for everyone involved.

Prepare Your Child Well in Advance

The most impactful measure for a smooth transition to school is thorough preparation. As the old saying goes, “Fail to prepare — prepare to fail” meaning you should ensure good preparation if a successful outcome is to be achieved. And, by definition, preparation is required in advance of the school start date. The remaining tips below are all part of that preparation and, as you’ll see, some will be required well in advance.

Well in Advance:

Ensure a Good Early Years Education for Your Child

One of the most critically-important steps for a smooth transition to school is to ensure your child receives a comprehensive early years education. One of the most critically important steps for a smooth transition to school is to ensure your child receives a comprehensive early years education. By this we mean they need to have been nurtured between birth and school age in all areas of their learning and development — ideally including the seven key areas of the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). In essence, they will need help with their communication and language, physical development, personal, social & emotional development, literacy, mathematics (watch out for our separate post on that coming soon), understanding of the world, and expressive art and design. With such skills and knowledge under their belt before the age of five, they will be incredibly well-equipped once they begin school. Without them, they will find the transition difficult and may even be held back.

Early Years Education at Nursery & Preschool

Such an early years education is also available, of course, via outstanding childcare services like those available at Little Acorns Nursery in Clayton-le-Woods. High-quality settings like ours nurture every aspect of children’s learning and development. Through a programme that’s tailored for every child, we do everything we can to ensure they achieve personal bests in every area and are as school-ready as possible by the time they leave us to begin school. With all that achieved, they are sure to thrive from the moment they start. Learn more about why children benefit by going to a good nursery/preschool here.

Close Parental Involvement in Your Child’s Education

Parents/guardians can and ideally should help with this early years education from home too. Indeed, close parental involvement in a child’s education has been shown to be hugely beneficial to that child, with far-reaching short- and long-term benefits. Studies have shown that such children are much higher achievers at school than those who did not receive regular educational support from parents. Follow the bold link to learn more.

Read With Your Child to Super-Charge Language Skills

Reading with your child from an early age has also been proven to be hugely beneficial to children. Studies show that, by reading with them regularly – including before the age of five – their language skills will receive a massive boost and this will help them enormously once they begin school. Reading with (not just to) children can boost the language skills of preschoolers by the equivalent of 8 months — incredible when you think about it. Comprehension, vocabulary, creativity, knowledge, literacy, and even empathy skills are improved when parents regularly read with young children. A love of books and reading is also a natural extension of this and, again, this can only help children once they’ve started at school. Learn more about how you can Super-charge Your Child’s Education Through Reading here.

Nurture Independence, Social & Soft Skills

It's important to nurture children's independence, social skills and soft skills before they begin school. During their journey from birth to school age, it’s also important to nurture children’s independence, social skills and soft skills.

Ensuring independence will make them feel more in control and self-assured once they start school. For example, help them learn to wash hands, tie shoe laces, use zips and buttons on clothing and be able to dress themselves. Parents can help children accomplish all of these by demonstrating each and encouraging practising at home.
Parents can also encourage good social skills in children while at home, so they are polite and naturally more likeable once they start school. So, try to nurture skills like good manners, understanding right from wrong, mastering negotiations with peers, sharing, helping others and generally being able to make and keep friends. Parents can encourage socialising with friends and relatives of a similar age to accomplish such things.
Additional soft skills will help little ones thrive as well as fit in and be positively viewed once they begin school. Examples of soft skills to nurture in children before they begin school include good communication (verbal as well as non-verbal), listening, an understanding of empathy, cooperation, teamwork, negotiation, problem-solving, resilience, adaptability, good organisation, creativity, resilience and time management. Mastering these will stand children in very good stead at school.

In the Weeks Running Up to Starting School:

One of the small but impactful things you can do to better prepare your child for starting school is ensuring they have a friend joining at the same time. When starting school is only a few weeks away, there are several small but impactful things you can do to better prepare your child for the transition:

Forewarn your child that they’ll be starting school soon and give them further reminders as the start date draws closer. This will avoid any nasty shock when the day arrives and help prepare their mindset.
Talk about it often as the day draws nearer. Encourage questions, answer them, and listen to any misgivings your child may have. Reassure your child whenever they seem apprehensive.
Focus on the positives of school, such as all the new friends they’ll make, all the new activities they’ll participate in, new play equipment and sports facilities, and how school can be a huge adventure.
Show them the school, initially through a brochure or website and later during an organised visit where you can both ask questions during the tour. This will help them feel more at home when they arrive as well as helping them know what to expect.
Find a friend who will also be attending the same school and the same class. Perhaps one of their peers from nursery/preschool may be attending — perfect if so. If not, ask around to find someone who is and arrange play dates so the children can get acquainted in advance. Knowing they will have a friend there in advance is going to help your child hugely once they start school.
Ensure your child gets ample sleep, especially in the run-up to starting school, otherwise, they’ll struggle to stay awake or concentrate at school. Sleep is incredibly good for children anyway.
Allow children to sync their body clocks with the hours they’ll be awake once they begin school. So, set a suitable bedtime and getting up time for your child in the weeks before school starts — and stick to it. Towards bedtime, allow your child to gently wind down and ensure they avoid the use of electronic screens (TVs, iPads etc.) during this period. It will help your child get to sleep.
Purchase/source any uniform, Wellington boots, shoes, clothes, backpack and PE kit required for school, ensuring it’ll all be the right size for your child once they begin. It’s a good idea to put your child’s name on each item too. Check with your child’s school what else they may need, for example, stationery, lunch box, etc.
Practise the school route. A dummy run along the route to school on a weekday is a great idea during the week before your child begins school. Time it to coincide with the real schedule you’ll be following once your child is attending so that you’ll get a feel for how much traffic there will be. Make any adjustments needed so you’ll not be late when the time comes.

On the Day Before the 1st Day of School:

Pack your child’s backpack and ensure it includes everything they’ll need. For example, perhaps a snack and/or lunch box, any spare clothes, PE kit, stationery if needed, and so on.
Ensure everything is labelled with their name, as appropriate.
Go through the backpack with your child so they know what’s in there and where everything is.

On the Day:

Be on time. Dropping off or picking up late will stress both you and your child out!
Don’t fuss; it’ll only make your child more nervous.
Remind your child that you’ll be there to pick them up at the end of the school day.

Outstanding Childcare & Early Years Education in Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley

Award-Winning Weekday Childcare Services in Central Lancashire

Little Acorns is an outstanding nursery and preschool located in Clayton-le-Woods, Chorley. This is backed up by our prestigious Best Individual Nursery Award and an ‘Outstanding Provider’ status from Ofsted. So, if you’d like your baby, toddler, or preschooler to have the very best start in life, consider Little Acorns Day Nursery. We’ll bring out the very best in them and do everything possible to ensure they’re as ready as possible by the time they leave us to begin school.

Please select an option from the buttons below to get started on your application, ask a question or request a guided tour with your little one.