Nursery Spot for 3 Year Old /Arriving Past Application Date

My son is 3 and we may be relocating this Summer to the UK on a Tier 2 Visa.  I read about the free early learning program in the UK for all 3 and 4 year olds for 15 hours of free nursery per week.  
The application date has just passed for nursery starting in September, but as new residents, could we apply late or be put on a waiting list when we arrive in August?   It seems that if you have recently moved to the area, you might be able to do this, but there is nothing specific on the council's website.
I will call the council on Monday, but wondered if anyone has been in a similar situation and what happened. 
Thanks!

we did something similar to that.  We came over on Tier 2 and called the council and schools when we arrived.  The "school based" nursery said they could put us on a waiting list for the fall and then DD could definitely start in Jan and the private nurseries said we'd have to pay until the new term of funding started.  Well, one in the council next to ours said they may backdate the funding but we never followed up because within a few week the school based one called and offered us a spot to start right away.  I think because it is attached to the school the funding works different as far as private nurseries getting paid.  We are in Manchester btw.  Its worth calling around and asking.

Check the Netmums site for other locations in that area offering Nursery provision, it's not just a nursery class attached to a primary school that gets this funding.  For example I work at a term-time only playgroup which covers children aged 27 months through the July after they turn 3 so covers Nursery year.  The funding is applied for by the setting slightly after the term starts (think we do the Autumn term ones in early October) so if you can get a place starting before that you should be fine. 

All Early Years settings (School-attached Nursery classes, Playgroups, Preschools, Private Nursery Schools, Day Nurseries) that are for children under aged 5 have to by law use the same curriculum in England and Wales, called the Early Years Foundation Stage.  So really they will get the same experience of learning through play no matter where they go.

Thank you both for responding -- it eased me over the weekend
I did call the council where we plan to live and they told me in September and October there will be spaces that open up and I should apply to as many places as possible.  Apparently some nurseries hold a couple spots and she said that some families will have a spot at a nursery, but if they find a better one, their spot becomes available when they don't turn up. 
My son attended a day nursery from 7 months to nearly 2 years old when we lived in London before, but it was a private nursery.  Now that he's 3, I have more options, which is nice.
I liked the nursery system in the UK.  I did not realise, however, that the programs were the same across the board (not counting some private or faith based ones, perhaps?).  It seemed more play/creativity based and the 3 to 5's were together -- they seemed to learn from each other.
Thanks for the letting me know about mumsnet to explore other options.  I used this site when I was expecting and right after having my son.  It was a great source!

Don't worry about being past the application date. We were in the same spot last year. When I arrived I just explained that we had just moved from abroad and it was usually not a problem. I do highly recommend looking at the preschools before enrolling. Many of the places that looked fine on the internet were not at all fine when I toured (whole different level of hygiene and attention to safety at many places). Good luck!