Keeping children safe is the most important thing we do, and whilst
Safeguarding has always been our top priority; we felt within the current
climate it was important to outline our approach for your piece of mind. Our
Designated Safeguarding Officer at Stationhouse Nursery is Jade Evans, the
Nursery Leader. If you are ever worried about anything or see anything concerning,
please talk to her; you can also contact Emma Jones, Nursery Leader of Lakehouse
Nursery if this is more appropriate.
We take our safer recruitment procedures very seriously and have a robust system
for checking the suitability of our team, from the initial stages of the application
and interview processes and throughout their time as part of our team. Every member
of staff has been checked through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS), and
an enhanced police check has been obtained before they start working with us. We
also require 2 satisfactory references that are verbally followed up by our Nursery
Managers before they are able to start working with us too. Although DBS checks
are only required at the beginning of each staff member’s employment, we have
committed to doing these DBS checks more often as an extra layer of safety. In
addition, we have ongoing suitability checks that are completed twice yearly.
Ensuring our team are well-equipped and confident in dealing with safeguarding
issues is essential. We have always committed to enhanced training for all our
staff with each of them completing a level 2 certificate in Safeguarding and
Child Protection annually, alongside other specific training around our
responsibilities in regard to the Prevent Duty. Each of our Room Leaders have
attended an Interagency Child Protection course and all our Designated or Deputy
Designated Safeguarding officers have attended the Advanced Inter-agency Child
Protection course and attend 6 monthly Safeguarding Cluster meetings too. Every
member of the team holds a Paediatric First Aid certificate which is refreshed
every 3 years – we also run First Aid courses for parents too.
Safeguarding children is also recognising when adults in their lives are struggling.
This is really common and we are on hand to offer advice and support for a whole
range of parenting issues from weaning and feeding, sleeping, tackling tricky
behaviour to developmental concerns. We are also able to signpost parents who
need Confidential specialist support, for example those suffering from anxiety,
depression and those experiencing trauma.
Whilst we are a Private day nursery, we do run a Lakehouse Nurseries Ltd Foundation.
This foundation can help with financial support to pay for activities, food and
resources and in some cases to subsidise fees for those on low income and children
requiring additional support. We accept 0 to 2, 2 year old and 3 to 5 year old
Government funding for those aged 3 to 5. Please speak to the Nursery Leader on
application.
Stationhouse has security systems in place to ensure that nobody gains access
to the nursery premises that are not authorised to do so. Door codes are not
shared externally, and our main office is always manned so we can greet everyone
before drop off and collection – this also helps us to get to know you better
and to be there for questions, advice and support. At present due to Covid-19
safety protocols, each room has their own entrance, each door is fitted with a
nest camera and doorbell so the team can check who is at the door before they
take the children out to greet their parents or carers.
We understand that someone else might need to collect your child from nursery,
either on a regular or ad-hoc basis. For this reason, when children first start
with us, we ask you to set up a password and give us the names of people who are
authorised to collect your child. We will always need you to inform us on the day
if this is happening so we are able to do the relevant safety checks before we
allow them to leave with your child.
We always tell our parents that our nurseries are not risk free. Judging risk is
a skill children need to develop in a considered and controlled way. The team
regularly assess the risks in our environment, but sometimes children will have
bumps and falls, and this is a normal stage in their development as they negotiate
different spaces, other children, and their ever-growing little bodies. The team will
always tell you if your child has had an accident whilst in nursery and ask you to
sign a form that explains how it happened. To add another layer of risk assessment
and monitor our environment and resources, all accidents and incidents are collated
in our unique monitoring system. They are analysed each month by the senior leadership
team, so they are able to highlight any reoccurring themes in order for us to take any
necessary steps to minimise risks if required.
We have an incredibly robust IT policy and have developed and manage all of our
own nursery management systems. This means we know exactly who has access and
what people are doing with information at all times. Tablets used to take photos
and record children’s wow moments for their learning profiles are only connected
to our own networks and not the internet so images cannot be sent externally.
The team also only have access to this information whilst on site; we do not
allow homeworking on children’s profiles. All systems have controls to only
allow access to safe sites and materials and when being utilised by children
this is always supervised. As you would expect personal mobiles cannot be carried
by staff during the course of their working day and are only accessed on breaks in
the staff room or off site. Emergency Nursery mobiles with no camera feature are
carried by the team when out and about exploring Portishead.
Our full safeguarding policy will be sent to you on registration, it is also
accessible along with all of our policies via our parent site
www.mychildatnursery.co.uk
for which you will be given log in information once your child starts nursery.
Hard copies of all our policies can be found in the main nursery office.