The principles underpinning the role of the practitioner working with children
E1: The practitioner has several responsibilities when engaging in professional relationships with children, families, colleagues and other professionals. The first and foremost responsibility is the care and well-being of the children. That is the most obvious and vital area of childcare. A practitioner’s job is to keep the children safe and cater to their every need possible. A sign of a good practitioner is to plan appropriately to every child’s needs. Being involved with group activities helps the practitioner observe the child’s strengths and weaknesses. The children should feel comfortable and secure around the practitioner and have a good friendly relationship. It is our responsibility to create a positive atmosphere.
When it comes to building relationships with families, a practitioner has to keep in mind several things. Those include confidentiality and building up trust. The families of the children should be able to feel free to talk openly and discuss their child’s issues or even sometimes their own. A practitioner should also be diverse and engage in inclusive practice. They should be aware of the child and family’s background. It is their duty to respect every child as an individual. It is important to have relationships with families because they are after all the child’s primary caregivers. They know alot about the child and working with them helps the children.
Having good relationships with colleagues helps in the work setting as you can work together in order to progress your own practice as well as the child’s. It is important for a practitioner to have good communication skills in order to inform their colleagues of any areas up for discussion. There are times where you have to stay formal. However you can have informal relationships with colleagues. For instance going on nights out and socialising outside the work hours. A practitioner should have a good
Bibliography: www.ecm.co.uk. www.eyfs.co.uk www.KEEP.co.uk www.unicef.co.uk