Admissions
All three year olds are entitled to 15 hours of free nursery provision per week. Children can now join our Nursery provision at the beginning of the term they turn three. Please collect an admission form from the school office.

From September 2017, the Government has introduced a new scheme which offers 30 hours free childcare for families who are eligible.

Who is it for?

To be eligible, you (and your partner, if you have one), must either:

•  Must each expect to earn (on average) at least £142 per week (equal to 16 hours at the National Minimum or Living Wage). 

• If you, or your partner, are on maternity, paternity or adoption leave, or you're unable to work because you are disabled or have caring responsibilities, you could still be eligible.

How do I apply for the additional 15 hours?

To apply, please visit Gov.uk and complete the online form.

If you're eligible for 30 hours free childcare, you'll receive a 30 hours eligibility code, your unique 11-digit reference number. This code is important as you'll need it to claim your free childcare. You should take the code to your childcare provider or local authority along with your National Insurance number and your child's date of birth to secure your free childcare place.

Your childcare provider will check the code with the local authority and confirm your eligibility. You and your childcare provider will then be able to discuss when provision can begin.

Reconfirming your eligibility

Every three months, you'll need to reconfirm that you're still eligible for 30 hours free childcare. You'll be reminded to reconfirm you're still eligible 4 weeks before the deadline. If you also receive Tax-Free Childcare, you'll be able to reconfirm your eligibility for both schemes at the same time. You don't need to take your code to your provider or local authority every time you reconfirm however, you should notify your provider if you fall out of eligibility. You can apply for 30 hours free childcare for another child at any time. The point at which you'll need to reconfirm will be aligned for all children. This means that you won't need to go online to reconfirm at different points in the month for each child. If you don't reconfirm, your childcare provider and local authority will be told that you no longer meet the requirements for a free childcare place.

How does it work at Burford Primary School?

The Department for Education sets out two types of provider for the purposes of 30 hour entitlement: flexible providers such as private nurseries and sessional providers such as schools which operate fixed sessions.

As a sessional provider, our provision is based upon either mornings or afternoons.  These sessions are Monday to Friday 09.00am - 12.00pm or 12.30pm-15.30pm. This amounts to 15 hours for 5 half days or 30 hours across the week if full time.

If your child has access to the 30 hrs free childcare and you wish for them to stay for Lunch, this will be at a  cost of £2.00 a day.  You can send your child with a healthy packed lunch, or you can purchase a hot meal for the cost of £2.50.  Meals must be paid weekly.

During the term prior to your child beginning pre-school you and your child will be invited to attend an open session in school.  This will give you the opportunity to meet staff, have a look around the school and gain insights into the curriculum that your child will receive here.

Children do not automatically enter reception from our nursery, you must apply to the Local Authority for a place. This is usually done between October and January, however the date is determined by the Local Authority. We can provide you with support in doing this.

Facilities

Our pre-school unit is all open plan and children are encouraged to free flow through all the activities and enjoy playing with and exploring all age appropriate resources and furniture.

We are a self-contained unit with our own toilet facilities which the children are free to access throughout their session.

There is also an extensive self contained outdoor area for children to explore.  We spend a lot of time outdoors and children are encouraged to bring clothing appropriate to being both inside and out.  We will explain when we need wellington boots, particularly when children explore the forest school.

Uniform

We encourage our three to five year olds to wear school uniform, but also understand that children can get messy in school and we're also happy for children to wear non - branded school clothes during their time in school.

Due to the nature of the Early Years provision, we do ask that all children have a full change of clothes available to them during their session. This does not have to be a second uniform as it is only used in the event of your child becoming wet or dirty.

Settling In

Prior to your child starting, we will hold settling in sessions where you will attend nursery with your child.  This enables a smooth transition in to the setting and allows both you and the nursery team to cover any questions that will help your child to adapt to the new environment. We will discuss this with you in more detail when your child visits the nursery and sessions are arranged.