Noncollection of Children Policy

 Statement of intent

In the event that a child is not collected by an authorised adult at the end of a session we put into practice agreed procedures. These ensure the child is cared for safely by an experienced and qualified practitioner who is known to the child.

Aim

In the event that a child is not collected by an authorised adult, we will ensure that the child receives a high standard of care in order to cause as little distress as possible. We inform parents/carers of our procedures so that, if they are unavoidably delayed, they will be reassured that their children will be properly cared for.

Method

• Parents of children starting at pre-school are asked to provide specific information which is recorded on our Registration Form, including:

• home address and telephone number - if the parents do not have a telephone, an alternative number must be given, perhaps a neighbour or close relative

• place of work, address and telephone number (if applicable)

• mobile telephone number (if applicable)

• names, addresses, and telephone numbers of adults who are authorised by the parents to collect their child from pre-school , for example a childminder or grandparent

• information about any person who does not have legal access to the child

• who has parental responsibility for the child

• On occasions when parents are aware that they will not be at home or in their usual place of work we record how they can be contacted.

• On occasions when parents or the persons normally authorised to collect the child are not able to collect the child, we record the name, address and telephone number of the person who will be collecting their child. We agree with parents how to verify the identity of the person who is to collect their child.

• Parents are informed that if they are not able to collect the child as planned, they must inform us so that we can begin to take back-up procedures. We provide parents with our contact telephone number. We also inform parents that - in the event that their children are not collected from pre-school by an authorised adult and the staff can no longer supervise the child on our premises - we follow the following procedures:

• Records are checked for any information about changes to the normal collection routines.

• If no information is available, parents/carers are contacted at home or at work.

• If this is unsuccessful, the adults who are authorised by the parents to collect their child from pre-school and whose telephone numbers are recorded on the Registration Form are contacted.

• All reasonable attempts are made to contact the parents or nominated carers.

• If no-one collects the child after one hour and there is no-one who can be contacted to collect the child, we contact our Children’s Social Care Local Office on 01258 472652.

• The child stays at pre-school in the care of ideally two fully-vetted workers until the child is safely collected either by the parents or by a social care worker. If staff are unable to remain with the child for a prolonged period of time advice will be sought from Children’s Social Care on the course of action to be taken.

• Social care workers will aim to find the parent or relative. If they are unable to do so, the child will be admitted into the care of the local authority.

• A full written report of the incident is recorded in the child’s file.

• Depending on circumstances, we reserve the right to charge parents for the additional hours worked by our staff.

• Ofsted may be informed .

This policy was adopted at a meeting of Larksmead Pre-school

Held on: 15^th July 2008

 

This policy was reviewed on 23rd January 2009