Children not collected after school.
Information for parents and carers.
Can parents/carers please provide the school with details of at
least three contacts and ensure that we are always kept up to
date of any changes to your telephone numbers or the details of
your nominated emergency contacts? It is important that you
make every effort to collect your child(ren) on time. Children
become easily distressed when, at the end of the day, they see
their classmates and friends leaving the premises and there is
no one there to pick them up.
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All children should be picked up from the school door by a known,
responsible adult. (Preferably over the age of sixteen).
If the person who normally picks up a child up is not doing so then the
class teacher must be informed. (Preferably at the start of the school day).
Should arrangements change during the day the school should be
contacted by telephone.
In the event that parents/carers who usually pick the child up are unable to
do so, the parent must advise the school how to identify the new person
who is to collect their child if they are not familiar to the school.
Parents who are delayed should let school know as soon as possible. We
will keep children in school until their arrival.
If something happens which may mean you will be late to pick up your
child:
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You should always try to contact us and make suitable and safe
arrangements for your child to be picked up and then looked after by a
relative, friend or reliable neighbour.
The school will not allow your child to go home with someone other than
you, unless you have given explicit permission. (This includes other
parents who may be friends).
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It is the duty of Saltersgate Infant School to ensure every child is safely
collected by a parent, carer or designated adult, at the end of the school
day or after attendance at an after school activity. The following
procedures will be followed for any child who is not picked up.
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The child will remain with the class teacher for up to ten minutes.
After ten minutes, the child will be taken to the school office. Office staff
will attempt to contact the parents by telephone.
If we cannot contact anyone, we will make every effort to reassure your
child and keep him/her in a friendly and familiar place until you arrive.
If no contact is made with parents then the emergency contact/s given on
the child’s confidential information sheet will be contacted. At this point the
head teacher or another member of the Senior Leadership Team will be
informed.
If no contact can be made with the emergency contacts or parents, the
school will continue to try to make contact for a reasonable amount of time
(up until 4.30 after normal school closing time, 5pm following after school
activities and clubs).
Please be assured, we will do all we can to make contact with ALL
persons listed.
Once all means of making contact have been exhausted, The Doncaster
Children’s Trust Referral and Response Service will be contacted after this
time. A Duty Social Worker will then arrange for your child to be looked
(possibly by a foster carer) after until you are traced.
In the event that responsibility is passed to the LA Social Services, the
Head teacher will (or member of SLT) will again try to contact the parent,
carer or designated adult, leaving a message where possible to explain
the action taken.
Placement with a foster carer will be an informal arrangement until 10pm
but after that time, your child will be formally accommodated under
Section 20 of the Children Act.
Once your child is in the care of Social Care, they will take on the
responsibility of tracing you.
The following procedure will be followed if any child is picked up by an
allegedly impaired person.
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If the person picking up a child is, in the judgment of staff, impaired (under
the influence of drugs or alcohol or, in the opinion of staff, under sixteen)
and unable to adequately care for the child, the staff will not release the
child to that person.
The child will be taken to the office and the head teacher will make contact
with other persons listed to pick up the person and child.
If no contact can be made then the procedures above will be followed.
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Please be assured that where delay is unavoidable and where we have been
informed, we can make arrangements to ensure that your child is kept safe and
happy until your arrival. Where parents need support with after school care we
can also signpost to appropriate agencies (after school clubs and child minders).
For teaching staff, however, the working day continues long after the school day
finishes and they cannot be available to take care of children beyond 3.30pm on
a regular basis. Therefore, if parents are regularly late to collect children from
school it may be necessary to refer the matter to the Educational Welfare Officer
who will arrange a meeting to discuss any difficulties you may be having in
getting to school on time.
It is important that you keep us informed if you cannot be there
to collect your child on time.
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