FAQs

• The Early Years Foundation for children aged 3 and 4 in our Nursery and Reception classes, which we call the Pre-Prep.
• The National Curriculum for England for children aged 5 to 15, available from Year 1 to Year 11, leading to the IGCSE programme. For IGCSE we use Cambridge International Examinations and Pearson (Edexcel).
• Bilingual Curriculum for children aged 6 to 14, available from 1º to 9º anos.
• International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (DP) and Career-related Programme (CP) for ages 16 years and up, available in Years 12 and 13.

Both the National Curriculum for England and the Bilingual Curriculum culminate in the IB Diploma or the IB Career-related Programme in Years 12 and 13.

Our Primary and Secondary programmes are organised according to age and parents’ choice:

Primary-aged pupils
Ages 3 to 9/10 include Early Foundation Years (Nursery and Reception), from Year 1 to 6 and 1º ciclo (1º to 4º ano).

Secondary-aged students
Ages 10/11 to 18, include Year 7, 11, 2º and 3º ciclos (5º to 9º ano) and the IB Diploma Programme (DP) and Career-related Programme (CP).

• Children can start school at 3 years old.
• Our policy regarding age boundaries reflects British practice for admission in Foundation and the English National Curriculum programmes. The cut-off date is 31 August: a child must be 3 years old on 31 August to enter Nursery.
• For admission to the Bilingual Programme, the age cut-off date is 31 December. To enter the Bilingual Programme in 1º ano, the child must be 5 years old on 31 December.

Your child’s date of birth is the first indicator for the admission year level. Please refer to the Year group comparison table below.

In the students’ best interests, the only planned transition points are:

• From Reception and Year 1 to 1º ano.
• From 9º ano to Year 11.

Changes are not normally permitted outside of these points.

We are proud to have students from over 60 different nationalities. All our children integrate and thrive thanks to our welcoming, international ethos. The largest proportion is Portuguese, with just over 50%, followed by the next largest groups, which are British, American, Brazilian, and Chinese.

Primary

• Nursery & Reception: 8.20 – 3.00 (1.30 on Friday)
• Reception: 8.20 – 3.00 (1.30 on Friday)
• Year 1 & 2 and 1º ano:  8.20 – 3.15 (1.40 on Friday)
• Year 3 to 5 and 2º to 4º ano: 8.20 – 3.30 pm (2.00 on Friday)
• Year 6: 8.20 – 4.00(2.00 on Friday)

Secondary

• Year 7/ 5º ano to Year 13: 8.20 – 4.00 (2.00 on Friday)

Yes, you can find out all the information you need on our transport page.

No, we are a day school only.

Yes, a variety of hot and cold lunches are offered at an additional cost. For 2025/26, lunch costs €1,209 per year for Nursery to Year 1 and €1,410 per year for Year 2/1º ano and above. Parents can choose to use the school lunch service on a daily basis as well, in which case the price is €9.00 per day.  Secondary-aged students can choose to have lunch or morning and afternoon snacks from our Soft Rock Café, from a variety of warm and cold take-away options.

To ensure individual attention, Nursery classes have a maximum of 15 children, and 18 for Reception. In both Nursery and Reception, each class is supported by a Teacher and a Teaching Assistant. Nursery also benefits from a dedicated Care Assistant. Furthermore, throughout Prep-Prep and Prep, pupils have access to a team of specialists, including teachers for Portuguese, PE, Music, Library, Counsellors, EAL and Learning Support.

For Year 1 and above, the maximum for class sizes adjusts for the year group. Typically, classes are smaller in the Pre-Prep and gradually increase in later years, but always remain at or below a maximum of 22 children.

St. Julian’s is a non-denominational school with a Catholic foundation and heritage. We mark the major Christian festivals you would expect in a British international school, such as Christmas and Easter. However, we are a diverse and inclusive community, respectful of all faiths and beliefs. While we do not provide formal religious instruction or spiritual guidance for all children, we aim to accommodate reasonable requests from parents and students relating to their own religious practices.