Give children time to act their age

As a parent with a late-August son, I am well aware of the correlation between the month of birth and level of academic achievement (statistically, autumn-born girls do best, and July-and August-born boys do least well). I would dearly love to keep my son in his nursery school for a further year and enter reception class a week after his fifth birthday. My local authority, however, has made it clear this is not possible as it contravenes its admissions policy. Despite all the Government comments about 'parental preference', this does not seem to exist in practice.

The Pre-school Learning Alliance is working to support parents like myself who want their children to have the time and space they need to develop and mature in the most appropriate setting. Nursery and pre-school provision has suffered since a significant number of LEAs altered their admissions policies to capture the lucrative four-year-olds under the previous Government's nursery vouchers scheme. Thousands of pre-schools have closed - a blow to many communities, particularly in rural areas or where state provision is limited.