Free Nursery education is provided in Scotland from the beginning of the school term after their 3rd birthday (August, January or April).
Nurseries provide between 15 and 30 hours of free childcare (depending on the nursery) per week. Nursery is not compulsory, but most children do attend nursery. Most nurseries are attached to a primary school.
Children usually start primary school based on when they become age 5. The deadline is 1 March, so children who turn 5 from 1 March up to the end of February may start primary school at the beginning of the new school year in August.
For example: A child who will be 5 in February 2022 could start in August 2021. A child who will be 5 in May 2022 would start in August 2022.For the youngest children (particularly January and February birthdays), you may need to apply for nursery over a year before they start.
There is some flexibility. Children born in January and February (who would be the youngest children in the Primary 1 year group) can have an extra year at nursery if they wish, allowing them to start primary school a year later. This is known as an ‘advantage year’ and is becoming increasingly popular. Children born between September and December can also ask for an ‘advantage year’, but they will must ask the primary school headteacher.
Most children go to the school serving their catchment area. If you don’t live in the catchment area, you can make a Placing Request to the local council. Be aware you might not get a place. Children outside the catchment area are not entitled to free school transport.
You usually need a permanent address before you can apply for a school, especially for popular schools. You will need to prove your child’s date of birth.
School applications take place in at a special registration week/month before the August when your child needs to start school. The exact time when this is depends on the council, but is usually between November and January.
Children moving to next school
Children moving to secondary school will usually get a letter from their local council about their place at the next school. You must tell the council if you want to accept the place. If you don’t get a letter (or want your child to go to a different school), you must make a Placing Request with your local council.
In some areas, Catholic schools or Gaelic Medium Education (GME) are available. The catchment areas for Catholic Schools and Gaelic Medium Schools are much larger, so Placing Requests are rarely needed, and there should be free school transport available if required. Ask the school about how to apply.
If you did not get a place for your child in any of your chosen schools, you can appeal once for each school. There must be important reasons why your child should go to the school you want. It is a good idea to get legal advice.
Before you appeal, make sure you have accepted a place in the school the council has offered you (this won’t make any difference to the appeal). Also, ring up the schools you wanted and make sure you are on their waiting list.
The curriculum followed by all mainstream Scottish state schools is known as the Curriculum for Excellence (CfE).
The curriculum has two stages:
Broad General Education (BGE) from the early years (nursery and P1) to the end of S3.
Senior Phase from S4 to S6.
BGE (Broad General Education) has five levels
Early Level: ages 3-6
First Level: ages 6-8
Second Level: ages 8-11
Third Level: ages 10-14
Fourth Level: ages 12-14
There is flexibility built into the system, so children in the same class or the same year can be working at different levels. Children move up the levels at their own pace.
The senior phase (about ages 14-17) is designed to build on the experiences and outcomes of BGE, and to allow young people to take qualifications and courses that suit their abilities and interests.
Government-funded schools are called state schools. Britain provides free education in state schools to children from age 5 until 18.
Even though the education is free, there are some costs. For example, you will need to buy school uniform and sports kit. You will probably also need to pay some money for lunch, school trips and lessons like cookery (FT), design (DT) and swimming. There is help available if you are on a low income.
All children aged 5-18 who are resident in the UK are eligible for school, so your child would be allowed to go to a state school even if you have a visa that says No Recourse to Public Funds.
Be aware that if your child is given a visa to study at a specific private school, they cannot leave it go to a state school instead.
If you are worried about your child not understanding English, try to find a school with good EAL (English as an Additional Language) support. Speak to your local council.
Children moving to secondary school will usually get a letter from their local council about their place at the next school. You must tell the council if you want to accept the place. If you don’t get a letter (or want your child to go to a different school), you must make a Placing Request with your local council.
In some areas, Catholic school or Gaelic Medium Education (GME) are available. The catchment areas for Catholic Schools and Gaelic Medium Schools are much larger, so Placing Requests are rarely needed, and there should be free school transport available if required. Ask the school about how to apply.
If your child is unhappy at a state school you should first try to solve the problem by speaking to the class teacher, headteacher or rector. There may be ways they can help.
If you still want to move your child, you will need to find a school with a space in your child’s year group.
You usually need to apply for a new school through your local council. For some schools (for example academies), you can ask the school.
It is very important you do not take your child from the problem school until you have a place in a new school.
Moving schools at any time other than the usual transfer to the next type of school is called ‘in-year transfer’ or ‘placing request’. Speak to your local council for more information.
Children who behave badly may be ‘excluded’ – told not to come to school for a short time, usually a few days. This is sometimes called ‘being suspended’.
If your child’s behaviour is really bad, they might be ‘permanently excluded’ –told to leave the school forever (also known as ‘being expelled’).
The local council must find you a new school for your child within 5 days. Children who struggle at mainstream school might be sent to a Pupil Referral Unit (PRU) for a short time.
School holiday and term dates vary across Scotland, depending on the local authority or the type of school. Private schools often have longer holidays than state schools.
As well as the main holidays, there may be training days for teachers, called ‘inset days’ or ‘in-service days’. See the school website for exact details.
In general, the Scottish state school year starts in mid-August and ends in late June or early July. The holidays are usually:
1 or 2 weeks in October, called ‘October holidays’ or ‘tattie holidays’. This holiday existed originally so that rural children could help with the potato (‘tattie’) harvest.
2 weeks over Christmas and New Year
long weekend in February (‘February half term’)
2 weeks over Easter
May day
6 to 8 weeks from late June/early July to mid-August.
There are strict rules about taking children out of school. You must ask permission from the headteacher before you go or you may have to pay a fine. It will be recorded as an unauthorised absence unless there was a very good reason.
Inset days are training days for teachers. Sometimes they are called ‘in-service days’. There are usually 5 a year. Each school chooses the date for their inset days, which are usually before or after school holidays. See the school website for exact details.
Most schools have a school uniform that all children must wear. The school will tell you which clothes are needed.
Some schools don’t mind where you get the clothes, so you will be able to them in supermarkets and department stores. Other schools have very strict rules and you might have to buy the clothes from just one place.
School uniforms can be very expensive, especially when you add the cost of the clothes needed for sport (called a ‘PE kit’). You might need to spend over £300. If you cannot afford the uniform, you might be able to get help from your local council.
It is normal for neat hairstyles to be part of the school uniform (coloured hair or ‘punk’ styles are usually not allowed).
MORE INFORMATION: Look out for second-hand uniform sales at the school, where you can buy used items of uniform. These are usually sold very cheaply.
A dress down day (sometimes called a mufti day or non-uniform day) is a day when children can come to school in their regular clothes. Often children must bring a small donation which is used to raise money for the school or a charity.
Most schools offer a cooked lunch. In primary schools, parents usually pay for the lunch once a term. Secondary schools often have a café where children can buy lunch or snacks. It is also possible to bring a packed lunch.
In Scottish state schools, all children in P1-P3 are entitled to free school meals.
Families with a low income might be able to apply for free school meals for their child. This includes people claiming some state welfare payments and asylum seekers. If you find it difficult to pay for your child’s meal, contact your local council.
The government gives extra money to the school for every child having free school meals, as well as the money for the meal. This is a big help for the school. It also means you might be able to get other things free or discounted, including school uniform and musical instrument lessons.
If you are on a low income, you might be able to apply for free school meals for your child. This includes people claiming some state welfare payments and asylum seekers.
The government gives extra money to the school for every child having free school meals, as well as the money for the meal. This is a big help for the school. It also means you might be able to get other things free or discounted, including school uniform and musical instrument lessons.
For help with school uniform costs, contact your local council. There is also a special grant, called the Best Start Grant, for children starting Primary1 class.
A PTA (Parent and Teacher Association) is a group of parents and teachers at a school who organise events to raise money. It is sometimes called a Parent Council. The money is used to buy things for the school or to pay for school trips.
Anyone with a child at the school is automatically a member of the PTA. Most PTAs find it hard to get enough people to help, so if you want to help you will be very welcome.
Helping is also a good way to make friends and understand the school better.
The LEA (local education authority) is the name given to a local council that looks after the community state schools in its area. This is usually a county council or borough council.
You do not have to give gifts to your child’s teacher at Christmas. Many people do not give anything, others just give a Christmas card. If you do decide to give a gift, something up to the value of £5 would be normal.
It is customary to buy the teacher a small gift at the end of the school year. Flowers, chocolates, stationery and wine are all acceptable. Where gifts are given, it is usually a value of £2 to a maximum of £20. Only in competitive private schools are gifts likely to be of a higher value.
However, it is also acceptable not to give a gift and instead just write a card. Most teachers love making a difference to the children they teach and say they would rather have kind words than expensive gifts.
Every child gets help in school with their learning. A child is said to have ‘additional support needs’ (ASN) if they need more (or different) help to that normally provided for children of the same age. Some children need help all the way through school. Others may need it only for a short time.
If you think your child may have additional support needs, explain this to the school or local authority when you are applying for a school place. Your child will be assessed by a Pupil Support (ASN) teacher or educational psychologist. You may need to ask your GP to provide evidence of physical, medical or emotional needs. The type of support you get will depend on your child’s needs.
When your child with ASN moves on to secondary school ,they will be offered extra support with transition. At secondary school, there are special arrangements for tests and exams, for example extra time, readers or scribes.
In Scotland, ASN means Additional Support Needs. This means children who need extra help and support. Most ASN pupils are taught in mainstream schools, and many schools have ASN units within the school. There are also ASN schools.
There are charities, social groups and support for people who have children with ASN. Ask the school or your local council for details.
Hiring a tutor has become common in some areas. Many parents choose tutors to help their children with entrance exams to private schools or grammar schools.
Some parents use tutors to help their children do better in certain subjects. You can also hire tutors to help your child learn a musical instrument.
Be aware that anyone can say they are a tutor – there is no regulation. Make sure any tutor you use has been PVG checked (a test to make sure they don’t have a criminal record).
Prices start at about £10 an hour, but can be as high as £100.
Most schools offer the opportunity to learn a musical instrument. Sometimes this will be as a group, where everyone learns one particular instrument in lesson time or during a lunchtime club. Some common instruments are the guitar, the recorder or the pBone (plastic trombone).
If you want your child to learn a specific instrument, ask the school for details. In state schools, the local council usually offers special lessons either during school or after school. It is normal to have to pay for these. If your family has a low income, speak to the school and local council. You might be able to get free lessons or cheaper lessons.
If you cannot get lessons through the school, you can try to find a private music tutor. Look online for tutors near you. Make sure they have been PVG checked (a check for a criminal record).
Wraparound care is the name given to childcare before the school day starts and after it finishes. This helps parents work a full day. Many schools offer wraparound care from 08.00 to 18.00. Sometimes longer hours are available.
Many schools also offer holiday care, which covers school holidays. Ask the school for details.
