Health and safety
An overview of health and safety procedures in our nurseries.
Children’s welfare is our top priority
At LEYF, we actively promote children’s well-being, develop and use effective policies and procedures, respond swiftly to any safeguarding concerns, and work in partnership with parents and other agencies to ensure children are kept safe.
The Children Act 2004 states that the welfare of a child is paramount and makes it clear that staff have a professional duty to take action if they are concerned a child may be at risk of physical or sexual abuse or in danger of harm.
At LEYF, we have an official policy to help us deal with situations where we suspect a child may be being neglected or abused.
We have a duty to ask about potential safeguarding issues and we take our responsibility to protect the whole family seriously.
Parents will be contacted by the relevant authorities if our safeguarding policy is implemented.
Designated staff
All LEYF staff, volunteers and trustees have an obligation to ensure that children are kept safe and protected from harm.
Designated staff have specific responsibilities in relation to safeguarding:
- Trustees – Trustees are responsible for the overall governance and leadership of LEYF
- Designated safeguarding lead – The chief executive officer (CEO) is the senior member of staff with responsibility for safeguarding and the nominated individual for Ofsted
- Nominated officers – Are designated across the organisation, in line with Ofsted guidelines. They act as the single point of contact for Ofsted and the LADO (local area designated officer for safeguarding)
- Nursery safeguarding coordinator – The safeguarding coordinator within each nursery is the nursery manager. The manager leads on safeguarding locally, in partnership with the area operations manager
Safeguarding policies
Safeguarding policies and procedures at LEYF have a broad span and are reviewed and revised on a regular basis to ensure they comply with national and local guidelines.
Some of the main policies include:
- LEYF Safeguarding & Child Protection Policy
- LEYF Whistleblowing Policy
- LEYF Safer Recruitment Policy
- LEYF Responding to Safeguarding Concerns
- HM Government Working Together to Safeguard Children
