“We always meet and greet parents when they arrive to pick up their children, and
ensure that they sign their children out. ”
different schools so it is very important that the staff have the children ready with their belongings to leave on time and get to school without being late.
Once the children are safely in their classrooms, we return to the centre to clear away the breakfast table and tidy up ready for the afternoon.
9 a.m. - 12 p.m. We feel that it is very important that the children are included in decision- making as much as possible. In the older units, the children have a “Comments Board” where they have the opportunity to say what activities they would like to do, and what snacks they would like to be provided.
They have set up a “Centre Point Council” which comprises 10 children of different ages, across a range of our partner schools. The Council meets once a month to look at the children’s comments board and discuss what activities and resources they would like in the Unit for the following month. They are allocated a small budget which they use to fund this. As with a “real” business, if they overspend one month they have to reduce their expenditure in the following month.
Graeme, Nancy and I also look at the children’s requests and put together a healthy snack menu for the following week. As you can
imagine, there are always a lot of requests for ice cream, hot chocolate and various “fast foods” such as burgers, chips and pizzas. As a general rule we allow the children treats once a month.
We also look at the activities and resources that the children have asked for, and try to include these into the weeks’ planning as much as possible.
The rest of the morning is spent undertaking extensive administrative duties, always ensuring that we are fully aware of any changes in childcare requirements, the registers are up-to-date and accurate, and child to adult ratios are met at all times.
Each member of staff is allocated an area for the week which they are responsible for. Graeme and I ensure that they have the correct paperwork for their area, including risk
assessments, job sheets and cleaning sheets.
1 p.m. - 2.30 p.m. At 1 p.m. the majority of staff return to work to start the afternoon shift. We begin by having a meeting to discuss the previous day and resolve any issues or concerns, and deliberate how the activities went.
We “unit plan” for the afternoon activities and if there are any school holidays coming up we get ideas for planning from the staff, taking into account any
requests that the children may have made. Once the meeting is finished the staff begin setting up their individual areas e.g. snack, art & craft, games room etc.
The manager is super- numerary, and therefore is not included in the minimum staff-to-children ratios. As such, we help out wherever needed and double-check that our unit is safe and secure before the children arrive.
Graeme, Nancy and I meet at 2.00 p.m. and go through the after school bus runs again to make sure that we have taken account of any last minute changes and ensure that all the staff know which bus run they are doing. We go through the registers to identify any children who will not be attending that day and amend the bus run register accordingly.
Between us, Graeme and I ensure that all the staff leave on time with the correct driver, register and allocated mobile phone.
1 p.m. - 2.30 p.m. On arrival back at Centre Point Trust the staff take the relevant aged children to their units. It is our duty to make sure that the unit register is up-to-date and that any absentees are correctly recorded for health and safety reasons.
When the staff get back from their school run they go straight into their areas so that ratios are met. The managers will float around the different areas to make sure that the staff and children are both safe and
happy.
We observe the staff in their roles, providing advice and guidance wherever required, and carry out dynamic risk assessments throughout the unit. We constantly check the number of children in the unit to ensure that the required staff-to-children ratios are being met at all times.
We always meet and greet parents when they arrive to pick up their children, and ensure that they sign their children out as it is extremely important that we account for the whereabouts of each and every child in our care.
Every unit has a daily diary in which they reflect on the day and this is completed by the manager.
Close to the end of the day the staff and children will start tidying away the toys and activities in their area.
When the last child has gone, we walk around the unit and make sure that everything is locked and all lights and sockets are switched off.
Once all of the staff have left, Graeme and I secure the building and premises prior to going home to get a good night’s sleep before doing it all over again tomorrow.
Centre Point Trust Playcare & Nursery Le Hurel, La Pouquelaye St Helier JE2 3FU
Tel: 01534 735151 Email:
admin@centrepointtrust.co.uk Web:
www.centrepointtrust.co.uk
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