Reception (also known as ''Year R'', ''Year 0'', or ''FS2'' for ''foundation second year'') is the first year of

primary school A primary school (in Ireland, India, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, South Africa, and Singapore), elementary school, or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. It comes after nursery and before Year One in

and

, or before Primary 2 in

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

. Pupils in Reception are usually aged between four and five. Children start school either in the term or in the academic year in which they reach five, depending on the policy of the

Local Education Authority Local education authorities (LEAs) were defined in England and Wales as the local councils responsible for education within their jurisdictions. The term was introduced by the Education Act 1902, which transferred education powers from school bo ...

. Reception is the final part of the Early Years Foundation Stage of education. Most areas admit entire year groups in September, regardless of which month they were born, meaning that some pupils will be starting primary school in the month of their fifth birthday, while others will be almost a year behind this milestone. There is no reception year in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, as children progress directly from Nursery to Primary 1 (equivalent to English Year 1) in the August nearest their fifth birthday. Generally, this means that a complete intake into P1 ranges from four and a half to five and a half years old. If a child is still age 4 on the day they would usually start primary 1, their legal guardian has the right to delay (or defer) when they start primary school. This means they can start school the following year, when they are 5. Previously, children in England and Wales started school later than children in Northern Ireland, where the starting age was generally four, dependent on the date of the child's birthday.

References

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