Filton Avenue Nursery School
Admissions and allocations policy
(updated September 2025)
Rationale
All eligible 2-year-olds and 3 to 4-year-old children should have an equal opportunity to access Early Years provision. Parents and carers must be aware of the priorities and criteria for admission to the Nursery School and the procedure for the allocation of places.
Aims
- To have a fair and consistent process of allocation.
- To maintain a balance in which all children benefit and thrive whilst upholding equal opportunities.
- To ensure all applicants are equally valued and that families are able to express their and their children’s needs.
Understanding ‘Terms’
‘Terms’ are outline by Bristol City Council as three times per year and start on:
1st January
1st April
1st September
Your child will be eligible from the term (as above) after their 2nd or 3rd birthday.
Eligible 2-year olds
If you are the parent or carer of a two-year-old and you receive certain benefits or you are working, you could be eligible to apply for a free early education place. You can check your eligibility by using the following link – Free early education and child care for 2 year olds . Once approved, children can start a nursery place the term after their 2nd birthday (see above).
We can sometimes accept 2-year-olds using their 9-month-old funding until they become eligible for 2-year-old funding. This is subject to availability and waiting lists.
From September 2025 we will be offering a limited number of places for those families entitled to 30 hours childcare for their 2-year olds.
All 3- and 4-year olds
All children are eligible for universal 15 free hours per week over 38 weeks of the year from the term after their 3rd birthday.
Children from working families can double this entitlement to 30 hours. Parents and carers can check their eligibility for 30 hours by using the following link – Homepage | Childcare Choices . Once eligible for 30 hours, parents and carers will be issued with an 11 digit ’30-hour code’ which they must present to the Nursery School in order for their eligibility to be verified before the child starts. The code has to be reconfirmed every 3 months and remains the parent or carer’s responsibility to keep valid. If a child’s ’30-hour code’ becomes ineligible, only their universal 15 free hours will be available.
Session Days and Times
Our session times are Monday to Friday 08.45 to 11.45 or 12.30 to 15.30 term time only, please see below for more information about using your 15 or 30 hours entitlement.
Paid breakfast, tea and additional morning or afternoon sessions are available, please use the following link for more information – https://filtonavenue.org/child-care/costs/.
Options for Preschool (3-4 year olds):
| Option | Days | Times | Total, per week |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Monday-Friday | 8:45-11:45 | 15 |
| B | Monday-Friday | 12:30-3:30 | 15 |
| C | Monday & Tuesday Wednesday morning | 8:45-2:45* 8:45-11:45 | 15 |
| D | Wednesday morning, Thursday & Friday | 8:45-11:45 8:45-2:45* | 15 |
*optional payment of £6 per day to stay until 3:30
30 hours only
| Option | Days | Times | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| E | 4 full days of your choosing and one morning, parents to choose the afternoon your child will not attend.* | 4 days @ 8:45-3:30 1 day @ 8:45-11:45 | 30 |
*optional payment of £33 to purchase additional afternoon session, including lunch
Options for Acorns (2-3 year olds)
| Option | Days | Times | Total, per week |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Monday-Friday | 8:45-11:45 | 15 |
| B | Monday-Friday | 12:30-3:30 | 15 |
| C | 4 full days of your choosing and one morning, parents to choose the afternoon your child will not attend.* | 4 days @ 8:45-3:30 1 day @ 8:45-11:45 | 30 |
*optional payment of £35 to purchase additional afternoon session, including lunch
Please note: Bank Holidays and staff training days are not funded by Bristol City Council. If your free hours fall on a bank holiday or staff training day, the free session will not be rescheduled.
Admissions information
When a parent enquires about a place for their children at Filton Avenue Nursery School, they will be given the opportunity to visit and complete a registration form. It is a good idea to apply as early on in the year as you can as we only have a limited number of 30-hour spaces. We can accept registrations for 2-year olds after they are born and for 3- and 4-year olds after their 2nd birthday. All registrations will be entered and held on our waiting list database in line with our Privacy Policy – https://filtonavenue.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Privacy-Policy.pdf .
Admissions Process
An admissions panel will convene to ensure a fair and transparent process in the allocation and offer of places at Filton Avenue Nursery School.
All applications will be considered and places offered to children as follows:
- September start: the first week of May
- January start: first week of November
- April start: middle of February (subject to availability).
Parents/carers will receive a letter and be asked to confirm acceptance in writing and as soon as is possible.
Parents and carers could be offered a home visit prior to the children starting at nursery, this is an essential part of the induction process and allows families to get to know staff and ask questions before their child starts nursery.
All parents and carers will be asked to complete an EYR1 Parent Declaration and a copy of their child’s birth certificate will need to be seen before your child’s first session.
Due to demand for lunch spaces, priority will be given first to 15 hour (Options A-D) and then the 30-hour option (E).
Priority for allocating nursery places is as follows:
- Children ‘Looked after’ aged 2 or 3 by the end of August.
- ‘Children in Need’ aged 2 or 3 by the end of August.
- Other children aged 2 or 3 by the end of August who are children of families with specific needs (e.g. refugee or asylum-seeking families, SEND, ‘Families in Focus’).
- Any other children aged 2 or 3 by the end of August. If there are too few places priority will be given as follows:
- Children who live in Bristol who have older siblings enrolled at the nursery.
- Any other children who live in Bristol.
- Children who live outside Bristol but have siblings in the nursery.
- Other children who live outside Bristol but who are cared for in the local area.
- January intake will use the above criteria but for children who are 2 or 3 by the end of December.
- April intake (subject to availability) will use the above criteria but for children who are 2 or 3 by the end of March.
We also have a limited number of charged day care places. These are allocated on a first come first served basis, according to vacant spaces using and the above criteria. We will only consider this option at a minimum of four sessions (2 days) per week.
Once accepted we have an expectation that children will be able to attend regularly to ensure they access their free entitlement and to gain beneficial experiences to achieve their full potential through the curriculum – https://filtonavenue.org/nursery-3-4-years/curriculum/
Delayed and Deferred Entry
In line with Bristol City Councils’ guidance we will consider continuing a place for a child whose parents wish to delay entry to Primary School. This will be considered for children who are born between April and August and for those who may have Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND) which may affect their developmental age, the matter should be discussed at length with the school’s Special Educational Needs or Disabilities Co-ordinator (SENDCo) and Headteacher to ensure it is in the best interests of the child.
A deferred or delayed place would only be guaranteed if we had space here as nursery aged children would take priority. This may mean that we would only be able to guarantee a 15-hour place.
For more information and guidance, please see: Summer born children starting school: advice for parents – GOV.UK
Refundable deposits
A £100 deposit is required for paid childcare only, which is payable before the child starts and then goes towards their first invoice.
A £15 charge is required for anyone signing up to a regular booking of wrap around provision, and is payable with the first invoice.
Sibling discount
We do not offer any discounts for siblings, however if oversubscribed for places in the nursery, we will do our best to ensure siblings are prioritised.
Late collections
Children feel sad if they are not collected on time. If you collect late you will be asked to sign our late book. If it happens more than 3 times a term you will get a letter and be charged a fine of £10.
Late collections from Afterschool club are hard to staff so will be charged in the first instance of lateness for 5 minutes or more – if lateness of up to 5 minutes becomes frequent, a charge will be added to your next invoice.
Childcare Vouchers, Tax Free Childcare and Tax Credits
For any paid costs at nursery (including wraparound fees), parents can pay using childcare vouchers (if they are already part of a scheme offered by their employer), or by Tax Free Childcare (an online account managed by HMRC). Parents and carers can check eligibility and apply for tax Free Childcare via www.childcarechoices.gov.uk .
Notice Periods
Parents of 3- and 4-year olds are asked to make a termly commitment. This means that once parents or carers sign the EYR1 Parental Declaration Form, a contract is made. If parents or carers then decide to transfer to another provider, funding will not always be re-directed to your new childcare provider until the start of the following term (Sept, Jan, April). Please talk to the office staff directly to discuss this. For wraparound or extra charges, a notice period of a month will apply. There is no termly commitment required for Eligible 2-year old’s free hours.
Sharing your entitled hours with another setting
It is not advisable for children to attend more than one setting in a week – it takes them longer to settle, get to know routines and build relationships with other children and staff. On the occasion where this is unavoidable, it would be usual practice for both childcare settings to liaise, share information and have professional conversations to enable them to best support your child. This would be classed as usual practice and we would not seek your permission to do so. If you require any further information or have any questions about this then please speak with the headteacher.
The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Policy
As a data controller, Filton Avenue Nursery School must comply with the Data Protection Law. Hyperlinks to Bristol City Council’s own Data Protection Policy and Privacy Notice will be shared via the EYR1 Parental Declaration form.
Appeals Process
If you have any complaints about any aspect of the delivery of free hours, please contact the Nursery School in the first instance. If your concern cannot be resolved, please then contact Bristol City Council to discuss your questions and concerns. Please email Family Information Service – askcyps@bristol.gov.uk or call 0117 357 4192.
