1.1 Explain The Importance Of Statutory Provision

Statutory provision is legal care that has to be available by law. This law states that all children between the ages of 5-16 should be educated. Children aged 3-4 also have an entitlement to education/childcare. 2 year olds can also be eligible in some cases however they will receive fewer hours. School is an example of statutory care. The local authority and government have to provide them. In statutory provisions the staffs to pupil’s ratio is 1:8 for children aged 3-5 years old.

All 3-4 year olds in England can get free early education or childcare which is funded through government and taxes. Some 2 year olds are eligible if you are on certain benefits and must be with an approved childcare provider and it stops when your child gets
into reception class. ‘All children in England get 570 free hours per year. It’s usually taken as 15 hours a week for 38 weeks of the year, but you can choose to take fewer hours over more weeks, for example.’ You can usually get 30 hours free childcare if you or your partner are either in work, getting parental leave, sick leave or annual leave. Another reason you’d be able to be able to get 30 free hours is if you’re earning the national minimum wage for 16 hours a week which is £120 if you are over 25. However if your child doesn’t live with you, you foster your child, you or your partner has a taxable income over £100,000 or if your self-employed.
All ‘statutory provisions are free to all parents’ sending their children to them. This however is in contrast to private provisions who charge for their care services. Sometimes parents may have to pay a donation if they wish for their child to attend trips and visits.

There is not a set uniform for statutory staff but it must be smart. It will also need to be appropriate for the activities that will take place and easy to wash in case of an accident for example, a spillage. In some statutory provisions the staff may need to wear the school logo on a sweatshirt. The staffs are allowed to wear minimal, natural, professional makeup. Long acrylic nails are not acceptable in statutory jobs as it is a hazard towards the children and isn’t appropriate for most activities. This is in contrast to voluntary provisions as it would be their choice. Students will have to follow the schools set uniform which will be bought at the parents cost. The uniform will usually be a polo shirt with pants or, if female, a skirt if wanted at this early age.

‘The early years foundation stage (EYFS) sets standards for the learning, development and care of your child from birth to 5 years old. All schools and Ofsted-registered early years’ providers must follow the EYFS, including child-minders, preschools, nurseries and school reception classes.’ Children will mostly be taught through games and play to keep them interested and easily taught. The areas of learning covered are communication and language, physical development, personal, social and emotional development, literacy, mathematics, understanding the world and expressive arts and design. Progress of the children will be reviewed between the ages of 2 and 3 by an early years practitioner or health visitor. At the end of the school year when they turn 5 they will be assessed on class room observation. The observation uses the ‘early learning goals’ which can be found on ‘https://www.gov.uk/early-years-foundation-stage’

Statutory provision nurseries tend to follow the schools opening hours from 8-5. There are a number of statutory hours that children are entitled to however if children attend at 8am they might have to pay an additional fee for example breakfast club. Children can also stay at after school club but this will also be an additional fee to parents.
Statutory provisions aren’t flexible as there are set hours and aren’t open on weekends unlike some private provisions which may open all days of the week. In some cases nurseries will offer a summer holiday club at an extra cost.

Holidays during term time can be permitted if you get permission of the schools head teacher.
‘You can only do this if you make an application to the head teacher in advance as the parent of the child or if there are exceptional circumstances.’ It is up to the head teacher how many days your child can be taken away if granted. If you take your child out of school without permission you can be fined. Your local council can give you a fine of £60 which can rise to £120 for your child’s attendance if you don’t pay within 21 days. It can also result in up to 3 months in prison for your child poor attendance and may have to attend parenting
classes.

To become a nursery teacher, or in other words an early year’s teacher, ‘you will need to gain an early years teacher status (EYTS) by completing an early years initial teacher training (EYITT) course.’ There are several routes available such as graduate entry, graduate employment, undergraduate entry or assessment only.
For all routes you’ll need GCSEs at grades from 9-4 in English, Maths and a Science subject or equivalent qualifications. You will also need passes in numeracy and literacy skill tests plus background checks by the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). Experience in working with children, paid or voluntary, will also be needed to be qualified.
You will need the ability to work well with parents, children, carers, colleagues and other professionals. Organisation and time managing skills are important. You must have creative ideas for designing learning and play activities and have excellent communication skills. It is crucial that you have a good sense of humour but more importantly patience, when managing classes and dealing with challenging behaviour, to be successful in your role.
Day to day tasks for a nursery teacher would include supporting and encouraging children through their learning and making sure the children are safe at all times .As well as working with children staff would have to plan and prepare activities, set out and tidy up activities, speak to parents about their child’s development, monitor the children’s progress, identify and deal with
any issues and attend meetings and training courses. Safeguarding in statutory provisions is when action is taken to promote the welfare of child protection. Safeguarding is defined as ‘protecting children from maltreatment, preventing impairments of children’s health and development, ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care and taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes.’ All adults who want to work with children must be DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) checked. The DBS processes criminal records and creates a list of unsuitable people who shouldn’t work or volunteer with children. It is illegal for a barred person to apply for such work. It is also legal requirement for an employee to report someone who has harmed a child or adult might have harmed a child or adult or was planning to harm a child or adult to the DBS. When a visitor comes to a statutory provision (school) they will either be given a black or red band around their neck. If the visitor is wearing a black one it means they have been DBS checked and can be by themselves in the school. On the other hand if they are wearing a red band it means they haven’t been DBS checked and must be supervised at all times. DBS checks are extremely important to prevent further issues with children and protect them.

Statutory nurseries are regulated by Ofsted. ‘Ofsted is the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills. It reports directly to Parliament and is both independent and impartial. By law it must inspect schools with the aim of providing information to parents, to promote improvement and to hold schools to an account.’ Families use Ofsted reports to help them decide which school will give their child the best possible future. To help give a more accurate rating, from September Ofsted will start rating schools every three years instead of seven years.