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Head Office
1B Lyndwood Parade
St Lukes Road
Old Windsor
Berkshire
SL4 2QX
Policies and Procedures
At The Gap Club we regard the health, safety, safeguarding and protection of anyone that comes to our settings – children, parents, staff, visitors and other stakeholders – at the highest level of importance. To support us with this we have a number of policies and procedures in place across all of our settings.
A summary statement for each of our key policies can be found below alongside a link to the full policy. Copies of all of our policies are also available on site at each of our settings. Please do ask a member of staff or if you would like a paper copy of any of our policies or have any questions do not hesitate to contact our Head Office.
Safeguarding Policy
The Gap Club Ltd believes that children have the right to be completely secure from both the fear and reality of abuse, and we are committed to protecting all the children in our care from harm. The welfare and protection of all our children is our first priority.
This policy details the procedure to follow when there is concern about a child’s welfare. It also provides information to ensure that members of staff do not put children at risk. It is designed to protect both those in a position of trust and those for whom they have responsibility. For the purposes of this document, a member of staff may be an employee, student or volunteer.
Concerns, Complaints and Compliments Policy
The Gap Club Ltd is committed to providing a safe, stimulating, consistent and accessible service to children and their parents/carers. We will always aim to provide high quality services for all concerned but accept that sometimes things do not always go to plan. In such circumstances, we want to know about these things so that we can put them right and learn from them.
The Gap Club Ltd believes that children and parents are entitled to expect courtesy and prompt, careful attention to their needs and wishes. We welcome suggestions on how to improve and will give prompt and serious attention to any concerns about the running of our settings and/or our staff. We anticipate that most concerns will be resolved quickly by an informal approach to the appropriate member of staff. If this does not achieve the desired result, we have a set of procedures for dealing with concerns.
Health and Safety Policy
The Gap Club Ltd views the maintenance of health and safety extremely seriously as a matter of both legal and moral importance. We ensure our setting is a safe and healthy place for children, parents, staff and volunteers. All staff will be familiarised with the provisions contained within this policy as part of their induction and be expected to act in accordance with them at all times. The aim is to ensure all stakeholders are aware of health and safety issues and to minimise hazards and risks to enable children to thrive in a healthy and safe environment.
Promoting Positive Behaviour Policy
At The Gap Club we believe that children and adults flourish best when their personal, social and emotional needs are understood, supported and met in an ordered environment in which everyone knows what is expected of them and children are free to develop their play and learning without fear of being hurt or hindered by anyone else. We aim to work towards a situation in which children can develop self discipline and self-esteem in an atmosphere of mutual respect and encouragement.
As children develop, they learn about boundaries, the difference between right and wrong, and to consider the views and feelings, and needs and rights, of others and the impact that their behaviour has on people, places and objects. The development of these skills requires adult guidance to help encourage and model appropriate behaviours and to offer intervention and support when children struggle with conflict and emotional situations. In these types of situations key staff can help identify and address triggers for the behaviour and help children reflect, regulate and manage their actions. We appoint a member of staff as behaviour coordinator to oversee and advise on the team’s responses to challenging behaviour.
The Gap Club is committed to high standards of behaviour with an emphasis on building strong, healthy relationships with children that flourish through encouraging, acknowledging and reinforcing positive behaviour.
Valuing Diversity and Promoting Inclusion and Equality Policy
We are committed to ensuring that our service is fully inclusive in meeting the needs of all children.
We recognise that children and their families come from a wide range of backgrounds with individual needs, beliefs and values. They may grow up in family structures that include one or two parents of the same or different sex. Children may have close links or live with extended families of grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins; while other children may be more removed from close kin, or may live with other relatives or foster carers. Some children come from families who experience social exclusion, severe hardship; discrimination and prejudice because of their ethnicity, disability and/or ability, the languages they speak, their religious or personal beliefs, their sexual orientation and marital status. Some individuals face discrimination linked to their gender and some women are discriminated against because of their pregnancy and maternity status. We understand that all these factors can affect the well-being of children within these families and may adversely impact on children’s learning, attainment and life outcomes.
Valuing Diversity and Promoting Inclusion and Equality Policy