How Long To Set Up? In A Pack Away Setting

[Guest]

i know all settings are different but how long do pack away settings get to set up and pack away at the begining and end of each day? i would be very interested to know as i had a very heated discussion with my chair in the middle of a committee meeting with her saying that she thinks 15 mins is too long for 4 members of staff to set up. we have always had this amount of time and this is how long it takes us and we don't have any time to spare. i'm really angry with lots that went on at the meeting but wont go into all of it but this was the last straw for me. i have invited the chair in to witness us setting up but funnily enough she didn't take me up on it! am i being unreasonable? i'm feeling like what is it all worth at the moment i work so many hours unpaid as do all of us i know but my staff don't ask for paid time at home for preparing any activities or buying snack or key person homework and are the best team so WHY DO A COMMITTEE HAVE THE POWER TO ROCK THE BOAT WHEN THEY HAVE NO CLUE sorry for the rant and thanks for listening

[HappyMaz]

I'm a packaway, and the amount of time spent setting up in the morning varies depending on the day and what is going on. However I've just worked it out and we spend six and three quarter hours a week setting up.

 

Four days a week two of us get there half an hour early to set up, with other staff members arriving between ten and 25 minutes before the start of the session. Our Senior Practitioner has a day off on Wednesdays and I set up by myself for half an hour, otherwise the total figure for setting up time would be seven and a half hours a week. Another staff member reduced her hours this term, which resulted in a loss of another hour and a quarter's set up time.

 

That would bring my total setting up time to eight and three quarter hours per week. So if you're doing it in an hour a day then I'd say you're dong very well!

 

Glad you feel better for a rant!

[Guest Spiral]

My first experiences were in a pack away setting and it took two staff 45+ minutes to get us set up each day. Your committee may like to have a bash at it themselves? We struggled and it was a H&S nightmare too.

 

So many concerns about the nature of early years and the reasons behind having committees. Some work, but the majority are very difficult to please and to allow you to do your job once they know they are your employer.

 

Best of luck there,

Spiral.

[Guest]

thank you happy maz i feel better already! for some reason they seem to really want their pound of flesh with lots of justification ! if they are not careful i may jot down just how many hours i do above and beyond the call of duty and bill them for that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Panders]

I'm a packaway I get in an hour before everyone else and set up, then when they come in we make sure we put out what we feel the children's interests will be following - within reason anyway- and packing away we can do a fair amount before the end of the session without it impacting on the children and what they are doing but the heavy stuff has to wait, but with all of us there this takes about 15 minutes.

 

I would love help setting up, but it's not practical with my staff at the moment because they have young children at school and need to drop there first.

[HappyMaz]

I will never ever work in a packaway setting ever again! Apart from anything else I'm getting too old for this malarkey!

[Froglet]

I'm not in a pack away setting at all (although at lunch time there are two sittings of sandwiches in my class so I do have to have a complete put away and set out then) but I just wanted to say I'm in awe at the idea of you guys getting set up in just 15 minutes. It takes me at least half an hour each morning to set out the basics and more if I want to get all the extra bits out too (and that's half an hour of uninterrupted focusing on it).

[Inge]

we had half hour , three staff, and often a student at each end of the day so in total an hour a day... they came in with their school children and one of them took the children to school at right time, but we were next door so it was easy, the one with children at a different school came in when she had dropped them off so it was 15 mins for her.. after school the children came round to us.

 

sometimes it didn't take this long, other days longer.. if we were fast gave us time for a quick meeting before the session or after for anything we wanted to discuss.

 

I too would suggest that she did it for one day to see for herself.. or whole committee... if not how about a list of everything you do in set up time with some sort of explanation as to why you need 2 for some jobs etc.. I know this may take time to do but to list all the elements of the setting up shows where time goes..

 

Inge

[Guest Spiral]

Getting set up/Packing away was the most difficult job I ever had - physical, brainwork (making sure we had the correct furniture/posters etc out), happiness with children then physical again. EXHAUSTED - all for a two and a half hour play session.

 

However, I do miss the team spirit and laughter - especially when it all fell over and we had to either laugh or cry!

 

Spiral x

[Guest]

We are completely pack away with various cupboards located around the village hall. We start with an empty space and fill it. Three staff one hour at the start and the same at the end and it's hard going....every day nothing can be left out!

[suebear]

Packaway too, get paid 30mins before and 15mins at the end of the session. But realistically it takes a lot longer especially if setting up the outside area too. I love the snow for that - outside area is already set up sadly the time it saved was spent trying to reach the place!

[Guest]

We are NOT a packaway and our staff have 15 mins in the morning for set up so for us thats 1hr and 15 mins paid a day for this. I am committee and we have had lots of set toos with staff management on committee issues but I think the most important thing is that they really understand what is going on. If they dont want to listen to you how about getting in your council preschool business advisor or Advisory Teacher to put something in writing that you can take to committee. Good luck and dont give up sounds like your doing a fab job x

[Alison]

we have 4 staff and take 30 minutes to set up and about 1 hour to put away we start putting away part way through the session so the children can help us

 

I think asking the committee to try setting up the room themselves could be a valuable exercise cus if they can find a way to do it any quicker then great

[Lyanne]

Like Rollercoaster, we're not packaway. Though we've not timed it, it must take at least 15 minutes to set up at the beginning of the day - H&S checks done, cushions & chairs back out from previous night's cleaning, activities & resources set out, outside equipment dried off & set out...

[louby loo]

We're packaway. Everything and I mean everything has to be put away.

Set-up- 3 staff 1 hour + 2 staff 15mins.

we pack away most during the session, but all 5 staff 15mins at end of session.

[Guest]

Hi, we are packaway but we can often leave stuff out, depends on what is going on in the hall. We give staff half an hour each end of the day, if they don't need it all for set up there is always other stuff that needs doing, e.g. profiles, making themselves a cup of tea.

 

Not all committees are as awful as yours. I often go in and help out on a day when I know they will be pushed for time.

[Fredbear]

Hi we are packaway of a large hall, and a smaller room. I have one member of staff that comes in at 8.00am with me. Other staff arrive at 8.30am each session.

The person that comes in early is then able to take her children to school once the others arrive. This works well for us and each setting will be unique both in size, type of equipment on offer both in and outdoors.

Some of our equipment needs two people to carry it.

Ours is a total blank canvas so the one good thing is that it does it enable us to be fresh and new each day.

The hard bit is the lifting of equipment and so we have as many things on wheels as we possibly can.

Um i wonder if i could go in on rollerskates, ha ha.

 

No seriously i do feel your Chairperson or another representative of your committee needs to come in and see how much you do before all the children arrive and they may actually change their minds very quickly.

Wishing you well with this.

[korkycat]

We are a small setting and mornings can take up to 2hours (shared between 3 staff) depending on what we need to do (make paint etc). We are not packaway as such but have so little space we have to move things throughout sesion depending on what is happening. We also have to clean setting so at end have up to 25 minutes (if children leave on time) between 2 or 3 staff to clean up. Any time spared is used to 'deep clean' certain areas we have a list). Staff all work a mixture of 'long' or 'short' sessions so that work is shared out. Committee more than happy to pay for it. Outside setting up is very variable and weather dependant sometimes not done until children arrive as they have to walk through garden to door and we find that it can be scattered by children before we open!

korkycat

[Bigsue]

My first experiences were in a pack away setting and it took two staff 45+ minutes to get us set up each day. Your committee may like to have a bash at it themselves? We struggled and it was a H&S nightmare too.

 

So many concerns about the nature of early years and the reasons behind having committees. Some work, but the majority are very difficult to please and to allow you to do your job once they know they are your employer.

 

Best of luck there,

Spiral.

 

Sounds similar to us I arrive at 7.10 children arrive at 9.05 other staff 8.50 my first job is full risk assessment of building as used by others that allown can take 15 minutes, then setting up starts.

 

Sometimes when I am on my own I must admit I am a little naughty on H & S (that my personal safety) but when I do it I hear my husband in my head moaning and bottom line hes SO RIGHT!!

My senior staff member arrives at about 7.40 niether of us are paid until 8.00 as there isn't enough money in the budget

Its my bussines so need to makine it work so I just do it

Sue

[SazzJ]

Alls I can say IS DON'T GIVE UP

 

To put it nicely I had a year of hell with the committee but keep going.

 

As you said write down all you hours you work and see what they say to that. At our last meeting the chair turned around and said - ohh through reading the policies I now understand why they do it.

 

Fight your battle all the way

 

We didn't get planning time but for some reason session times were 9:20 to 12:30 and people and funding only covered 2 1/2 hours. After battling for a year I managed to change the time and we now have 30 mins at end of session to sit down as a staff team though in this weather I have been sending the staff home early.

 

My deputy arrives at 8 to start - her choice with rest of staff arriving at 8:30 so we have 45 mins to set up and buy do we need it