2 Staff Per Session...

[Guest]

you would think so wouldn't you... maybe worth asking just in case it is!

Edited August 3, 2009 by samfrostie

[sunnyday]

Well you'd think so wouldn't you. Have emailed the man responsible and heard nothing. EYAT did say when she came to do EYQISP that it was a 'problem at the moment'. We get the occasional letter telling us about a training 'on Tuesday' (when it's Friday) and when we ring we find it's full, so..... I'd say, we haven't done our training allotment doody thingy this time, externally that is, I've done some 'fireside' trainings on Mosaic observation and EYFS, etc and EYAT seemed happy with that. Nothing else she could say really, was there!

Give them a ring? Easy to ignore emails - not so easy to ignore a frazzled practitioner on the end of the phone!!!

[Cait]

haha I'll do that if there's no indication of anything by the time we go back.

[chasrosam]

I have to say I'm a little confused !?~?!

 

Even in a larger setting with more staff it is impossible to ensure that a staff member is not alone with the children. We are a large pre-school with up to 40 children and 6 staff in one session but are spread over 3 interconnecting rooms, a freeflow area and a larger seperate playground.

 

With a member of staff in each room, one in the freeflow area and one doing cafe style snack leaves one member ( who is trying to answer phone, toilet runs, change clothing, focus activity, mop floor from spills etc, etc, etc, etc ). If we have to have 2 members of staff in each area we would not be able to let the children access all our space, we have also been advised by our Early Years Advisors that the children should have some time when they are not being watched i.e. hiding places, dark dens and arranging furniture to provide hidden places.

 

When we also began to develop our freeflow play we were advised that one member of staff outside was ok as they could call for assistance if required. Like Cait said - we risk assess all the time to ensure our environment is as safe as possible, where do we draw the line!!!

 

One question - What is the general practice for changing children and being in the toilets on your own in your settings ?

 

Sorry about the rant but conflicting messages seem to be doing the rounds

[sunnyday]

Staff members are always alone when nappy changing - we don't have other children using the toilet area at this time either - to maintain privacy for the child who is being changed.......

 

This certainly had Ofsted approval at our last pre EYFS inspection - be interesting to see if others have a different 'take' on this

[Panders]

All CRB checked staff are allowed to change nappies on their own, we do deter other children from entering the changing area at the same time. If a member of staff did not wish to be on their own at this time, we would simply stand outside the loo whilst she changed the nappy, engaging with any other children who had come out to the hallway area where the loos are

[fimbo]

in my setting we are alone with the child if they need changing, the door to the bathroom is half glazed so we can be seen from the main room -and we always leave it ajar and position ourselves so we can be seen but the child cant iyswim ! all our staff are CRB checked etc and parents on duty / students etc are not allowed into the childrens bathrooms at all.

 

with regards to the ratio issue - i dont think the concern is neccesarily being alone with a child, as that could happen no matter how many staff you have in your setting - from my point of view i think the problems may arise when you only have 2 members of staff and 1 of them is trying to answer the telephone, ,do toilet runs, change clothing from water play or other, adult led activity, mop floor from spills, speak to parents etc. this could leave one member of staff to do all the other things -playing and interacting with the children, dealing with any disputes or squabbles etc.

 

how would you ensure you are doing your job to the best of your abilities? how would it work if child A wanted a story in the book corner ,child B needed changing and child C + D were arguing in the sandtray ?

 

i think it also depends on the children you have in your setting - sometimes age may not be the issue - you may have a group of children who like lots of interaction, or children who need your attention.

 

but i can see it from the other side too - if there are not enough children in each session to cover the cost of an extra member of staff -and you are working within the guidelines for ratios ,then im not sure how you could get around it. was there any paticular reason why a rota parent was dismissed by the commitee -we have rota parents and they are a godsend -washing paint and glue pots, naming and dating artworks, reading, palying with the children etc. we dont find it difficult to manage -and yes, sometimes we do have someone call in sick or not turn up - but you can manage these days as you now that its only one day.

 

crikey -that turned out a bit longer than anticipated !!

[Guest]

i have not read all threads but skim read a few

 

a. why dont you want a parent in ? seems to me that would save having to employ and help with ratios, which must be addressed. You can leave yourself open or at risk from accusations when you are left alone with a child, parents are a real asset

 

b. i have level 2 cert in food and hygiene , i have cascaded the info down to staff and regular parent helpers who now prepare snacks this was fine with enviromental health that inspected a little while ago

[Guest]

sorry ment to also say

CRB are only as good as the day they are done

they only catch people who have already been conficted or have had some previous record

we also need good history and referances as well