This page has three main sections and some links to help new parents

ONE - Reception children starting school in September 2024

TWO - Joining our Nursery at any time

THREE - Joining our school at any time, for example if you have moved to Belper 

ONE - Starting Reception in September 2024

Starting school is an exciting time for you and your family. Mr. Averis and the staff and children at St. John's look forward to meeting you and welcoming you to your child's new school. 

Children start primary school in the reception class in the September after their fourth birthday. Therefore, if your child was born between September 1st 2019 and August 31st 2020 they will be able to start primary school in September 2024 in one of our reception classes. Families of children born between September 1st 2019 and August 31st 2020 who are already attending St John's Nursery, still need to apply for their child to start school in September 2024.

We look forward to welcoming these new children and their families to our school. To help families get to know us we will be running a series of school tours and open mornings and afternoons in the autumn term 2023. You are invited to attend on your own or bring your child with you. The dates and times that these will take place are published below. If you would like to attend one of these tours please ring the school to book a place on one.

• Friday 22nd September 9.15am
• Wednesday 27th September 9.15am
• Wednesday 4th October 9.15am
• Tuesday 10th October 10.45am
• Friday 20th October 10.45am
• Monday 23rd October 1.30pm
• Monday 6th November 10.45am
• Wednesday 8th November 9.15am
• Monday 13th November 1.30pm
• Tuesday 14th November 10.45am
• Friday 17th November 9.15am
• Monday 20th November 9.30am
• Tuesday 21st November 10.45am
• Friday 24th November - 9.15am
• Thursday 30th November - 4.30pm (after school finishes)
  • Please be aware that no children will be at school at this time, and we encourage parents to come and see our school during the day to get a real feel for us, however we are happy to show parents round who find coming during the day difficult. 
• Tuesday 5th December - 9.15am
• Monday 11th December - 9.30am

Parents who hope to be joining us in September 2024 are invited to -  

• Visit our reception starters page  - Reception starters page - CLICK HERE
• View our class pages to see what children do at St. John's - CLICK HERE
• View our teachers page to find out a little bit about our class teachers - CLICK HERE
• Subscribe to our weekly email and begin to find out about life at St. John's - CLICK HERE
• Read our Headteacher weekly blog to find out about daily life at St. John's - CLICK HERE
• Put these dates in your diary
  • 6pm Thursday 20th June 2024 - Introduction and welcome evening for new parents and families
  • Tuesday and Wednesday 25th and 26th June 2024 - Transition mornings when your child will be invited to come to school for the first time and meet their new teacher.
  • Your child's first day in reception at St. John's will be Wednesday 4th September 2024.

Applications to join our reception classes need to be made with Derbyshire Local Authority. Applications open on Monday 6th November 2023 and close on Monday 15th January 2024. Details on how to apply can be found the the Local Authority website. CLICK HERE. 

Parents that have applied for a place at St. John's will be told by the Local Authority in April 2024 if their application has been successful. We will then write to these families in May 2024 welcoming you to St. John's and inviting them to our Introduction Evening at 6pm on Thursday 20th June 2024.

If you are a parent of a pre school child this leaflet from the DfE, that we have added to our curriculum page is a fantastic read letting you know how you can help prepare your child for school to help them get off to the best possible start when they join us. CLICK HERE.

TWO - Admissions to the nursery at any time

Children are able to join our nursery in the September, January or April after their third birthday. All information about out nursery and how to apply for a place can be found on the nursery section of this web site. CLICK HERE. Applications to join the nursery are made to the school and not the Local Authority.

From September 2022 children will be able to attend our nursery for up to 30 hours a week.

THREE - Information for parents that want to join us for any other reason, for example you have moved to Belper. 

If you have a child that wants to join our school at any other time other than the start of reception, for example you may have moved into Belper, you are advised to ring us first to see if we have any spaces in the year group you child will attend. Our telephone number is 01773 822995. If we have places we will gladly invite you to come and see our school and meet Mr. Averis before you apply.

You then need to apply for the place through Derbyshire local authority by ringing 01629 537479, or by going to the Derbyshire website and following the links to their applications website. CLICK HERE. 

For children that are changing primary school Derbyshire have a specific website to help parents. CLICK HERE. 

The links below take to information about our uniform and start and end times of the school day

Admissions criteria for joining St. John's

Children are admitted according to the following criteria, in order -

· Children who are in care of, or accommodated by, Derbyshire County Council or another LA.

· Children living in the normal area served by the school, and have siblings at the school at the time of admission. CLICK HERE to use the Derbyshire postcode search tool to find your normal area school. 

· Children living in the normal area served by the school

· Children who do not live in the normal area, but have siblings at the school at the time of admission

· Other children whose parents/carers have requested a place by the published date

· Children whose parent/carers did not express their preference by the published date