Reception Admissions – a place for your child

Each Reception class has a full time teacher and a full time teaching assistant. There are no plans to change this arrangement. As your child moves up through the school, there is less teaching assistant support.

In Reception, Year 1 and 2, thirty is the maximum class size allowed by law. In Years 3 to 6, classes could be larger but we do not believe this is in the best interests of children or learning.

Wheatfield was last inspected by Ofsted in May 2026 and was judged as expect overall with strong attendance and behaviour.

We believe that we continue to sustain and built upon the good practice recognised in that report. Our aspiration is to be an outstanding school for our children and community.

Wheatfield Plus is the name of our breakfast and after-school clubs. These are run by the school and all of the adults who work there hold other roles in the school (teaching assistants and lunchbreak supervisors) meaning they are familiar to the children. Breakfast Club runs from 7.45am every morning and After School Club runs until 6.00pm each evening (except Friday when it closes at 5.30pm). Reception children can start at Wheatfield Plus once they are in school full time.

Wheatfield, as part of the Leaf Trust Academy, have reception admissions processed by South Gloucestershire Local Authority.You should apply for your child’s place online via their website.

The deadline for applications is 15th January 2027

We get asked this question every year and it is a very hard one for us to answer. We are a popular school and our places tend to be filled each year. That said, families sometimes have to give up a place due to a change in circumstance and the LA will then re-offer the place – it is not uncommon for people out of area to secure a place in the second round of offers.

School Admissions will contact you directly on national offer day (in April).

What induction will take place before my child starts school?

We hold an information evening for families in June where you will find out (and meet) your child’s class teacher as well as having another opportunity to look around the school. You will also be provided with a range of information to support your child in starting school. Following the evening, there will also be an opportunity for your child to come into school and spend some time alongside their new class and teacher.

We run an induction period each September to further support your child’s entry into school. Our programme for 2025 was as follows:

• Week 1 – home visits (teacher and teaching assistant meet you ‘one to one’)
• Week 2 – children attend part-time (as part of a morning or afternoon group)
• Week 3 – the whole class attends for the morning, stays for lunch then leave at 1.30pm
• Week 4 – children start full time

We anticipate running the same programme in 2026. The part-time period is really useful for the children and staff to get to know each other (and their new environment) in smaller groupings.

If you haven’t seen our website yet then this is a great place to start. There is a whole range of information from year team newsletters on our class pages through to information about our curriculum and copies of our weekly school newsletter which should bring you right up to date.

Rest assured that our team has the experience and expertise to support you and your child with any concerns you may have. Whether your child has a special educational need, a medical need, is very young in their year, gets tired easily or just doesn’t feel ‘ready for school’, we can help. The best thing to do is to call us, share your concerns and we can put you in touch with the most appropriate member of our team to help. We hope this has been a useful way to get started in learning more about our school. Please get in touch if we can be of further assistance – we look forward to hearing from you