Policies and procedures

Policies, including our mission statement, should encompass the beliefs and values of our nursery, conveying the ethos of how we deliver our childcare and early years service. It is  formulated accurately and delivered consistently, our guiding principles which help establish a professional and inclusive approach.

As well as communicating our values to clients, the creation of policies sets boundaries, demonstrates how the nursery meets certain legal requirements and enables staff to review practice. This can empower individuals to take an active part in the review process and can serve as a focus for staff development.

It is important that all policies are easily understood and jargon free wherever possible, which in turn will facilitate their implementation without misinterpretation. All policies and procedures need to be shared with staff, parents and volunteers to help ensure they are fully understood and implemented consistently within your setting.

Parents need to know about your policies in order to make enrolment choices. It is important to consider a number of ways to communicate your policies so that all parents are enabled to make informed choices (see the communications section of this publication).

Policies will inform the procedures you have in place to help ensure consistent standards of practice that minimise risk to the children in your care and provide them with high-quality care and learning. All policies should help to establish the safest possible enriched environment in which young children are cared for and play and learn.

Procedures should state clearly the course of action to be taken in a given situation. This will ensure that our  setting  practice and management are consistent throughout the nursery and that clear standards of practice are upheld. Any deviation from the normal procedure should be investigated.

Clear procedures can have significant benefits for all concerned – children, parents, staff, visitors and management. Procedures assist with staff training and ensure that all staff know exactly what should be done in all situations. This can be of particular benefit for new staff.

Procedures assist management in training new staff to the required standards of practice. There should also be clear guidance when staff do not follow procedures, either through follow-up training and support or in certain circumstances, disciplinary action. Procedures also give parents a clear understanding and confidence in the service provided. If they know exactly what will happen in a given situation, they are far more comfortable leaving their child in our care. Carefully planned procedures ensure that children benefit from a consistent approach that gives them the comfort of an established routine, by effective monitoring and evaluation of their service.

A full set of policies and procedures may be included in the staff handbook so they are easily available for staff.

Students and volunteers should also have an understanding of the policies and procedures and have access to copies of them.

Existing staff

Using regular slots in staff meetings for policy and procedure review will include your staff in the review process and will help to get ‘buy-in’ from your staff. If they are included in the production of a procedure they are more likely to understand it and implement it.

Any changes made to policies and procedures need to be communicated to staff and they should be given the opportunity to ask questions to ensure they fully understand the change and can implement it.

Communicating with parents

Parents should also be informed about nursery policies and procedures – this is the philosophy which underpins the service we  offer and is a legal requirement of the EYFS. It affects both their legal contract and personal relationship with us, and should therefore be included in the nursery information pack, discussed during the registration process and available freely in the nursery, e.g. in a reception area or on our website. Parents’ views should be sought during reviews of policies and procedures and any changes should be communicated to parents through the most appropriate person, e.g. manager or key person, notice boards, newsletters and parents’ evenings.

The nursery will be responsive to the needs of our local community, which could include offering copies of policies and procedures in large print, Braille, alternative media sources (recordings) and languages other than English as necessary.