We hope you find the enclosed information helpful. Should you require any further information please contact the school office: Telephone: 01476 870393 E-mail : office@croxtonkerrial.risemat.co.uk

About the Club

The Penguin Crew is registered with Ofsted and is based in the main school building. The Club is open from 3.15pm until 5:15pm, Monday-Friday, during term time.

We have several different outside areas that we can use – a good sized playground marked out with various fun games as well as a basket/netball court, a large playing field which is a great area to play and explore and our quiet worship garden. There is also our school garden where the children can grow different types of fruit and vegetables.

If the demand for a club is high enough, then this is something we can also facilitate.

Aims

At The Penguin Crew we aim to provide a safe, secure and relaxed environment, offering a range of activities to reflect the interests of the children in our care.

Where will it take place

In school in class 3. Parents can collect their children from the car park gate. 

What we offer

Our Club offers a range of fun and exciting activities children can choose from as they wish, these include:

• Games

• Construction activities

• Creative activities

• Relaxation/ reading

We also have a daily timetable of activities which are adult led for children to enjoy, these can include:

• Cooking

• Homework support

• Sports

• Nature activities including gardening and treasure hunts  

• Film afternoons

• Water games

• Music/ dance afternoons

• Den building

What we provide

A healthy snack and drink will be available for all children at the start of our After-school session. Children who are booked in for the second hour can also be provided with a light tea at an extra cost of just £1.50.

The food we provide at the Club is not intended as a substitute for a main evening meal. We promote independence, by encouraging the children to prepare their own light tea, and to clear away after themselves. We use fresh ingredients and follow statutory guidelines. Fresh drinking water is available at all times. We meet individual dietary requirements and parental preferences wherever possible. We recognise the importance of healthy nutrition for children delivered in a calm, friendly setting.

Staffing

The Manager of the Club is Miss Helen Stafford.

Our After-School Club is run by  Miss Helen Stafford, supported by other staff members.

Overall responsibility: Mrs Scott, Executive Head teacher and Mrs Sykes, Chair of Governors.

Our aim is to provide a smooth transition between school and Penguins. 

All of our staff have significant experience of working with children and undertake professional development training. All staff members have appropriate DBS checks.

If you have a query or concern at any time, please speak to a member of staff at the Club when you collect your child. If you prefer to arrange a more convenient time for a meeting please contact the school office.

Organisation

The Penguin Crew is run as a not for profit organisation. We enjoy a close working relationship with teachers in order to ensure continuity of care, and to maintain good communication links.

School Policies and Procedures

The Club has clearly defined policies and procedures. Key points of the main policies are included in our Handbook. Copies of the full policies are kept in the school office and are available for parents to consult at all times.

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Admission 

Our Club aims to be accessible to all children attending Croxton Kerrial C.E. Primary School. Admission to the club is organised by the Manager and we use a waiting list system when the need arises. The waiting list will be operated on a first come-first served basis, with the exception of siblings who will have priority for the same days as a sibling already attending.

We require a completed set of registration forms for your child before they can attend the Club. This information will be treated as confidential and will be stored appropriately.

Re-enrolment for September is required at the end of the summer term. We cannot keep a place open for your child unless you complete a new registration form.

Payment of fees

The current fees for the After school Club Includes:

3.15 – 4.15pm = £4.50 which includes a healthy snack and drink

3.15 – 5.15pm = £9.00 (£10.50 for a light tea)

Payment details will be available on the booking forms.

The price per session per child applies to all children. This is payable for all booked sessions including when your child is sick, or on holiday. We do not charge for bank holidays and professional training days.

All payments must be paid in full for the current half term before your child attends. Payment is made via our Arbor payment system.

Help with child care costs

You may be able to claim 70% of your childcare costs depending on your circumstances. See the tax credit and family credit leaflets or call the Inland Revenue on 0845 9000 604 or 0845 300 3900.

Changes

Please remember that we need to know if your child will not be attending the Club for any reason. Please contact Mrs Reeves at the school office. If your child doesn’t attend a booked session, we will have to treat them as a ‘missing child’ unless you have notified us of their absence. 

If you know in advance of any days when your child will not be attending during the following week, please try to let Mrs Reeves know by THURSDAY at the latest. In cases of illness or emergency when notice cannot be given, please call as soon as you can.

Induction

You and your child are welcome to visit the Club before your child's first day, to familiarise yourselves with the setting and to help your child settle in. Please contact Mrs Reeves to arrange this.

During your child’s first session time will be set aside for an induction. The induction will include running through Club's rules and routines (including meal times, collection), and introducing your child to the staff and other children.

Another child will usually be allocated to act as your child's buddy for their first few sessions. 

Arrivals and departures

A register is taken when children arrive in our care and the staff will ensure to sign children out when they leave, including the time slot they left in (e.g. 3.15-4.15, 4.15-5.15). Children must be collected from the car park gate. We expect that your child will normally be collected by the people you have named on the registration form. If you need a different person to collect your child on a particular day, you must notify us in advance. We will not release your child into the care of a person unknown to us without your authorisation.

The Club finishes at 5:15pm, if you are delayed for any reason please telephone the Club to let us know. A late payment fee of £10.00 per 10 minutes will be charged.

If your child remains uncollected after 5:25pm (10 minutes after the Club closes) and you have not warned us that you will be delayed, and we have been unable to reach you or any of your emergency contacts, we will follow our Uncollected Children Policy and contact the Social Care team after 60 minutes.

Child protection

We are committed to building a ‘culture of safety’ in which the children in our care are protected from abuse and harm. Any suspicion of abuse is promptly and appropriately responded to. We comply with local and national child protection procedures and ensure that all staff are appropriately trained. For more details see our Safeguarding Children Policy.

Equal opportunities

Our Club provides a safe and caring environment, free from discrimination, for everyone in our community including children with additional needs.

• We respect the different racial origins, religions, cultures and languages in a multi-ethnic society so that each child is valued as an individual without racial or gender stereotyping.

• We will challenge inappropriate attitudes and practices.

• We will not tolerate any form of racial harassment.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities

We make every effort to accommodate and welcome any child with special needs. We will work in liaison with parents or carers and relevant professionals to fully understand your child’s specific requirements. We will endeavour to accommodate all children of all abilities, whilst working within the Club’s limitations. Each case will be considered individually and risk-assessed to ensure everyone’s safety.

Our staff training programme includes specific elements relating to children with special needs.

For more details on equal opportunities and special needs, see our Policy section on the website.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Behaviour (children)

Children and staff follow the school rules for acceptable behaviour whilst at the Club.

See the schools Behaviour Policy for full details.

The Club promotes an atmosphere of care, consideration and respect for everyone attending: children, staff and visitors.

We encourage appropriate behaviour through: praise for good behaviour; emphasis on co-operative play and sharing; talking to children with the courtesy that we expect from them and engaging children in activities

The Club has procedures for dealing with unacceptable behaviour. We recognise that poor behaviour can occur from time to time for reasons that are not always evident, or as a result of special needs. We will try to be flexible in order to accommodate such cases.

However, if your child is violent, or if their behaviour poses an immediate danger to themselves or others, we will require you to collect them from the Club immediately. In exceptional circumstances, and only when all other attempts at behaviour management have failed, we reserve the right to permanently exclude a child from the Club. 

Behaviour (adults)

We will not tolerate from any person, whether a parent, carer or visitor: bullying; aggressive, confrontational or threatening behaviour; or behaviour intended to result in conflict. Our Club is a place of safety and security for the children who attend and the staff who work here, and we reserve the right to ban anyone exhibiting inappropriate behaviour from our premises. 

Illness

We are unable to care for children who are unwell. If your child becomes unwell whilst at the Club, we will contact you and ask you to make arrangements for them to be collected.

Please inform the Manager or the office of any infectious illness your child contracts. If your child has had sickness or diarrhoea please do not send him or her to the Club for 48 hours after the illness has ceased. 

Accidents and first aid                                                                                                                Every precaution is taken to ensure the safety of the children at all times, and the Club is fully insured. Our staff are trained in first aid and a first aid kit is kept on the premises. If your child has an accident whilst in our care, you will be informed when you collect your child. 

Medication

If your child needs to take medicine whilst at the Club you will need to complete the schools Permission to administer medication form from the office in advance. The Club Manager and the school will liaise before any medication is given. 

Complaints procedure

If you have any queries, comments or need to discuss any matters concerning your child, please feel free to speak to a member of our team.

Verbal complaints will be brought to the next staff meeting for discussion and action.  

All written complaints will be acknowledged within five working days of receipt and a full written response will be given within 28 days.

Privacy Notice

At the Penguin Crew we respect the privacy of the children attending the Club and the privacy of their parents or carers. The personal information that we collect about you and your child is used only to provide appropriate care for them, maintain our service to you, and communicate with you effectively. Our legal basis for processing the personal information relating to you and your child is so that we can fulfil our contract with you.

Any information that you provide is kept secure. Data that is no longer required* is erased after your child has ceased attending our Club.

We will use the contact details you give us to contact you via phone, email, Dojo and post so that we can send you information about your child, our Club and other relevant news, and also so that we can communicate with you regarding payment of our fees.

We will only share personal information about you or your child with another organisation if we:

• have a safeguarding concern about your child 

• are required to by government bodies or law enforcement agencies

• Engage a supplier to process data on our behalf (e.g. to take online bookings, or to issue invoices)

• Have obtained your prior permission.                                                                                                                             

You have the right to ask to see the data that we have about yourself or your child, and to ask for any errors to be corrected. We will respond to all such requests within one month. You can also ask for the data to be deleted, but note that: 

• we will not be able to continue to care for your child if we do not have sufficient information about them

• Even after your child has left our care, we have a statutory duty to retain some types of data for specific periods of time* so can’t delete everything immediately.

If you have a complaint about how we have kept your information secure, or how we have responded to a request to access, update or erase your data, you can refer us to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

* We do need to retain certain types of data (such as records of complaints, accidents, and attendance) for set periods of time after your child ceases to be in our care, but we delete as much personal data as we can as soon as possible.   

PLEDGE TO PARENTS

We value our relationship with parents/carers and are committed to working in partnership with you to provide top quality play and care for your children.  We will:

• Welcome you at all times to discuss our work, have a chat or take part in our activities.

• Keep you informed of opening times, fees and charges, programmes of activities, menus, and procedures.

• Be consistent and reliable to enable you to plan with confidence and peace of mind.

• Share and discuss your child's achievements, experiences, progress, and friendships.

• Be available to discuss decisions about running the club.

• Ask your permission for outings and special events.

• Listen to your views and concerns to ensure that we continue to meet your needs.