Policies and Guidance
Why have policies?
It is fundamentally important for organisations to develop policy. An organisation without policy is an organisation without control. If there were no formal documented policies, then organisation personnel at any level would have no guidance on how to make decisions.
Features of Policy and Guidance
Judith Wood, Senior Safety Advisor for East Lothian Council, has created this simple guide to support writing policies and guidance for our Early Years settings.
Guidance on writing policies.docx1. Periods of Absence Document (F058) August 2023 (003).pdfCare Inspectorate
The policies below are those that Care Inspectorate would expect to be available at inspection:
Child protection – Local authority settings should use the whole school policy on child protection that is provided by the authority found: East Lothian EduHub - Policy, Process and Guidance (google.com) Private settings should follow good practice and advice that is available from a range of organisations including the NSPCC
Nappy Changing - Settings caring for young children who use nappies must have appropriate facilities. These facilities must provide children with a safe, clean environment and appropriate equipment while promoting privacy, dignity and for older children, independence. Guidance on writing this: nappy-changing-guidance-2024.pdf (careinspectorate.com on the Care Inspectorate HUB.
Administration and Storage of Medication – Guidance on writing this: Management of Medication in Daycare of Children and Childminding Services on the Care Inspectorate HUB and any policy should contain and follow local guidance: East Lothian EduHub - Policy, Process and Guidance (google.com) Supportive video: Quick wins bite size session - Medication (ELC) (youtube.com)
Recruitment and Selection - Guidance for creating this policy can be found in Safer recruitment through better recruitment | Care Inspectorate Hub on the Care Inspectorate HUB. Supportive video: Quick wins bite size session - Safe recruitment (ELC) (youtube.com)
Infection Control – Any policy should take into account Infection Prevention and Control in Daycare and Childminding Settings.
Complaints – These need to follow the format in SSI 2011/210. Name and address of Care Inspectorate etc. Procedure for handling complaints - March 2020.pdf (careinspectorate.com)
Personal Plans – These make up a significant part of the inspection process and having a policy and associated procedure which tells staff and parents how this will work is also a must have as it relates to the Requirements for Care Services. Personal planning guides for providers | Care Inspectorate Hub Supportive video: Recorded Personal planning - bite size session 2 (youtube.com)
Ratios - This guidance will support commissioners, planners, providers and parents on supporting the best outcomes for children attending all ELC settings. It sets out the Care Inspectorate’s expectations around staffing levels in ELC. Guidance on adult to child ratios in early learning and childcare settings.pdf (careinspectorate.com)
Care Inspectorate Notifications - Rcds services(except cm) must keep and guidance on notification reporting (300420).pdf (careinspectorate.com) Supportive Video Quick wins bite size session - Notifications (ELC) (youtube.com)
Quality Assurance Calendars - In this document we explore some of the areas to consider when planning your quality assurance calendar. Quality Assurance Calendars (careinspectorate.com) Supportive Video Quick wins bite size session - Quality Assurance Calendars (ELC) (youtube.com)
health related policy and procedure.pdfCare Inspectorate produced this document to help services develop health related policy and procedure. Although this is health related it gives a good overview of what a procedure should look like.
Why do we need guidance?
Guidance is often required to ensure that we have a shared understanding and consistency across our settings to ensure we are following legislation and procedures effectively.
Guidance In Progress
The Early Learning and Childcare Team are currently developing and updating guidance for settings.These will be accessible to all practitioners as they become available on this pageGood Practice
A copy of policies and any guidance should be available for staff to engage and familiarise themselves with. Staff should sign and review these annually or whenever they are updated. A copy for families to view in the setting should be available as well as on online. Good practice would see policies and guidance reviewed annually with input from parents/carers. for example, having a policy of the month on display and asking for opinions from parents/carers that will be taken into consideration when being reviewed by staff and management.