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Admissions

To complete an online application, please click here

A child may be allocated a place through the nursery school's admissions policy (which is set by Surrey County Council).

Admission to the 2-3s Nursery

Currently our 2-3s Nursery is open in the morning only from 9am - 12 noon.  From September 2024 the 2-3s Nursery will run two sessions, a morning (8.45am - 11.45am) and afternoon (12.30pm - 3.30pm) session.

Sessions can be funded through Funded Early Education for Two Year Olds*, Working Entitlement* or parents fee paying. We offer funded entitlements over five morning or five afternoon sessions, we do not offer this flexibly. Children whose parents are self-funding are required to attend over three different days per week. 

For two year olds the fees** are as follows:

  • 3 hour session (8.45am - 11.45am/ 12.30pm - 3.30pm) - £25.00 per day
  • Lunch club session -  (11.45am - 12.30pm) - £8.75 per day
  • Extended day session (11.45am - 3.30pm/8.45am - 12.30pm) - £33.75 per day

In the term after the child's third birthday*:

  • Up to 15 or 30 hours of funded entitlement for 3 year olds - no fee
  • Lunch club session - 11.45am - 12.30pm - £8.75
  • Extended day session (11.45am - 3.30pm/8.45am - 12.30pm) - £33.75 per day
  • 30 hours Lunch cost - £16.25 per week
  • 30 hours Late pick up - 2.45pm - 3.30pm - £6 per day/£15 per week

* Children born after 31st March are not eligible for a free place until the September after they are 3.

Admissions to the 3-5s Nursery

Children are allocated either a morning (8.45am to 11.45am) or afternoon (12.30pm to 3.30pm) place. 30 hour places are 8.45am - 2.45pm. 

Sessions are funded and children must attend five sessions per week Monday to Friday. Any hours over and above these sessions are charged at a fee and are subject to availability.

Hours can be extended as follows on a regular basis, (fees from Sept 2023, reviewed annually):

  • From 11.45am to 12.30pm to include a hot lunch on any day of the week - £8.75 per day
  • To include the other session i.e. 11.45am to 3.30pm for a child with a morning place or 8.45am to 12.30pm for a child with an afternoon place - £30.00 per day

The Government provide entitlement totalling 30 hours for working families (15 hours funded entitlement plus 15 hours additional entitlement). This is not available to everyone.  Parents need to be working a minimum of 16 hours per week, equivalent to the national living wage up to a maximum of £100,000 per year.  In a couple both parents must be working/in a single parent household, the single parent must be working. 

Everyone will be offered their first 15 hours over 5 mornings or 5 afternoons as detailed above.  If you are offered one of our places for the additional entitlement, it will be made clear which session this applies to, either over the 5 mornings or 5 afternoons. This is because families may find they are no longer eligible for the additional hours during the year and therefore, will need to revert back to their 15 hour entitlement session.  Our school day is 6 hours and 45 minutes, therefore the additional 45 minutes per day can be purchased at an additional cost.

  • 30 hours Lunch cost - £16.25 per week
  • 30 hours Late pick up - 2.45pm - 3.30pm - £6 per day/£15 per week

Admissions for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

Admissions for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities are made directly to the school in the same way as above for all children.  Parents wishing their child to be considered for a place under Admissions Criteria 2, (Social, medical, additional or special need) will need to indicate this on their application form and submit supporting evidence from relevant professionals, such as paediatricians, speech and language therapists, etc. For more information about Special Educational Needs and Disabilities at Dorking Nursery School, please visit our SEND page

Admissions information

  • Please note, applications do not work on a 'first come first served basis'. All applications will close in January prior to the September start date and be considered by the Admissions Panel of the Governing Body.
  • To apply for a place, please complete the online application form, which will submit your application in the round as detailed above.  
  • Please note, there is no onsite parking at Dorking Nursery School. Any family choosing to send their child to Dorking Nursery School will need to adhere to this. 
  • We strongly recommend that you telephone us to arrange to come and see the nursery as well. To arrange a visit, please call the office - contact us.
  • Our fees are reviewed annually and will increase in September 2023. 
  • We are a Cashless school for all payments, for more information about using our SchoolMoney App - click here.

Eligibility for funded entitlements

If you think you might be eligible for any of the funded entitlements, please click on the relevant link below. We will not be able to offer any *FEET funded or *working entitlement places for funded two, three or four year olds without a valid code. 

For more information about how the funded entitlements in Surrey work - visit their website, or visit our Understanding Funded Entitlements page