We are delighted that you are considering joining our school community. We believe that strong relationships between home and school are key to ensuring every child feels happy, secure and ready to learn. From the moment families join us, we work in partnership with parents and carers to support each child’s wellbeing, development and academic progress. Our welcoming and nurturing environment helps children and families develop a strong sense of belonging so that every child feels valued, confident and able to thrive. We encourage open communication with families so that we can work together to support every child to reach their full potential.

Our Transition Programme

Our transition programme is designed to build strong relationships with children and families from the very beginning. By working collaboratively with parents, nurseries, and carers, and by providing multiple opportunities for engagement, we aim to ensure that every child starts Reception feeling confident, supported, and ready to learn.

We work closely with families and early years settings to ensure that every child experiences a smooth and supportive transition into our Reception class.

Initial Contact with Families

Once places are confirmed, we contact all families to welcome them to the school community and provide key information about the transition process. This communication outlines important dates, expectations and opportunities for families to engage with the school prior to their child starting.

Starter Pack for Families

All families receive a comprehensive Reception starter pack. This includes essential information about school routines, uniform, school policies, key staff members and ways parents can support their child in preparing for school.
The starter pack also includes photographs of key Reception staff members so that children and families can begin to familiarise themselves with the adults who will be supporting them when they start school.

Sharing Key Early Years Documents

To support families in understanding how children learn in Reception, we share information about the Reception Baseline Toolkit and Development Matters. These documents help parents understand the areas of learning in the Early Years Foundation Stage and how children’s development will be supported and assessed.

Nursery Visits

The SENCo and EYFS lead visit children in their nursery settings prior to them starting school. These visits allow staff to observe children in a familiar environment, speak with nursery practitioners and gather valuable information about each child’s learning, development and interests. This helps us ensure continuity between early years settings and school.

Home Visits

We offer a home visit for every child joining Reception. These visits provide an opportunity for staff to meet children in a familiar environment, begin to build positive relationships with families, and gather important information about each child’s interests, needs and experiences. This helps us ensure that each child’s transition into school is as smooth as possible.

Parent–School Agreement

Families are provided with a Parent–School Contract which outlines the shared responsibilities between home and school. This agreement supports a strong partnership focused on children’s wellbeing, learning, and development.

Expectations for Attendance and Punctuality

During the transition process we clearly outline our expectations regarding attendance and punctuality. Establishing positive routines from the start is essential in supporting children’s learning and helping them settle successfully into school life.

Stay and Play Session

Families are invited to attend a Stay and Play session where children can explore the Reception environment alongside their parents or carers. This provides an opportunity for children to become familiar with the classroom and staff in a relaxed and welcoming setting.

Staggered Start to Reception

To support a calm and supportive start to school life, we begin the academic year with half of the class attending at a time for the first week. This allows staff to give each child additional attention and helps children settle into routines more confidently.

Early Identification of need

During the transition process, we work closely with nurseries and families to support the early identification of any additional needs. Information shared by nursery practitioners, observations during nursery visits, and conversations with parents help us gain a clear understanding of each child’s strengths and areas where support may be required.

Once children begin Reception, Reception Baseline Assessments take place alongside our own internal assessments to gain a clear picture of each child’s starting point. In addition, all children undertake NELI (Nuffield Early Language Intervention) language screening, enabling us to identify any children who may benefit from targeted support to develop their communication and language skills.

Meet the Teacher Meeting

At the start of the academic year we hold a Meet the Teacher meeting for parents and carers. During this session we:

• Introduce the Reception teaching team
• Outline the Reception curriculum
• Share key school expectations and routines
• Explain how parents can support learning at home

Phonics and Maths Workshops

Following the Meet the Teacher session, we run Phonics and Maths workshops to help parents understand the approaches used in school. These workshops provide practical guidance so families feel confident supporting their child’s early reading, writing and mathematical development at home.

Meet the Headteacher Session

We also provide families with the opportunity to attend a Meet the Headteacher session. This allows parents and carers to ask questions, learn more about the school’s vision and values and further strengthen the partnership between families and the school.

Ongoing Parent Workshops

During the Autumn term, we organise a number of additional workshops for families. These sessions focus on areas such as supporting reading at home, behaviour and routines and early learning strategies.

We also actively seek feedback from parents by asking:

• What workshops they would find most useful
• What support they may need to help their child succeed

This ensures that our parent engagement programme responds directly to the needs of our school community.

Prospective parent booklet. Please click here.

Prospective Parents:

School Tour Dates

Please contact the school office to book a place on a tour of our school.

Tour dates will be available in summer 26

Places must be booked in advance. Please contact the school office to book.

office@stpeterscm.co.uk

Thoughts from our Community:

"I love St Peter’s because I learnt how to make friends and my teachers are the best in the world."

"We love St Peter’s because it teaches values to last for life."

"I love St Peter’s because everyone’s equal no matter what."

"We love St Peter’s because there is a great community for all."

"I love St Peter’s because it addresses my child’s individual needs."

Thoughts from our parents

'I have never walked away from a school open morning feeling as excited, inspired or as hopeful as I did. From the moment I walked into the gate, the feeling of welcome from reception to the dynamic Headteacher and the engaged pupils- it was exactly what a parent wants from their child’s future learning space. The passion the Headteacher has for her pupils, having been a teacher myself, is one I admire and also know impacts on every decision for her school. Teaching students about sustainability, following principles of the UN, transparency for parents to visit at assemblies on Fridays- all of this contributes to our choice and our dearest wish that our daughter has the opportunity to join the wonderful learning environment of St Peters. We are confident she will thrive in a space where her curiosity and confidence is nurtured rather than diminished. The holistic development the students at St Peter’s are receiving is both unique and exactly what we hope for our own daughter'.