Langue(s) : anglais 

Summer-born children: starting school

Auteur(s) :  Robert Long

Editeur(s) :  House of Commons Library

Date :  08/2022

 

There have been longstanding concerns that children born towards the end of the school year – in England, summer-born children – suffer adverse educational impacts by virtue of starting school at a younger age than their peers.

To accommodate these concerns, a degree of flexibility is provided in England whereby a parent may request that a summer-born child is admitted to school outside of their normal age group.  (This is in addition to other reasons a child might be educated outside their normal age group, such as following a period of ill health.)

In England, the term ‘summer born’ is used to describe children born between 1 April and 31 August.

The school admission authority is responsible for making the decision on which year group a child should be admitted to.  There is no statutory barrier to children being admitted outside their normal age group, but parents do not have the right to insist that their child is admitted to a particular age group. 

Government advice states that decisions should be made on a case-by-case basis according to what is considered to be in the child’s best interest, with particular factors such as whether the child was born prematurely to be taken into account.

1. Position in England
2. Position in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland
3. Education Committee inquiry (2015)
4. Government’s proposed changes – now dropped
5. Research and comment

Télécharger le document :  https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/.../CBP-7272.pdf

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mot(s) clé(s) :  petite enfance et pré-primaire (ou école maternelle)