What is it? And why is it important?
At CAPs, we endeavour to excel in every way possible: excellent childcare, well balanced parent inclusion, happy staff and full compliance with all relevant, current legislation and ‘best practice’. We strive for what’s best for our little people, their families and our staff.
Introduction to CAPs Policies & Procedures
Policies and procedures are essential to help CAPs provide good quality provision that is compliant with the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). They do this by explaining to staff and parents about the type of childcare you offer and what actions you take in practice to achieve this. The EYFS requires us, to have written policies and procedures; and to provide staff with training at induction to ensure that they fully understand, and know how to implement, the policies and procedures and to ensure that they are accessible and clearly explained to parents.
The EYFS outlines the learning and development, assessment, and safeguarding and welfare requirements that all early years providers on the Early Years Register must meet to ensure children learn and develop well and are kept healthy and safe.
There are ten overarching Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements within the EYFS, some of which are broken down into further headings, as follows:
- Child protection: Providers must be alert to any issues for concern in the child’s life at home or elsewhere. Providers must have and implement a policy, and procedures, to safeguard children.
- Suitable People (also covering Disqualification and Staff Taking Medication/Other Substances): Providers must ensure that people looking after children are suitable to fulfil the requirements of their roles.
- Staff Qualifications, Training, Support and Skills: The daily experience of children in early years settings and the overall quality of the provision depends on all practitioners having appropriate qualifications, training, skills and knowledge and a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities.
- Key Person: Each child must be assigned a key person. The childminder will be the key person for the children they care for in the case of childminding settings. Their role is to help ensure that every child’s care is tailored to meet their individual needs, to help the child become familiar with the setting, offer a settled relationship for the child and build a relationship with their parents.
- Staff:Child Ratios (also covering early years providers (other than childminders), before/afterschool care and holiday provision and childminders): Staffing arrangements must meet the needs of children and ensure their safety.
- Health (also covering Medicines, Food and Drink and Accident or Injury): The provider must promote the good health of children attending the setting. They must have a procedure, discussed with parents and/or carers, for responding to children who are ill or infectious, take necessary steps to prevent the spread of infection and take appropriate action if children are ill.
- Managing Behaviour: Providers are responsible for managing children’s behaviour in an appropriate way.
- Safety and Suitability of Premises, Environment and Equipment (also covering Safety, Smoking, Premises, Risk Assessment and Outings): Providers must ensure that their premises, including outdoor spaces, are fit for purpose. Providers must have, and implement a health and safety policy, and procedures, which cover identifying, reporting and dealing with accidents, hazards and faulty equipment.
- Special educational needs: Providers must have arrangements in place to support children with SEN or disabilities. Providers who are funded by the local authority to deliver early education places must have regard to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Code of Practice.
- Information and Records (also covering Information About the Child, Information for Parents and Carers, Complaints, Information About the Provider and Changes that Must be Notified to Ofsted or the relevant childminder agency): Providers must maintain records and obtain and share information (with parents and carers, other professionals working with the child, and the police, social services and Ofsted as appropriate) to ensure the safe and efficient management of the setting, and to help ensure the needs of all children are met.
We must meet all the statutory requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage and must take all necessary steps to keep children safe and well. Each of the policies and procedures that we are required to have (and others where they are considered ‘best practice’), are printed in hard copy in setting (for all staff to access), saved on DropBox (for the administrator and trustees to access) and available on our website under ‘Good Governance’ for parents and the wider community to access).
We are also required to assess risks to children’s safety and review risk assessments regularly; making written risk assessments in relation to specific issues where we determine it will be helpful.
For each policy, the overarching policy statement is set out at the start of each section, followed by the relevant procedure describing how the policy will be fulfilled in a consistent and standardised way. References to relevant legislation or guidance are then included at the end of each policy. Staff and parents are included in adopting, implementing and reviewing policies so that all adults involved in the pre-school can influence the way the setting is run.
- Adopting policies: Copies of any amendments to policies and procedures are presented to trustees (parent volunteers) and staff to be reviewed and considered before adoption
- Implementing policies: All new employees and volunteers are introduced to the setting’s policies and procedures as part of the induction process. All new parents should be informed of and encouraged to read the setting’s policies and procedures – which are available via weblinks below, and via email or hard copy upon request. All employees and volunteers are made aware of the content of the policies and procedures, and their role and responsibility in implementing them.
- Reviewing policies: Each policy and procedure is regularly monitored by collecting evidence about the results of its implementation. This evidence is then used to make any necessary changes to the policy and procedure and/or the way it is implemented. Staff and parents (volunteer trustees) contribute to the evidence collected and share in decisions about any necessary changes.
Included below are all the below policies and procedures required by the Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements and the Learning and Development Requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Also below are additional policies and procedures that CAPs and/or the EYA feel help promote ‘best practice’.
- Administering Medicines Policy
- Admissions Policy
- Animals In Setting Policy
- Bereavement Policy
- British Values Policy
- Children’s Records Policy
- Children’s Rights and Entitlements Policy
- Closure & Session Amendments Policy
- Confidentiality & Client Access to Records Policy
- DBS Checks Policy
- Dependants Policy
- Early Years Prospectus Policy
- Emergency Lockdown Policy
- Employment Policy
- Expenses Policy
- Financial Reserves Policy
- Fire Safety & Emergency Evacuation Policy
- First Aid Policy
- Food & Drink Policy
- Food Hygiene Policy
- GDPR Policy
- Garden Safety Policy
- Health & Safety General Standards Policy
- Induction of Staff & Volunteers Policy
- Information Sharing Policy
- Looked After Children Policy
- Maintaining Children’s Safety & Security on Premises Policy
- Making A Complaint Policy
- Managing Children who are Sick, Infectious or with Allergies Policy
- Missing Child Policy
- Nappy Changing Policy
- No Smoking Policy
- Online Safety Policy (incl. Phones & Cameras)
- Parent Partnership Policy
- Privacy Notice Parents Policy
- Promoting Positive Behaviour Policy
- Provider Records Policy
- Recording & Reporting Accidents & Incidents Policy
- Risk Assessment Policy
- Safeguarding Children Policy
- Social Media Policy
- Staff Safety Policy
- Staffing Ratios Policy
- Student Placements Policy
- Supervision of Children on Outings & Visits Policy
- Supporting Children with Special Educational Needs Policy
- Transfer of Records to School Policy
- Uncollected and Late Collection of Child Policy
- Valuing Diversity and Promoting Equality Policy
- Visitors Policy
- Whistleblowing Policy
- Working in Partnership with Other Agencies Policy
- Younger Siblings Policy
For more information about Good Governance in Pre-schools: