Arrivals and Departures Policy

July 2026

LC Policy #36

Little Crumpets recognises the importance of having robust systems in place to ensure the safe arrival and departure of the children in our care. 

The manager will ensure that an accurate record is kept of all children at Little Crumpets, and that any arrivals or departures are recorded accurately on the register. The register is kept in an accessible location on the premises at all times. In addition, we conduct regular headcounts during the session. 

In the event that a child does not attend as expected we will contact parents/carers in a timely manner, normally within an hour of their expected arrival. If we are unable to contact you.

We expect parents/carers to contact us promptly and let us know if the child is not attending. A reason for the child's absence will be requested.

This policy is to be read in conjunction with our Safeguarding policy. 

Escorting children to the Club

• Little Crumpets and the school have a clear agreement concerning the transfer of responsibility for children’s safety.

• We have risk assessed the route used to escort children to Little Crumpets and review it regularly.

• Little Crumpets keeps a register of children who require escorting between locations, which is updated daily.

• Children will be escorted from school to Little Crumpets by the appropriate number of staff, in line with statutory staff-to-child ratio requirements, to ensure their safety and wellbeing at all times.

• If a child is booked to attend the club but is not present at the collection point, Little Crumpets will first check whether the child attended school that day. Little Crumpets will then contact the parents or carers to confirm that they have been informed by the school of the child's absence.

Arrivals
Our staff will greet each child warmly on their arrival at Little Crumpets and will record the child’s attendance in the daily register straightaway, including the time of arrival.

Departures

• Staff will ensure that parents or carers sign children out before they leave, including the time of collection.

• Children are collected by an adult who has been authorised to do so on their registration form. 

• In exceptional circumstances, if the parent requires another person who is not listed on the registration form to collect their child, the child’s parents or carers must inform the Little Crumpets in advance and provide a description of the person and a password that they will use. If the manager has any concerns regarding the person collecting he/she will contact the main parent or carer for confirmation.

• The parent or carer must notify Little Crumpets if they will be late collecting their child. If we are not informed, the Uncollected Children policy will be followed.

• Children in Year 6 will only be allowed to leave the Club alone at the end of the session if Little Crumpets has discussed this with the child’s parents and has received their written consent.

• Children below Year 6 will not be allowed to leave the Club unaccompanied.

This Policy will be reviewed annually and was written in accordance with the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage (2025): Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements: Child Absences [3.11 – 3.12], Organising premises for confidentiality and safeguarding [3.87] Information and Record Keeping [3.92].