Christ Church CofE Primary School

Nursery Admission

Nursery Class Information

All 3 and 4 year old children in England are entitled to receive 15 hours per week/570 hours per year of free learning. At Christ Church School this consists of 3 hours every morning or afternoon sessions.

The maximum places available in the nursery in any academic year is 26 FTEs (full-time equivalent places).

Children are eligible for the 15 free hours entitlement the term following their third birthday, giving three possible points of entry to the nursery in any academic year.

Some working parents may be eligible to claim for an additional 15 hours per week funded childcare. Parents can check this on the Government website at:

https://childcare-support.tax.service.gov.uk/par/app/applynow Eligible parents receive a unique reference called a DERN Code which must be given to the school on the 30 Hour Extended Eligibility Confirmation Form.

Parents who do not meet the free childcare entitlement can request a full-time Early Years place. This will incur a top-up fee of £50 per week (excluding lunch costs) for the additional 15hrs, subject to availability.

Nursery applications will only be considered for a full-time place where a parent has completed the school’s Full-time Place Supplementary Application Form giving reasons and providing the additional supporting evidence requested.

Other Government Support Available

• Help with Childcare options: www.childcarechoices.gov.uk
• Childcare Grant Payment Service: https://www.ccgpay.co.uk/student

Notes

• Parents and children are welcome to visit our Nursery before applying. Open Day visits are held throughout the year.
• All children with allocated places will need to complete a short period of induction before attending complete sessions every day (part/full-time). In some circumstances, and based on the child’s needs, it may be deemed necessary to extend this period; parent/carer may be expected to stay on the premises until a child has settled.
• A more formal meeting with parents of new pupils for the nursery is held during the second half of the summer term when information about arrangements for each child’s admission and to meet staff.
• Nursery staff may make a home visit prior to children starting in the Autumn term, and where known, for those children who will be admitted later in the year. We regret that staff are unable to make home visits for any admissions confirmed after this time.
• If you wish to apply for a nursery place at Christ Church School please for an application form. Alternatively, you may request printed copies from the School Office.

Reception Admission

Application for Reception Class

If your child you can apply for a Primary School Reception year place for September.

Applications for entry to Reception in September must be submitted by the previous January to the local authority where you live. Applications can be made online between October and January by following the link on the Wandsworth Admissions website.

Further information can be found in: Choose a Wandsworth Primary School.

Notes

Admission to nursery does not guarantee a place in the primary school or automatic admittance into Reception. All parents wishing to apply for a Reception place are required to make a new application for Reception year.

All application forms and any supplementary forms must be received by 15th January.

Supplementary Form

Parents wishing to have their religious commitment taken into consideration against the school’s published Criteria for over-subscription (Nos 3, 5, or 6) must complete a supplementary form.

Parents are advised to obtain a Religious Reference from their priest, minister or religious leader. A Religious Reference form is available from the school office. Parents are responsible for ensuring the form (or electronic link) is passed to their priest, minister, or religious leader for completion and returned direct to the school by the closing date.

Over-Subscription Criteria

As a voluntary aided Church of England school, Christ Church School has its own admissions criteria for the allocation of places.

In the event that the school receives more applications than the number of places it has available, places will be given to those children who meet any of the criteria set out below, in order until all places are filled.

Where there are more than 26 FTE applicants for nursery and 30 applicants for Reception the following criteria for over-subscription will apply and must be read in conjunction with the relevant notes:

• Looked after children and those who ceased to be children looked after because they were adopted, or because they became subject to a residence order or a special guardianship order. (Note 1)
• Children with exceptional medical and/or social need (Note 2)
• Children of parents who attend the parish church of Christ Church and St Stephen’s (Note 3)
• Children who have one or more siblings in the school at the time of admission to the school (Note 4)
• Children who attend an Anglican church for whom Christ Church school is the nearest Church of England school (Notes 5 & 7)
• Children of parents who attend other Christian denominations (Note 6) for whom this is the nearest church school
• Children who live within the Parish of Christ Church and St Stephen’s, Battersea
• Any remaining places will be offered to children in order of straight line distance from home to school as measured by Wandsworth Council’s Geographical Information System (Notes 5 and 7).

Note 1 Looked after children are children who are in the care of local authorities as defined by Section 22 of the Children’s Act (1989). Children who are under an agreed series of short-term placements (such as respite) are excluded. Governors will require written confirmation that the child is in care and will be so at the time of admission to the school.

An adopted child is defined by Section 46 of the Adoption and Children’s Act (2002).

A residence order is defined by Section 14A of the Children’s Act (1989).

Note 2 A letter of support from a professional (e.g. Specialist Health Professional or Social Worker) is required which sets out the reasons why this school would be the most suitable, and the difficulties that would be caused if the child had to attend another school.

Note 3 Church attendance is normally taken to mean attendance of the child and at least one parent for a minimum of 2 services a month over a period of at least one year. Should applicants have moved into the area within that period, proof of attendance will be sought from their previous church.

All church attendance will require verification from the Church Minister on the Religious Reference Form issued by the school.

Note 4 The term sibling is defined as “brothers and sisters” and includes “blood relatives, step-siblings, foster and adopted children living at the same address.”

Note 5 The straight line measurement will be determined using the policy published Wandsworth Council in the booklets: Choose a Wandsworth Primary School and Choose a Wandsworth Nursery. Where applicants have identical distance measurements using this method, priority amongst them will be determined at random.

Note 6 Other Christian denominations are those recognised by one or more of the following organisations:

• Churches Together in Britain and Ireland
• The Evangelical Alliance
• The African and Caribbean Evangelical Alliance

Note 7: “Home” is defined as the main address where the pupil lives.

Tie - Breaker: If applicants live equidistant from the school the Governing Board will draw lots to decide between applicants.

In-Year Admission

In Year Application: Reception class – Year 6

All in year admissions for older children are made via the local authority. Application forms must be returned direct to Pupil Services at the local authority, and, if applicable, the Religious Reference form should be completed by your priest, minister or religious leader and returned to the school.

Further information on applying for a place if you are new to the borough or want to change schools can be obtained from Wandsworth Admissions In-Year Transfers.

Parents can apply for a place for their child at any time outside the normal admissions round.

If your child already has a place in a Wandsworth school but you want a transfer to a different school in Wandsworth, you should discuss this with the Headteacher of their current school before making an application.

If a change of school is necessary, you will need to obtain an ‘In-Year’ transfer application form from your child’s current school.

If there are spaces available in the year group you are applying for, your child will be offered a place. In the event that it is not possible to offer a place, the waiting list and appeals procedures will apply.

Parents will be notified of the outcome of their application, once application information has been received by the school and processed following the Admission Policy.

In Year Application: Nursery

All in year admissions for nursery places should be completed on the school’s nursery application form and returned to the school with; the Religious Reference form completed by your priest, minister or religious leader; the DERN form; and the full-time place supplementary application form if applicable. Applications will be considered in accordance with the over-subscription criteria.