Many summer born children, particularly boys, are at present not mature enough to make a strong and confident start at school when they are little over 4 years old. Through falling behind they may then suffer lasting consequences to their entire education. The coalition government have taken the brave and equitable step of allowing parents to defer entry for one year for children born from April to August with, as a crucial difference from present policy, the right to then enter reception year rather than year 1.
Can Councillor O'Brien confirm that Medway Council will implement this policy change in its schools as soon as possible and give a timetable for this implementation?
Minutes:
Many summer born children, particularly boys, are at present not mature enough to make a strong and confident start at school when they are little over 4 years old. Through falling behind they may then suffer lasting consequences to their entire education. The coalition government have taken the brave and equitable step of allowing parents to defer entry for one year for children born from April to August with, as a crucial difference from present policy, the right to then enter reception year rather than year 1.
Can Councillor O'Brien confirm that Medway Council will implement this policy change in its schools as soon as possible and give a timetable for this implementation?
Councillor O’Brien responded by stating Medway Council’s school admission policies already allowed deferred entry to school and for parents to ask for their child to be admitted outside of their normal year group. The Council’s policies were compliant with the requirements of the School Admissions Code and the recently published guidance.
Medway provided for the admission of all children in the September following their fourth birthday. However, a child was not required to start school until they had reached compulsory school age following their fifth birthday. For summer born children this was almost a full school year after the point at which they could first be admitted.
In addition parents had the right to ask for their child to be admitted outside of their normal year group. For summer born children, this allowed parents to defer entry for one year and to request entry to the reception year.
Councillor O’Brien stated that the government guidance was very clear in that decisions about entry outside of the normal year group must be decided on a case-by-case basis by the Admission Authority.
Medway Council was the Admission Authority for community and voluntary controlled schools, and the Council’s admissions policies allowed for any requests to be considered on a case-by-case basis by professional specialists, taking into account the needs of the child, which of course were paramount.
Councillor Turpin stated that this had not been his experience when he went through this process a few years ago. He asked whether this was publicised at all to prospective parents that this was a possibility and whether this was encouraged. He provided details of his own experience where he had been informed that his own child would have to start in year one, having missed out on reception year a few years ago, so he hoped that there was a more enlightened policy and that it would be publicised and that parents would be made aware of this.
Councillor O’Brien thanked Councillor Turpin for his comments and stated that he was sorry for what Councillor Turpin had experienced. Councillor O’Brien stated that he hoped that this would be picked up by the press and that it was something that could be raised with the editor of Medway Matters for publication in a future issue. He hoped that Councillor Turpin had been reassured by the answer and that all cases were treated compassionately and in the interest of the child.