ARRIVALS AND COLLECTION POLICY

Contents

  1. Arrivals
  2. Collections
  3. Late collection or non collection
  4. To report a concern
  5. Adults arriving under the influence of alcohol or drugs
  6. Arrivals and departures of visitors 

Arrivals

A full day at The Crown Nursery is 8am to 6pmThe ‘morning only sessions’ start at 7.55am and the afternoon sessions begin at 1pm. Parents/carers are also able to opt for an early drop of time of 7.45am, these are charged at £2 per session.

Parents/carers are expected to arrive at nursery on time, as late arrivals can be very disruptive during sessions. They will pass the care of their child to a specific member of staff, usually the child’s key person.  The staff member receiving the child will immediately record their arrival in the daily attendance register and will encourage the child to self-register. The staff member also records any specific information provided by the parents and is responsible for communicating this to other staff members if necessary.  On arrival children are helped to settle and are encouraged to engage in an activity.  If a child is very distressed at drop off time parents/carers are welcome to stay for a short period until their child feels more secure.

 Collection

The nursery day finishes at 6pm and parents/carers are expected to collect their children on time and leave the nursery setting promptly.

 The child’s key person or other nominated staff member must plan the departure of the child.  They must ensure the child has all their belongings including bags, coats, comforters and must return any medicines.

They should also have a brief discussion with the parent/carer about their child’s day.  Topics for discussion may include;

  • meals
  • sleep time
  • activities enjoyed that day
  • specific interests
  • progress
  • friendships
  • medicine (also see medicine policy)
  • accidents or incidents and the appropriate records must be signed by the parent before departure.

 The nursery will not release a child to anyone other than the known parent/carer, unless an agreement has been made at the time of arrival. In the case of an emergency such as a parent being delayed, another designated adult can collect a child but this must have been communicated with nursery staff beforehand.  If the adult is unknown to the staff, photo identification or a password are also required.  If in any doubt the nursery will check the person’s identity by ringing the child’s parent/carer or their emergency contact number (please also refer to information on late collection).

 On departure, the staff member releasing the child must mark the child out on the daily register immediately.

Late Collection or Non Collection

At The Crown Nursery we expect all parents to agree to collect their child from the nursery promptly. We give parents information about the procedures to follow if they expect to be late. These include:

  • Calling the nursery as soon as possible to advise of their situation
  • Asking a designated adult to collect their child in the event that they will be late
  • The designated adult must be known to the child
  • Informing the nursery of this person’s identity so the nursery can talk to the child if appropriate. This will help to reduce or eliminate any distress caused by this situation
  • If the designated person is not known to the nursery staff, the parent must provide a detailed description or photograph of this person.
  • If providing a detailed description or photograph is not possible the designated person must know the individual child’s safety password in order for the nursery to release the child into their care. This is the responsibility of the parent.

 If a child has not been collected from the nursery we initiate the following procedure:

  • The nursery manager will be informed that a child has not been collected
  • The manager will check for any information regarding changes to normal routines, parents’ work patterns or general information
  • The manager will try to contact the parents on the telephone numbers provided for their mobile, home or work. If this fails the manager will try the emergency contacts shown on the child’s records
  • The manager/staff member in charge and one other member of staff must stay behind with the child (if outside normal operating hours). During normal operating times, the nursery will plan to meet required staff ratios
  • If the parents have still not collected the child, the manager will telephone all contact numbers available every 10 minutes until contact is made. These calls will be logged on a full incident record
  • The nursery will start to charge late fees if parents are more than 15mins late to collect their child.  Fees are charged at £10 for every 15mins for example; 15-30mins late will cost £10, 30-45mins late will cost £20, 45-1hr late will cost £30 and so on.  This is to pay for additional operational costs.
  • In the event of no contact being made after one hour has lapsed, the person in charge will ring the local authority children’s social services emergency duty team
  • The nursery will inform Ofsted as soon as convenient
  • The two members of staff will remain in the building until suitable arrangements have been made for the collection of the child
  • The child’s welfare and needs will be met at all times and to minimise distress staff will distract, comfort and reassure the child during the process

 To report a concern

Contact the Single Point of Access for Richmond by telephone.

Monday to Thursday, 8am – 5.15pm             020 8547 5008

Friday, 8am to 5pm

Out of hours                                                    020 8770 5000

 OFSTED                                                           0300 123 1231

Adults arriving under the influence of alcohol or drugs

If parents appear to be under the influence of alcohol or drugs staff must make a judgement as to whether it is safe for a child to return home.  In order that children are protected staff must inform the DSL, who may contact the Single Point of Access to inform the Local Authority about their concerns.  If the DSL is not available, staff themselves are required to report heavily influenced parents.

Arrivals and departures of visitors

The Crown Nursery requires appropriate records to be completed by all visitors, as they arrive and leave the premises. Please refer to supervision of visitors’ policy