At Shotton Primary School we have three main intakes of children into our Nursery over the school year. One in each of the Autumn, Spring and Summer terms.  We also offer Rising-three places into our Nursery, following a child’s third birthday.   We currently do not accept 2 year olds or under.  Our Nursery has a maximum of 78 places.  

Children can be added to our waiting list from birth. Forms are available from the office or on our website.  All applications must be accompanied by a copy of the child’s birth certificate.  All applicants will be given a receipt that their application has been received. 

We offer both 15-hour and 30-hour places.  These can be either funded or paid for by parents.  

Sessions are as follows: 

Monday to Friday (term time only) 8:45am – 11:45am and 12:30pm – 3:30pm.   

Transition sessions are available to those on full day sessions (11:45-12:30pm) and are chargeable at a rate of £4.50 per day.   

We do not offer split sessions and as such children can only attend for 15 hours or 30 hours.  Transition sessions are only available to those children attending for a full day. 

Parents who require 15 hours funded places should select whether they would like their child to attend one of the following: 

• 5 Mornings per week 

• 5 Afternoons per week 

• Beginning of the week 

• End of the week 

Preferences for sessions will be allocated using the criteria of child’s date of birth in the first instance.  If two children have the same date of birth, then the earliest date of application will apply. 

Charges 

We accept both 15-hour and 30-hour funded places.  Please read the guidance which gives you some information on eligibility for 30 free hours. Before requesting 30 hours, it is essential that you access the government’s on-line eligibility checker to ensure that you are eligible for 30 free hours of childcare, via https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/ Parents will need to provide the school with their eligibility code.  Parents eligible for 15 hours but would like the child to attend for 30 hours will need to pay for the remaining 15 hours.   

30 hours funding entitlement:  

Children whose parents are eligible for 30 hours funding entitlement are offered further funded sessions. These run from 12:30pm-3.30pm, Monday to Friday.  Parents must apply for an eligibility code online. An eligibility code must be provided every 3 months by the parent in order for this entitlement to continue. This is the responsibility of HMRC to notify parents that they are required to re-apply for eligibility and the parent’s responsibility to notify the Nursery of the new code. A funding claim form will be sent to parents to complete at the end of each term to ensure funding is received in the following term. This form must be fully completed, including the current eligibility code, and signed by the parent.  If payment codes are not provided when requested, the additional hours will be unfunded and must be paid for. 

Unfunded Childcare:  

Children who receive the universal 15 hours funding but are not eligible for the 30 hours funding entitlement, must pay for afternoon sessions from 12:30pm-3:30pm, Monday to Friday, term time only.  These are currently charged at £16.50 per session, plus the transition session of £4.50.  Once the start date is confirmed payment should be made via our online payments system, ParentPay, childcare vouchers or through a tax-free childcare account. No cash is accepted at the school.  Payment will still be required for sessions even if your child does not attend.   

Transition Sessions (11:45am-12:30pm) 

Children who stay for full days (beginning of the week, end of the week and 30 hours) will need to pay for their transition session, which is £4.50 per day.  Children can bring packed lunches, or alternatively school dinners are available at an additional cost of £2.81 per meal, which can be booked and paid for via ParentPay, unless children are entitled to free school meals.  Please speak to the school office to check your entitlement to free school meals. 

Snacks:

Nursery children receive a free funded portion of fruit during each morning session. Nursery children currently receive a free portion of milk funded by the school during each morning session.   

Increase in fees:  

If we need to increase fees for unfunded afternoon sessions, we will give you a minimum of 6 week’s notice.  

Payment terms:   

A deposit or registration fee will not be charged for any funded or unfunded places at the Nursery.  No ‘top-up’ fees will be charged to subsidise funded entitlements. Unfunded childcare fees, must be paid for in advance, this can be weekly, monthly or termly. Unfunded sessions will be stopped for your child if payment is not received in advance. If you have any issues with making payments, please speak to the School Business Manager in the main school office. The school has a separate debt policy which will be followed where necessary.   

We accept Childcare vouchers and Tax-Free Childcare payments – for further information please visit https://www.childcarechoices.gov.uk/ or https://www.gov.uk/help-with-childcare-costs/childcare-vouchers or speak to the school office  

Absence during funded hours (15 and 30 hour funding):  

If your child is absent from school due to illness or an authorised absence there will be no charge.   

Absence during unfunded hours, including transition sessions:  

Non-attendance at sessions, for any reason, will still be payable, however, if a minimum of 2 weeks’ notice is given prior to a child’s planned leave of absence then charges will be waivered for up to 2 weeks (10 days) in any school year. 

Unavoidable school closures:  

The school’s policy and procedures apply.  Nursery is closed for the main school holidays and training days. Should the Nursery be closed for reasons beyond our control, such as adverse weather conditions, you will still be charged for any pre-booked unfunded sessions as the Nursery will still need to cover staffing costs. Funded sessions will not have any additional charges for parents as the school can claim Local Authority funding for short-term school closures.  

Trips and activities:   

Nursery may run a small number of trips and activities throughout the year. Due to additional costs to the school, parents will be asked for a voluntary donation towards the activity for additional resources or trip costs such as coaches and entrance fees. This donation should be made via ParentPay.  Please see the school’s Charging and Remissions Policy for further information. 

Examples of Charges: 

• Children attending mornings or afternoons on a 15 hours funded place, would have no charge. 

• Children attending on a 15 hour funded place at the beginning of the week would have a weekly charge of £9 per week to cover the cost of transition sessions.  Any school meals provided would need to be paid for separately on top of this. 

• Children on a 30 hour funded place would pay £22.50 per week to cover the cost of transition sessions.  Any school meals provided would need to be paid for separately on top of this. 

• Children attending full time on a 15 hours funded place would pay £105 per week.  Any school meals provided would need to be paid for separately on top of this. 

Confirmation of Places 

When a place is available and prior to children starting, parents will be informed in writing that their application has been successful and that a place is available.  Forms will be sent out via OPEROO.  

Children can only start Nursery when all paperwork is completed. 

Parents will be invited to an informal meeting where further information about starting Nursery will be given.  Parents will also be invited to visit the Nursery with their child to familiarize them with the setting and meet staff.   

Autumn Term Intake – September 

April to August birthdays will be admitted in the September following the child’s 3rd birthday, unless a rising three place is still available.   

Spring Term Intake - January 

September to December birthdays will be admitted in the January following the child’s 3rd birthday, if a rising three place is not available beforehand.   

Summer Term Intake - April 

January to March birthdays will be admitted in the April following the child’s 3rd birthday, if a rising three place is not available beforehand.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Admission to Early Years Settings

The majority of children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities can be supported school, nursery unit or early years setting at any nursery.

Nursery provision is also available in certain specialist schools which cater for complex needs.  Additional support for individual pupils is determined by Durham Local Authority through an Education, Health and Care Assessment. This is a formal assessment process which involves a wide range of professionals working together alongside the school. It is not always the school who leads this process.

The Durham Local Authority Admissions criteria stipulate that children are offered a nursery place according to their age. However, children identified with SEND are given priority irrespective of when they have their third birthday.

If parents feel that their child has additional needs that we need to consider and that may entitle them to be given priority during the admission process, they should inform the school when completing their application form.

If parents would like to discuss their child’s SEND requirements in detail they should contact the school to arrange an appointment. Mrs. L. Henson is our Inclusion Manager and is always very happy to meet with parents. She works very closely with our Foundation Stage Leader, Miss C. Donoghue.

Attendance

Although it is only compulsory for children to attend school after their 5^th birthday, we do expect children in Nursery to attend regularly.

If your child does not attend regularly, the Nursery place may be withdrawn. Our whole school attendance target is 95%. Children whose attendance drops below 90% are classed as being persistently absent. Attendance even for our youngest children is monitored closely. It is very important to build good attendance habits from the outset.

Miss Harcourt is our Safeguarding and Attendance Officer. She works closely with parents and carers to support good attendance. Please speak to her if you require support and advice.

Parents and carers must inform us if their child is absent. If we do not know where a child is then we view this as a safeguarding issue.

Application Form and Admissions Policy