Guest Posted December 7, 2005 Posted December 7, 2005 I wanted to go to the post box near school to post our letters to santa does anyone know what the adult child ratios would be?
michaelle Posted December 7, 2005 Posted December 7, 2005 I wanted to go to the post box near school to post our letters to santadoes anyone know what the adult child ratios would be? 44305[/snapback] Depends on the age of the children but I would take as many as poss (1-2 or 1-3) and if I can free myself up more the better as you can then talk to the group without having to watch little ones. Dont forget to do a risk assessment I know its a pain but I know of someone who got into lumber about this even for a short walk Have fun
Guest Posted December 7, 2005 Posted December 7, 2005 I believe that the ratio for reception is 1 - 4. that's what we work to anyway
JacquieL Posted December 7, 2005 Posted December 7, 2005 I did this every year and we used to be able to have 4 adults for 30. We didn't ask parents because we wanted the cards to be a suprise. not so this year it is 1-4 and habing to use parents will really spoil it for us. i fully understand about the risks but as thr postbox is just around the corner with no dangerous roads it seems such a shame.
Guest Posted December 7, 2005 Posted December 7, 2005 Depends on the age of the children but I would take as many as poss (1-2 or 1-3) and if I can free myself up more the better as you can then talk to the group without having to watch little ones. Dont forget to do a risk assessment I know its a pain but I know of someone who got into lumber about this even for a short walk Have fun 44308[/snapback] What sort of things do you need on a risk assessment for a local walk that is through a park and along a street path that don't get hardly any traffic. We had 13 children to 7 adults so we was covered for that. I have never done a risk assessment on our local walks other year but must remember to do so now.
Running Bunny Posted December 8, 2005 Posted December 8, 2005 Just thinking quickly whilst on my lunch... You would need to identify the possible risks (lost children, children/staff tripping over, getting knocked down etc) For each one, you should identify the 'outcome' and it's seriousness, for example a child tripping over would need first aid but would not need hospital treatment, lost child would need police involvement, a child getting knocked down would need hospital treatment/could result in death (scary but true!) Then you will need to identify the control measures in place to prevent each one i.e. high staff to child ratios, children wearing high-visibility bibs, staff walking near the traffic, regular headcounts etc. Some settings use scoring systems or traffic light systems to see if the actiivty is high, medium or low risk and will make a decision if the risk is too high whether to do it or not. If you are interested, I'll try and think of the scoring system used and will post it later...
Guest Posted December 8, 2005 Posted December 8, 2005 Our preschool is based in a housing estate, so little but some traffic. Nearby we have postbox, shops, park and beach and outdoor walks are very interesting, educational, healthy and enjoyed on a daily basis. Our risk assesment considers the age/stage of childrens ability to respond to instruction, any known "runners", their understanding of road safety etc. We also have to consider the possibility of dogs who are left to roam off their owners leads . This does make me very cross. Even though a dog may be "good with children" they can be boisterous and knock a group of children over, or a child may have a particular fear of dogs and want to "run off" etc. We always carry a whistle when out on walks and the children are taught that if the whistle is blown they have to stop and go to their nearest adult in a huddle. We have used this strategy successfully when a dog approached the group. Our adult child ratio is decided each time we go out depending on the make-up of the group. I don't think there is any "legally" stated number, just good practice ratio recommendations. The risk assessment is your evidence for insurance cover, should an incident occur and negligence ( excuse spelling) need to be assessed. Peggy
Guest Posted December 9, 2005 Posted December 9, 2005 I agree with what everyone has said. We do a nature walk every week - I am in the process of drawing up a new procedure on this as we walk with a ratio of 1:3, never less as we go to the woods and across an open park. Risks involving dogs is high - as well as dog pooh - one of my child fell onto some the other day - very unpleasant and health issues came into being. IN fact, I nearly got to the stage where I felt this risk was too high but the children love these walks, we see lizards, frogs, newts and an abundant of other wildlife and becuase of some irresponsible owners feel that they are jeopardising our nature walks. How will you go about cleaning pooey shoes before they go back into school? Accidents do happen - we walk with a first aid box, walkie talkies, a whistle, wipes, mobile phone, emergency contact list. All the children wear high visibility flourescent tabards - great buy - £2.50 each, well worth it - means I can see them really well in the woods. You need to think about eventualities such as if a child fell and hurt themselves, do you have enough adults present to a)keep the other children safe direct them back to the school - I know is sounds extreme and your children are a little older than my preschoolers but to be honest I do find it very stressful. I always say that I feel like the queens bodygaurd - I have to continually scan the area for dogs, people, obstacles. Dogs off leads are my particular worry as someone else said, they love to come to the children and some children are frightened which can mean that they automatically make a run for it and of course the dog now thinks he has got a playmate.
Guest Posted December 9, 2005 Posted December 9, 2005 Just thinking quickly whilst on my lunch... You would need to identify the possible risks (lost children, children/staff tripping over, getting knocked down etc) For each one, you should identify the 'outcome' and it's seriousness, for example a child tripping over would need first aid but would not need hospital treatment, lost child would need police involvement, a child getting knocked down would need hospital treatment/could result in death (scary but true!) Then you will need to identify the control measures in place to prevent each one i.e. high staff to child ratios, children wearing high-visibility bibs, staff walking near the traffic, regular headcounts etc. Some settings use scoring systems or traffic light systems to see if the actiivty is high, medium or low risk and will make a decision if the risk is too high whether to do it or not. If you are interested, I'll try and think of the scoring system used and will post it later... 44358[/snapback] Yes please it would be very helpful, had my first attempt to write a risk assessment this evening I will have to get someone to read it through to see what they think, hoping to go on a risk assessement course in Feb 2006 until them I will have to struggle on Many Thanks Rosemarie
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