Develop and implement policies and procedures Essay

The current legislations for safeguarding children where defined in the children act of 1989. Including children’s rights to protection them from abuse, the right to express their views and be listened to. Although different British governments have said that it regards itself bound by the Convention and refers to it in child protection guidance, it has not become part of the UK law. There is no single piece of legislation that covers safeguarding children and young people in the UK; different laws and guidelines cover different parts of the UK-England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland (NSPCC 2010) EYFS (2012) Child protection- being aware of any concerns regarding a child in their home or childcare setting, the welfare requirements state that a Suitable person check should be carried out – following the safer recruitment policy for all staff as an employer we must ensure that necessary steps are taken to ensure that we safeguard all children and their welfare is pa ramount. The recruitment process consists of checking Staff DBS, qualifications, references from their last employer, training, support and skills- to ensure staff have appropriate qualifications, training, skills and knowledge and clearly understand their roles and responsibilities and thorough robust induction is carried out with each new member of staff. Outdoors, indoors and equipment must be suitable for the individual child’s needs. staff child-ratios- staffing arrangements must be arranged to meet the needs of all children. Ensuring safety at all times. The organisation must plan to ensure every child attending receives a enjoyable learning experience. Documents used within the nursery setting, such as policies and procedures, registers, registration forms, learning journals, accident and incident forms. Children’s act (2006) – Child’s commissioner for England, has a duty to local authorities and their partners e.g. health services to promote the well-being of children and young people. 1.2 Evaluate how the national and local guidelines, policies and procedures  for safeguarding affect day to day work with children and young people. The children’s act 1989, children schools and families, babies and young children, every child matters, CAF, health care, National and local guidelines, policies and procedures for safeguarding all affect a nursery practitioner’s day to day work ; In my Childcare practice The Education Act 2002 poses a duty on education authorities to promote and safeguard the welfare of children and young people. This affects my day to day work as I must be aware of and abide by the child protection procedures of my setting and the local authority, I must know the signs of abuse, how and who to report my concerns to, remain professional, act in a timely manner, record my findings, maintain a safe environment, be aware of the health and safety of children and to be able to undertake any further training required. As the safeguarding officer for the nursery I must be approachable for staff to express the concerns and support them throughout the child protection flow chart. Child Protection In my settings policies and procedures for safeguarding it states that all employees, volunteers and students should be properly vetted by carrying out a DBS check before they commence employment. We also request 2 references one of which is their most recent employer, we check their suitability, as well as qualifications ensuring we have seen the original certificates. Daily Risk assessments Risk assessments are an important factor in safeguarding children and in my day to day work, before I use an area in the nursery I would check that it was safe and suitable before Staff carry out any activity with the children I require them to carry out a risk assessment first to make sure all involved is safe, for example, if They were to plan an activity, in the garden I would need to risk assess the area for rubbish, small objects, dirty areas etc that may have blown in, broken toys or equipment, the weather and that the gates are secure. Ensuring the voice of the child or young person is heard Advocacy safeguards children and young people and protects them from abuse and poor practice. The government developed national standards for advocacy practice to ensure that children are able to speak out and have their views heard. The national Standards for the provision of children’s advocacy 2002 is this standard. This affects my day to day work as I need to know how to access advocacy services should a child require it and a child can request that I act as an advocate for them and in that case I will need to know where to look for support from the advocacy services. This then empowers the child to be heard and listened too. Supporting children and young people and others who may be expressing concerns Following my settings policies and procedures, if a child or young person were to express any concerns I would in my day to day work show a child that I am taking them seriously, that I am here to listen and have empathy, I would reassure the child that I will help in any way I can, I would record the conversation following the correct procedure, I would not make promises, or say that what has been discussed is confidential, I will not come to my own conclusions or ask questions and I would seek support and advice from the LADO. If a member of staff informed me that a child had disclosed something to them I would ask them to record all details, not to discuss with any one else unless needed. I would record what I had been told and I would ring Care line and seek advice if needed. 1.3 Explain how the processes used by own work setting comply with legislation that covers data protection, information handling and sharing. In my setting all data information is kept confidential, locked in a filing cabinet and only shared on a need to know basis. we work closely with children and their families building up a working in partnership. We have a duty of care to ensure the safety and welfare of every child. We want all families to feel safe and secure about leaving their child in our care. We follow the EYFS and this states ‘The provider must take necessary steps to safeguard and promote the welfare of children’. Therefore as practitioners we are responsible for ensuring that our policies, procedures and practices  effectively safeguard each child our care every day. And that all staff are responsible and understand about safeguarding and how we use this in our setting to keep everyone safe. Staff attend training to refresh their skills and knowledge. We also have a policy of the week displayed in the staff room to ensure policies and procedures are kept fresh in staffs minds. We have a robust recruitment and no staff will start work in the nursery without the necessary checks taken place such as DBS check, 2 references one from the current or most recent employer and that they are suitable with skills knowledge and experience as well as qualifications in childcare. Also when children start the nursery we complete registration forms with the primary carer of the child which consist of application form, care plan if needed and an all about me, this is shared with the child’s key person. the EYFS Sets the standard that all early years providers must meet. It sets to provide quality, consistency, secure foundations, partnership working and equal opportunities. The four principles should make the setting –A unique child, Positive relationships, Enabling Environment = Learning and Development and support children in the 7 areas of learning. From this we follow the key principles and put into them into practice in the setting. We use the online learning journals as well as a paper based assessment on all children. In our setting part of our job is to empower children and young people. If they feel confident and self-assured they are more likely to feel safe and secure. It is my and other staff’s responsibility to help make them feel empowered and protect themselves. Some children find it difficult to respond to their peers, doing activities where they interact and use their own ideas to promote play this will also help them to boost their confidence and learn what they enjoy and what they don’t. Role modelling behaviour helps them to understand how not all children like to be touched, hugged or hold hands and learn what different people like and how we should behave with our peers. Staff talk to the children about kind hands and voices and how to play nicely with each other. Our nursery will work with children, parents, external agencies and the community to ensure the welfare and safety of children and to give them the very best start in life. Children have the right to be treated with respect and to be safe from any abuse in whatever form. To this end we will: Maintain a professional level at all times Create an enabling environment to encourage children to develop a positive self-image †¢ Encourage children to develop a sense of independence and autonomy in a way that is appropriate to their age and stage of development Provide a safe and secure environment for all children Always listen to children, allowing them to freely talk without being questioned. Build relationships with families to gain trust and confidence