Lesson Three

Develop Policies and Procedures

Overview

• Health and Safety, risk assessments and accidents, illness and emergencies

• Behaviour

• Safeguarding

• Equal opportunities

• Confidentiality and Data Protection

Overview

As a registered childminder, it is essential that you have written policies and

procedures in place and that you share these with parents as they explain and

demonstrate how you operate your business.

These policies must be created by you and relevant to your setting. Not cut and

pasted from other settings policies.

These policies must have the date written on them and the date the policy is to be

reviewed.

Health and Safety

You will need to carry out a risk assessment of your home both inside and outside

every morning before the children arrive to check that everything is in place e.g.

plug sockets have covers on them, stair gates are in place and cupboard locks are on

etc. Also ensure there is no animal waste in the garden and any containers are

empty of water.

All toys should be regularly checked and cleaned to ensure they are safe for the

children to use and any broken toys will be removed.

Safety equipment appropriate for the age of the children in your care will need to be

used.

Health and Safety cont...

• The outer doors should be secure (locked) at all times and keys easily accessible

• All visitors will need to sign in and out of your premises

• You should have regular fire practices with the children on different days and at different times of the day and record them

• Ensure that your car has a current MOT certificate and is regularly serviced. You will need your car insured for business use

• You will need to carry out regular risk assessments of any outings you take the children on

Safe Supervision - Inside Areas

Guidelines to follow when supervising children inside. You should ensure:

• The premises are secure and children are not able to leave them unsupervised

• Children are under the direct supervision of the childminder or assistant at all

times

• Supervision should be sufficient to ensure that children are safe at all times

Safe Supervision - Outside Areas

Guidelines to follow when supervising children outside. You should ensure:

• Ponds, drains, pools and any natural water are made safe or are inaccessible to

children

• Outdoor water activities are closely supervised at all times

• Greenhouses, garages and sheds are only accessible to children if they are safe

• That any hazardous plants are inaccessible to children

Risk Assessment

Childminders must conduct a risk assessment and review it regularly. A risk

assessment should be conducted at least every 6 months or whenever a new child

arrives.

Whilst these guidelines a good practice, a risk assessment should be carried out

whenever a big change in the setting is made or whenever may be necessary.

Fire Safety

You must display fire evacuation procedures in your home, these need to be clear

enough for an outsider to follow, including a layout of your home.

• Ensure door keys are within easy reach for an adult

• You must provide a fire blanket

• You must have regular fire drills at least ½ termly

• All fire drills must be recorded with dates and timings

Accidents, Illness and Emergencies

As a registered childminder you are legally required to have a valid first-aid

certificate which is on display during working hours. Childminders without a valid

first aid certificate (even for just 1-2 weeks) can face serious problems if Ofsted

come to inspect when the certificate is invalid. We have seen childminders go from

holding a Good rating to Satisfactory simply for not holding a current certificate.

You are required to have a first-aid box that is clearly labelled and easily accessible.

Ensure all parent contact numbers are also with the first-aid box. You will need

written permission from parents to seek emergency treatment for their child if it is

needed.

Accidents, Illness and Emergencies cont...

All accidents, incidents and pre existing injuries will need to be recorded in a page

numbered accident/incident book.

As a registered childcare provider you are required to notify Ofsted of any serious

accidents, illnesses, injuries or the death of any child whilst in your care and any

action you may have taken within 14 days of an incident occurring.

You will need an arrangement with a local childminder to provide emergency back-

up cover if necessary.

If there is an accident that you cannot deal with you will need to ring 999.

Medicine

• Only prescribed medication should be administered. It must be in-date prescribed for the current condition for the child.

• Children’s prescribed medicines are stored in their original containers, are clearly labelled and are inaccessible to the children.

• Parents give prior written permission for the administration of medication.

• The administration is recorded accurately each time it is given and is signed by staff. Parents sign the record book to acknowledge the administration of a medicine.

Medicine cont...

• If a child refuses to take medicine, you should not force them to do so, but should note this in the records

• All medication is stored safely in a locked refrigerator or in the first aid unit or on a shelf inaccessible to the children

• If the administration of a prescribed medication requires medical knowledge, you will need training by a health professional

• Where children are capable of understanding when they need medication, for example with asthma, they should be encouraged to tell you

Behaviour

You will need to set out reasonable limits to manage the behaviour of children and

agree these with parents when discussing childcare requirements. You will also need

a procedure in place for when a child’s behaviour becomes unacceptable. If this

behaviour continues it is recommended you speak to their parents.

•Starting at a new setting

•A new arrival in the family

•A new child starting at the

childminders

•Moving house

•Parents splitting up

•Death in the family

Events that can affect a child’s behaviour:

•Illness

•Abuse

Behaviour cont...

Age related behaviour: 0 to 6 months

•The only way that new babies can communicate is by crying and some do it more than others.

6 to 18 months – the ‘doing’ stage

•They may want to try to feed themselves and become fussy about what they eat. Temper tantrums are a typical behaviour

at this age.

18 months to 3 years – the ‘thinking’ stage

•Around this age children can be testing their boundaries and beginning to understand the cause and effect of doing so.

They will be able to follow simple commands and will be starting to think for themselves. They may want to have some say

in decisions in their lives.

3 to 6 years – the stage of ‘self awareness and imagination’

•Around this age children will be starting to assert their own identity and learning that behaviour has consequences and the

effect that it has on others. They will begin to learn what is and is not socially acceptable behaviour and will be able to

separate reality and fantasy.

Behaviour cont...

On your policy you can list how you will encourage good behaviour

• Being a good role model and will also by setting a good example to the children.

• Give lots of praise and encouragement.

• Try to be consistent when saying “no” and explain reasons why

• Try to involving children in setting and agreeing house rules.

• Set realistic limits taking into account the age of the child and their stage of

development

Safeguarding

As an Ofsted registered childminder you are committed to the safeguarding all of

the children in your care. If you have concerns about a child in your setting you

should discuss this with their parents. If the concerns relate to a child protection

issue then you should follow the Local Safeguarding Children Board procedures.

For more information about local contacts for reporting visit the Resources

and Links section at the bottom of this lesson.

Safeguarding cont...

Areas to consider when writing a Safeguarding Policy are:

• To respect and listen to children and value them as individuals

• To teach them how to stay safe through everyday activities and help them to assess any risks

involved

• To respond to any allegations a child makes or any concerns you have for a child’s welfare

• To work in partnership with parents and carers

• To ensure all confidential information about a child and their family is stored appropriately

• To only share information or concerns with the appropriate agencies

• DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service, (previously known as CRB) is needed for anyone over 16

years of age living at, or connected with, the property.

• To keep up to date with any changes in government guidelines through attending regular training

• To be aware of all of the signs and symptoms of child abuse

• To ensure guidelines for allegations on self are included in policy.

Equal Opportunity

As a registered childminder you will be striving to give all children in your care the opportunity to reach

their full potential. Sometimes this means adapting an activity to meet the child’s needs taking into account

the child’s home language, ability and stage of development, also by providing additional resources or giving

one child more support than others during a particular activity.

All children in your care should be given the opportunity to play with all the toys. No toys are just for girls or

just for boys. Try to ensure your toys reflect positive images of children and people from different cultures

and with different abilities.

No child in your care should be discriminated against in any way, whether for their skin colour, culture,

gender, ability or religion. Any remarks any remarks made by both adults and children that you feel are

inappropriate should be challenged.

Confidentiality

• All information on children and families should be kept in a separate file, securely and treated in

confidence. Information should only be shared if a parent/carer gives permission or there appears to

be a child protection issue. They will be accessible if any information is required for inspection by

Ofsted.

• If you keep records relating to individual children on my computer you will need to ask for the

parent’s permission. The information should be securely stored for example, in password-protected

files.

• You will need to maintain a record of parents’ and any other emergency contact details, the contact

details of the child’s GP and the appropriate consent forms signed by the child’s parent/carer.

Confidentiality cont...

• All significant incidents should be recorded in an incident book and be shared and discussed with

parents.

• As a registered provider you must notify Ofsted of any serious accidents, illnesses, injuries or the

death of any child whilst in your care, and any action you may have taken, within 14 days of an incident

occurring.

• If you need of support or advice regarding a serious illness or incident involving a child in my care you

can contact Front Door, in the first instance, who will log the information.