At Rose Buddies Childcare, we believe that children settle best when they have good attachments with a key person, who knows them and their parents well, and who can meet their individual needs. Research shows that a key person approach benefits the child, the parent/carers, the staff and the Nursery by providing secure relationships in which children thrive, parents have confidence, staff are committed and the Nursery is a happy and dedicated place to attend or work in.

 

We want children to feel safe, stimulated and happy in the Nursery and to feel secure and comfortable with staff. We also want parent/carers to have confidence in both their children’s well-being and their role as active partners with the Nursery.

 

The key person role is set out in Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements of the Early Years Foundation Stage. Each setting must offer a key person for each child.

 

The procedures set out a model for developing a key person approach that promotes effective and positive relationships for children who are in settings.

 

 

Procedures

 

• Before a child starts, we will discuss who may become the child’s key person. We take into account how many key children a staff member already has and look at what we already know about the family to see who may be best suited to not only support the child/children but also the family. This is also dependant on who the child bonds with.

 

• We believe that bonds must come naturally and as such allow children to choose their key person as far is practicable. We allow them time to settle and begin to bond with the staff in their area. Once we have a better idea of who the child seems to be drawn to and feel comfortable with then we will try to allocate this person as their key person as far as practicable.

 

• The room leader is responsible for the induction of the family and for settling the child into Rose Buddies Childcare; visits are arranged with the room leader and delivered by the manager or owner. Consideration over different times to visit will be given so that the child can experience elements of the day during settling.

 

• Once the key person is allocated, they will be responsible for completing hand overs and ensuring care routines are followed as far as practicable. They will be the main point of contact for the families of their key children.

 

• All key persons will have a buddy that takes over all aspects of educational development and care if a key person is away.

 

• The key person offers unconditional regard for the child and is non-judgemental.

 

• The key person works with the parent to plan and deliver a personalised plan for the child’s well-being, care and learning.

 

• The key person acts as the key contact for the parents and has links with other carers involved with the child, such as a childminder, and co-ordinates the sharing of appropriate information about the child’s development with those carers.

 

• A key person is responsible for developmental records and for sharing information on a regular basis with the child’s parents to keep those records up-to-date, reflecting the full picture of the child in our Nursery and at home.

 

• The key person/buddy will attend to all key children’s personal care routines, such as nappy changing, to provide consistency, personalised care and promote attachment relationships as far as is practicable.

 

• The key person encourages positive relationships between children in his/her key group, spending time with them as a group each day.

 

• We provide a buddy system so the child and the parents have a key contact in the absence of the child’s key person.

 

• We promote the role of the key person as the child’s primary carer in our Nursery, and as the basis for establishing relationships with other staff and children.

 

• As children transition into new rooms the key person is responsible for supporting their transitions and handing over information. A new key person will be allocated as the child changes rooms.

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