National Minimum Standards for Regulated Day Care - Open Access Play for children aged 5 years to 12 years: statutory guidance - Audience and overview
Standards of care open access play providers must meet to look after children age 5 years to 12 years.
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Standard 11: Organisation and Staffing
Child’s Voice: There are always enough staff to support everyone and make sure we can play safely.
Well-being Outcome: Children’s well-being is supported by a well-organised service, where the number of adults meets their needs in line with requirements.
The registered person is responsible for ensuring that:
11.1 An operational plan is developed and periodically reviewed. This is available to parents. The aim of this plan is to ensure that the service is well planned and organised and to allow maximum flexibility in organising the provision according to available resources and the needs of children and families.
The content of the plan will vary according to the type of provision, but may include:
- details of the organisation structure
- line management responsibilities
- staffing structure indicating responsibilities for leadership and management
- details of the premises and facilities and how they are used
- training plans
- information about the development of the service
- action plans
11.2 Within the operational plan, it is clear how the indoor and outdoor play space will be divided up and used to provide activities for groups of children and how staff will be deployed within it. The expectation is that these arrangements may need to be flexible and will vary according to the activity and needs of the group of children being cared for.
11.3 Staff are deployed effectively within the provision to ensure the safety, welfare of children.
11.4 Children have the opportunity to interact with the adults caring for them. Staff actively seek to build good relationships with the children and include opportunities for small groups of children to interact and play together.
11.5 There is a named deputy who is able to take charge in the absence of the person in charge.
Specialist Activities
11.6 Open access play provision offering specialist activities maintain written operating procedures for each specialist activity programme.
These operating procedures must:
- be appropriate to the site and level at which activities are undertaken.
- define the competencies, qualifications and/or experience required of staff undertaking different levels of responsibility; and
- be consistent with the Health and Safety Executive Guidelines, where appropriate, Activity Centre Advisory Committee Guidelines, where they are established and with the National Governing Body Guidelines, where they are relevant, to the safe conduct of the activity at the level undertaken.
11.7 All staff with management responsibility for an activity possess the competencies, qualifications and experience required to discharge the responsibility. An activities licence is required where applicable.
Staffing Ratio
The registered person is responsible for ensuring that:
11.8 The required adult: child ratios are met.
11.9 Any care provided for children over the age of 12 does not adversely affect the care provided for children under the age of 12 and vice versa.
11.10 The minimum staffing ratio in open access play provision is 1:13 for children aged under 8.
11.11 The registered provider must undertake a risk assessment to consider suitable arrangements on occasions where children leave the open access play premises, taking into account the settings location, children’s ages and individual needs.
11.12 For children aged 8 up to 12 years, staffing ratios should be sufficient and proportionate, contributing to a positive environment for all children attending. Staffing ratios should reflect the circumstances of the setting, including the site and level of activities undertaken, how risks are managed, the experience and qualifications of staff, community context, age and abilities of the children attending and allow for contingency in case of emergencies.
11.13 Where play provision operates indoors, registered persons have a system which enables them to know which children are on their premises.
To assist providers, the principal regulatory requirements underpinning this standard are outlined below, followed by relevant guidance. Providers should note that neither list is exhaustive, and that providers must have regard to all standards relevant to their service and the circumstances concerned.