dailly1888

hello
my family and I are moving to Australia next year and was just wondering what age children start school my daughter is in nursery in Scotland just now she is 4 and will be 5 in august. is ther any way of getting a position for her in a school before we move or do we have to be living in Australia for a position
any help would be appreciated thanks

quoll

In any state she won't be starting full time school until the beginning of 2016 - the states are all different but the cut off for all is before August so she will be 5:5 when starting at the end of Jan.

You can possibly get a private school place before you arrive as long as there isn't a waiting list and you pay the fees.

For a government school, you will need a permanent address and she will be assured of a place as long as you live in the catchment area. If you want an out of area enrolment there is no guarantee but may be a matter for negotiation.

Don't sweat it though, no one is going to get their knickers in a knot if you keep her out of school for weeks/months while you get a permanent address.

Buzzy--Bee

The date of starting school depends on which state you will be living in.

I don't recommend choosing a school before you arrive. There is no substitute for visiting a school in person before you choose.

BB

slackbloke

I think if your child is 5 in August they can only start school the following January, irrespective of which state you're in.

I agree no point choosing school in advance, wait until you get here

Buzzy--Bee

This is not the case in VIC where the cut off date for being 5 is April 30th.

BB

slackbloke

I'm not sure what you are saying is not the case. If a child in VIC is 5 in August this year they will have to start in Jan 2016 same as in NSW.

Buzzy--Bee

Some children who are 5 in August this year will have been able to start school in January 2015, if they turned 5 any day up to April 29th 2015. These same kids would have been 4 in August 2014, and therefore started school when they were 4 and 3/4.

It doesn't matter what age they are in August, its when their birthday is relative to April 30th that is used to calculate what grade they should be in (in VIC anyway).

BB

slackbloke

I didn't mention age in August, I said if your birthday is August. e.g. the child mentioned in the OP. So, if you turn 5 in August 2015 you can only start school in Jan 2016 in NSW and VIC.

Edit: When I said 'child is 5', I meant when your child turns 5, i.e. birthday in August

quoll

The child mentioned by the OP has a birthday in August so in every state they will be turned 5 when they start school in the January.

I agree about wait and see - nothing beats the eyeball test for suburb and school!