As we are dealing with children, a vast amount of information will need to be shared between myself as the childminder and you as the child’s parent/carer. Any information regarding your child or your family, given to me either verbally or in writing, will be treated as confidential.
Parents have the right to inspect all records about their child at any time. All documentation relating to your child is stored in a file, which is kept locked and not accessible to any other party.
I will not discuss your child with others unless I have permission from you. I will however divulge confidential information to Social Services and to Ofsted if I have any concerns that your child is being abused. Please see my Safeguarding Children Policy.
In an emergency which involves hospitalisation of me or a child in my care, it may be necessary to give contact telephone numbers and allergy information to another trusted person who will also adhere to this policy. You would be informed if this information was ever passed on.
All parents have access to my policies and procedures via my website (www.justlittleones.co.uk) which detail how I run my setting. The parents sign to say that they have read and understood my policies.
Childminders have to register with the Information Commissioner under the Data Protection Act 1998 if storing information/photographs on digital media. I need to comply with the Data Protection Act and the EYFS welfare requirements for childminding and ensure that all confidential written records will be kept securely locked away.
I maintain a record of parent(s)’ emergency contact details, the contact details of the child’s GP and appropriate signed consent forms. Ofsted may request to see my records at any time.
If a child is identified as a child in need (section 17 of the Children Act 1989) I will, normally with the parent’s permission, give appropriate information to referring agencies.
I would like parents to inform me of any changes in the child’s home circumstances, care arrangements or any other change which may affect the child’s behaviour such as a new baby, parents’ separation, divorce or any bereavement, so that I can support your child and family through this transition.
You will also find out confidential information about me and my family during the course of our working relationship and I would be grateful if you too would respect my family’s confidentiality and not repeat what you may have been told to other parties. No one likes to be gossiped about.
All accidents are recorded in an accident book. All serious accidents and injuries will be reported to the company providing my public liability policy, to enable a claim number to be allocated.
If I keep records relating to individual children on my computer, I will ask for the parent’s permission. The information will be securely stored to prevent viewing of the information by others with access to the computer, for example, in password-protected files.
Policy Created – 14.1.18
Reviewed Date – 1.1.2022