dreamgirl Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Is the ratio of 1 to 13 in Nursery applicable to a Reception class with some under 5s in it? Or can they have a class of 30 with one teacher and NO TA and still be within the legal guidelines? HELP PLEASE SOMEONE CLEVER! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mundia Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Hi dreamgirl. Yes it is perfectly legal to have 30:1 ratio in a reception class, much as many of us would like this to change. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamgirl Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Hi dreamgirl. Yes it is perfectly legal to have 30:1 ratio in a reception class, much as many of us would like this to change. even if some are under 5???? Blimey. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucie Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Yes, for example in my class in september all children were still 4. ratio 1:30 is applicable. I do not believe it is possible to teach effectively in this ratio. Lucie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamgirl Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Thanks Mundia and Lucie for your replies. Will relay the bad news to my Reception teacher! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan Posted April 7, 2011 Share Posted April 7, 2011 Good practise of course provides for another person, at least. Hope the HT is understanding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamgirl Posted April 7, 2011 Author Share Posted April 7, 2011 Mine is very understanding. This is about another head in nearby school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 16, 2011 Share Posted April 16, 2011 How can it be possible for a reception class teacher to do what's expected with no TA - I have a TA every morning and three afternoons a week - and we can't get everything done. And there is no way that they can be in two places at once - so no chance of having access to indoor and outdoor ... I wouldn't have thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamgirl Posted April 16, 2011 Author Share Posted April 16, 2011 I completely agree. Madness Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Even if the teacher is NQT? crikey, that's hardly fair! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 This year our reception class (local primary) will be 'single year' for the first time........30 children : 1 QTS and 1 TA...... I must have misunderstood The Statutory Framework.......as I had read the requirements as 1:13 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catma Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Yes, 1:30 it is. All the children are within their reception year, from Sept 1 to August 31st so this is the ratio. Reception classes are covered by the current Infant class size legislation which limits class sizes for Reception and KS1 to 30 (unless children are taken on appeal in which case they could be more). Although the EYFS points out helpfully that this is a minimum it is not a requirement to have an additional adult. This has been completely ducked as an issue by Dame Tickell, as it was ducked by the EYFS 2008. SO: 30 key children, 30 sets of records, 30+ parents to partner, 30 x planning for individual needs.................................... CX Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamgirl Posted May 22, 2011 Author Share Posted May 22, 2011 CRAZY!!!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 So there we go, Sunnyday. We were sadly wrong. It's madness that a child is allowed to be potentially 'lost' in a crowd after the luxury of 1 : 8 Dame Tickell - wake up and smell the hummus! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest heleng Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Unfortunately having a TA with a Reception class is a luxury in some schools and yes 1:30 with inside and outside play is a nightmare. As well as Catma says 30 sets of records, 30 learning journeys, 30 parents evening appointments, 30 lots of individual planning ......... All Reception teachers feel this is an issue but it is down to individual schools and money Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 (edited) and it shouldn't be like that, should it Edited May 22, 2011 by Cait Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 So there we go, Sunnyday. We were sadly wrong. It's madness that a child is allowed to be potentially 'lost' in a crowd after the luxury of 1 : 8 Dame Tickell - wake up and smell the hummus! 'My' children have had the luxury of 1:4 or 1:6 at the 'worst'....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Yes, so do mine. Lucky things eh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inge Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 and ours had 1:5 at the worst usually 1:4 seems such an anomaly - but with EYP ratios change even though we woudl never expect to use them it was the way they expect us to pay for having one in the settings.. the fact is you grow several arms and bodies because you have a higher qualification.. but then in addition you do get paid more for the privilege.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Yes, so do mine. Lucky things eh They are indeed lucky things.......but, unfortunately that has to make this change all the more 'difficult'.......I'm finding this new arrangement at our local Primary hard to understand/accept 2 of the children that I am sending will only 'turn 4' in August, 1 of these will I think cope quite well, the other, well, it's literally keeping me awake at night - he really shouldn't be going - if he had been born just 2 days later we would have him for another year......it's all very sad - I feel very worried for him.......mum won't ask for his place to be held over........and Reception class teacher isn't keen on that idea either......mind you she hasn't met him yet - she will do so this week...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 I know what you mean - one of 'my' boys isn't dry yet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Devondaisy Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Unless I have understood wrongly, even if he is held back for a while, he will still eventually have to go in with his correct year group, who will have already made friends, and learned a lot, so he wouldn't benefit anyway. I wanted to keep my youngest son back a year, but he would then have to have gone in to year one not reception, and all his peers would then have had a whole year of school, and so he would have been even more behind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunnyday Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 Unless I have understood wrongly, even if he is held back for a while, he will still eventually have to go in with his correct year group, who will have already made friends, and learned a lot, so he wouldn't benefit anyway. I wanted to keep my youngest son back a year, but he would then have to have gone in to year one not reception, and all his peers would then have had a whole year of school, and so he would have been even more behind. Yes, you are, of course absolutely right Devondaisy..........if the ratios were more 'favourable' I wouldn't be feeling like this at all.....it's knowing that he needs a lot of TLC and I find it hard to see how he is going to get this - I'm certainly not 'knocking' the school, the class teacher or the TA - they will, I know, do their absolute best for him....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waveawand Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 forgive my ignorance as a cm here but how does that work regards Health n safety regs ? Are you allowed to have 'volunteers' via parents or otherwise come in? does seem rather mad...... but then one shouldnt be surprised anymore at what "they" think is okay..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gezabel Posted May 22, 2011 Share Posted May 22, 2011 well working in a preschool with a maximum of 16 children per session and 4 staff all I can say is I take my hat off to any reception teachers out there with a class of 30 4yr olds with or without a TA I just don't know how you do it. more importantly perhaps I think it is fundamentally WRONG that any 4yr old child anywhere should be one of a group of thirty with one or possibly two adults Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
catma Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 It's always been like that though - I never taught less than 30 in most of my 26 years in the classroom, In fact the infant class size legislation was a breath of relief because at least then you were capped at 30. You get used to it but what you can't do is meet the needs of every child all the time. Hence why reception teachers get agitated around children who cannot manage their own hygiene or who have very specific supervisory needs despite what it says in the legislation of the EYFS. They frequently have to sacrifice the needs of the majority to manage the needs of a minority on their own and frankly it just wears you out. It's also a rule of nature that no matter how hard you monitor 30 children changing for a PE session you will always end up with more vests than children. Cx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cait Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 It's also a rule of nature that no matter how hard you monitor 30 children changing for a PE session you will always end up with more vests than children. Cx Oh that made me laugh - it's so true! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyMaz Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Here in Windsor and Maidenhead we have moved to a single intake from this coming September. My setting is closing because of a lack of children, parents locally have not been allocated places at any of their chosen primary schools and five schools in the area have asked for planning permission to build new classrooms to cope with the influx of children which they don't have room for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
finleysmaid Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 Here in Windsor and Maidenhead we have moved to a single intake from this coming September. My setting is closing because of a lack of children, parents locally have not been allocated places at any of their chosen primary schools and five schools in the area have asked for planning permission to build new classrooms to cope with the influx of children which they don't have room for. and just to add to that i have several children who have not been allocated any school, including one who is nearly five and due to go in to year one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tigger Posted May 29, 2011 Share Posted May 29, 2011 I knew I was lucky but didn't realise how much we will have 4 TA's suporting 2 classes of 30 in September. This year, so still a three term entry so therefore we now have 60 children and 1 of them isn't toilet trained, there is no SEN or real medical reason Mum just didn't get round to it...we have 2 TA's supporting both classes in a unit with freeflow access to the outside area and one other shared area so basically we have 1 adult at all times in an area, so when he needs changing either myself or my TA changes him and yes we do have to stop whatever we are doing to change him. It can happen as often as 5 times a day or on some days not at all! There are also several occaisions that involve a trip to the outside bin as he soils himself too. I think it will be increasingly difficult in year 1 staff with smaller ratios and facilities. S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.