Do I need a seperate policy for this? or a risk assesment?

[Saltire]

We have a dog and for weeks the mindees have been asking if they can go with me and dog for a walk. I've laways declined, however unbeknown to me they asked their mum, and she turned up this morning with a letter giving permission for me to take the dog out for a walk with mindees.

Do I need a policy to take it for a walk, or a risk assesment, or both?

If you've got a policy for pets and a risk assessment for an outing, I don't see why you'd need another one. I wouldn't bother writing one, what's the difference between taking the dog with you safely on a lead, and bumping into a dog you don't know when you're out with the children?!

Someone else will come along shortly and say you need a specific risk assessment for an outing with a dog though, even if you go to the same places that you go to without it!

Well I do have a pet policy, and a risk assesment for outings. Maybe I'll just leave it then

I have a policy about pets. They are included in my risk assessment
Parents have signed a form to say they are happy with how their children interact with the pets. I don't have a dog ...

If you've already said no (out of curiosity why have you said no?), I would put my foot down and say that it isn't down to their parent's it is down to you! It may sound a bit harsh but I get the impression that some of your mindees try and take advantage of you so I think it's a bit cheeky they've asked their parents when you've said no. Did you tell their mum that you had already told them no?

This is definitely a time when you can assert your authority. Your dog, your decision.

Agree with positive outlook. If you don't want to walk the dog with the children, then don't.

I've said no previously becasue the younger mindee is being assesed for SN,a nd he loves animals, to the extent that he annoys them, thus the dog (poor thing) gets relegated to an upstairs bedroom during the 3 hours a day I ahve mindees. This is because, even though he is usually in the kitchen with a stairgate on it, mindee was still annoying dog, and was climbing over gate to get to him. Dog growled and bared his teeth - did not bite but mindee was scared. For aobut 10 mintues then went back again and again.He climbed the gate whilst I was in the loo, despite being told umpteen times in 3 hours not to go near the kitchen door unless me or DH were there.

However part of me feels if we do soemthing with the dog on a more regualr basis he might understand better how to look after dogs etc

He trys to pick up cats if he sees one when we are out, he'll go and stare in peoples windows if he sees cat or dog in the house, he has no fear with dogs, will go up to random ones - of course I stop him - and the other day even tried to get in a field with a horse