Admissions Information

If you are interested in your child joining us, the first step is to complete the registration form and pay the registration fee. St. Helen's College is a popular school and early registration is advisable.

Entry and Assessment Procedures

2+ Entry (Ducklings)

• Entry to Ducklings Kindergarten is arranged via a random ballot system, with ballots taking place between one year and six months ahead of the entry point. 

• Siblings of children already at St. Helen’s College are automatically offered a Ducklings place; all other registered children are entered into the ballot. 

• Any registered child not offered a place for Ducklings entry is automatically kept on the waiting list for entry into Nursery.

3+ Entry (Nursery)

• 3+ entry meetings take place in mid-January each year for entry into Nursery the following September.

• Children are invited to Nursery in small groups for a play-based session lasting approximately 40 minutes. Parents are invited to have coffee in the adjoining room; doors remain open throughout.

• Assessment criteria are: teachability (a child’s willingness to take direction from an adult and respond to them), sociability (a child’s interest in others and ability to establish positive relationships), curiosity (a child’s interest in the world around them and natural desire to explore and make sense of what they see) and communication skills (a child’s developing language and ability to listen, speak, understand others and make themselves understood). 

• The School contacts previous settings to request a reference for each child and a copy of their two year progress check.

• Offers of places are made in the days immediately following the entry meetings, with parents given a strict two week deadline for accepting the place and paying a deposit.

• Where it is necessary for the school to hold children on waiting lists, the procedure is explained clearly to parents and further places are offered as soon as possible.

4+ Entry (Reception)

• The number of Reception places available each year varies but usually the school has a few places to offer to external candidates.

• 4+ assessments take place in mid-February each year for entry into Reception the following September.

• Children are invited to school in small groups for an assessment session lasting approximately 40 minutes. Parents are invited to stay on the school site throughout.

• Assessment criteria are based on the Early Learning Goals of the Early Years Foundation Stage; teachers must be satisfied that children will be able to flourish alongside the children already in our Nursery classes.

• The School contacts previous settings to request a reference for each child.

• We look for teachability, sociability, curiosity and communication skills in our 4+ assessments.

• Offers of places are made in the days immediately following the entry meetings, with parents given a strict two week deadline for accepting the place and paying a deposit.

• Where it is necessary for the school to hold children on waiting lists, the procedure is explained clearly to parents and further places are offered as soon as possible.

Other Entry Points

• The main points of entry are 2+, 3+ and 4+ as described above. Places occasionally become available at other times, in which case parents of children on the waiting list are contacted and invited to bring their child in for assessment. Entry at all levels after 4+ is subject to assessment and report from the school or nursery previously attended by the child.

At all entry points, children are admitted on the understanding that it is the intention of the parents for their child to continue at St. Helen’s College through to the end of Year 6.