Winkleigh Primary School: Proposal to change the age range

Consultation on a proposal to extend the school age range from 2-11 to 0-11 years of age

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Proposal

Winkleigh Primary School’s Governing Body is consulting on a proposal to extend the age range of the school from 2-11 to 0-11 years of age from December 2025.

Background

Winkleigh Primary School has an age range of 2-11 years of age with a nursery class for 2, 3 and 4 year olds. The school has recently established a separate provision for babies and children up to the age of 2 years. The provision for 0-2 year olds is currently managed separately from the school and has been set up due to demand in the area for additional provision and in light of the increase to early years entitlements for working families. 

The simplest and most effective way for the school to manage all the early years provision will be to extend the age range of the school to 0-11 years of age so that the provision for the 0-2 year olds will become part of the school.

If the age range is extended, there will be no difference in the practical day-to-day arrangements for children and families.  All children in the nursery provision would be on the role, or admissions register, of the school. Children and families will experience very little change to the service they currently receive.  There will be no change to staffing arrangements.  The financial and administrative arrangements of the 0-2 year old provision will be easier to manage through the extension of the age range of the school.

Children whose parents meet the free school meal eligibility criteria and attend for the whole day will be entitled to a free school meal. There is no lower age limit. Parents will also be able to purchase a school meal for nursery children.

Capital and Planning

The school has recently established the 0-2 year old nursery provision with the support of Devon County Council through a capital childcare expansion grant.

This proposal will not affect the Published Admission Number (PAN) for the school, nor the capacity for school aged children. 

Parents will still need to make a separate application though to Devon County Council for a place in the reception class.

Process and Decision-making

The Government has recently simplified the process for a maintained school to extend the age range to create school-based nursery provision. The Government has made this change to support their commitment to create or expand school based nurseries in light of the increased entitlements to early years.  

Winkleigh Primary School is a Local Authority maintained ‘Foundation Trust’ school.

The process to establish a school based nursery through the extension of the school age range includes a period of consultation followed by a decision at a Full Governing Body meeting.

The consultation period will run from 16 October to 13 November 2025. Following the end of the consultation period, the full Governing Body will meet to consider all the responses to the consultation and make a decision as to whether or not to extend the age range of the school from 2-11 to 0-11 years of age.

Indicative Timescale

An indicative timeline is detailed below.

1. Consultation from 16 October to 13 November 2025.

• Meeting of the Full Governing Body to consider the consultation responses and make a decision on whether or not to approve the proposal.

• Proposed implementation, if proposal is approved: December 2025.

Admission to the Nursery

Admission to the nursery provision will be managed by the Governing Body and the school is required to follow the Devon County Council Nursery Admissions Policy.

Responding to the consultation

Please reply by 13 November 2025 to either:

Email: admin@winkleigh.devon.sch.uk

Please mark your email ‘Nursery Consultation’.

Or by writing to: Winkleigh Primary School, Farmer Frank’s Lane, Winkleigh, Devon, EX19 8JQ

All responses to the consultation will be fully considered by the school’s leadership team and governors of Winkleigh Primary School but we will not send individual responses to any specific points made.

Please see the school’s Privacy Notice explaining how the school processes personal data: 2B4E9EBDEB4D0C502CD88D32B7ECC6B4.pdf