Applying for a place at our school

Our admissions are controlled through the HCC admissions system. To apply for a place, you need to fill in the county admissions form on-line. In the event that a year is oversubscribed, the county admissions criteria will apply.

Hertfordshire School Admissions

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Applying for a place in our nursery

We look forward to welcoming you and your child to our nursery. We offer flexible nursery hours so you may choose the hours that suit your family. The pattern of attendance can be a combination of any of the morning and/or lunch and/or afternoon sessions, on any of the school days in a week.   At least 15 hours in nursery is necessary for children to get the best out of their nursery experience. If you wish for your child to attend for longer than 15 hours, more hours are available either to purchase or through 30 hours funding, if you are eligible. Once you have been allocated your pattern of attendance, we request that you continue with this for a term unless there are very exceptional circumstances. We offer the option for you to change your child’s nursery hours before the start of each term during the nursery year.

Starting soon

We may have some spaces available for an immediate start, if you would like more information, please contact the school office.

For a September 2026 start in our Nursery

Applications are now live for a September 2026 start.

Please fill in an application form online by following the link below, we will start to allocate hours from 15^th January 2026. We will continue to accept applications and offer places throughout the year until we are full.  Please call the school office on 01763 243392 if you would like to discuss your child’s application, we are always happy to help.

Please complete the application form by clicking on the link below.

Icknield Walk First School Nursery application form

We will acknowledge each application by email.  If you have not heard from us within a week of sending it, please contact the school office by phoning 01763 243392.

If we are oversubscribed our criteria will give preference to children in this order:

1. Children with an Education and Health Care Plan that names the school.
2. Children of staff members at the school.
3. Children who are Rising 3 and already attend our nursery will be guaranteed a place for their second nursery year.
4. Siblings of children in the main school, including those leaving at year 4 and who will no longer be in the school in the next academic year.
5. Children who are looked after and who were children who were looked after but ceased to be so because they were adopted (or became subject to a children arrangement order or a special guardianship order).
6. Children who are ‘at risk’ (or the sibling of a child ‘at risk’) who is the subject of an inter-agency child protection plan.
7. Distance from nursery to home address using Google Maps. We will use post code to post code and the walking route.
8. If there is a tie break for the last place, then we will use a ballot.
9. Any applications received after the closing date will be reorganised following the above criteria and places allocated as spaces become available.

Once we are full, we will keep a waiting list open and will contact you if a space becomes available.

We will contact all applicants soon after the places are allocated to confirm your child’s hours, and we ask that you accept or decline the place as soon as possible so that we can begin to make arrangements for your child’s admission.

If you have any questions about Nursery or Reception admissions, please speak to Mrs Kimsey in the school office for assistance.

If the Nursery is not full in September with children who will be 4 in that academic year, we will also welcome applications from younger children to start the term after their third birthday. They will then stay in nursery until they reach the correct age to enter a Reception class. These children are called ‘Rising 3s’.

Please note, a place at Icknield Walk Nursery School does not guarantee a place in the main school.  You need to re-apply through the Hertfordshire County Council Admissions system for a place in reception class. We will send you reminders about this if you are a nursery parent at our school.

For a September 2027 start in our Nursery

We will accept applications for a place in our nursery, to start in September 2027, from 1^st October 2026 and we will start to allocate places during the autumn term. We will continue to accept applications and offer places throughout the year until we are full. We cannot accept applications for September 2027 entry before 1^st October. The September 2027 intake of applications is for children who will turn 4 between 1^st September 2027-31^st August 2028.

For more information about nursery hours and applying for 30 hours funding application process, please see our Nursery Hours and Funding page.