Pick up routines

[LightminTheQueem]

Have name changed for this. Can anyone tell me what their year one child has for a school pick up routine in terms of security, making sure they don't go with other adults etc.? DD1's school has expanded and the routine is that yr 1 and 2 classes come out into the playground and are picked up. It's all fairly chaotic and hard for the teachers to keep track of who is where and who is going with which adult, but they try and the school have said they are going to put marks on the playground which may make it clearer where the children have to wait. I worry about that, but also that several times DD has been released to my mum, who they don't know, without their having seen the note I've written to say that she's coming. I found today's note still in the bag, and my mum wasn't asked when she picked DD up. Is this normal? They just seem pretty blasé about it all and have said that if the child know the adult who's come they will release them to them - surely that's not right? We know a lot of people here but I haven't arranged with them all to pick her up. They are pretty resistant to discussing it and I don't know where to check what should be happening. Any advice or experiences?

My dd is in Yr1 and they are release from their classroom after the teacher has physically seen a person on the list specified ie, mum, dad, nan for example.

I wouldn't like the idea of such young children being released in the chaotic way you have described. I would have a sharp word with the school regarding this issue!

Fwiw i'm glad my dd school hasn't done similar as she has sn, (suspected asd) and would likely run off in this situation

DD1 is now year 2 but the system is the same.

The school covers Reception to year 6 and the children are let out of 3 gates. All after school club children are taken to the school office to be collected by the club staff.

Recption and year 1 use a single gate. The class teacher (plus sometimes TA) have the class lined up, they reach the gate and look for the designated collector for each chid. If they can't see one, they may ask "can you see mummy/granny etc.?" Once the bulk of the cases have been collected, then you can see who is left.

The teachers get to know who the regular substitutes are. For example I don't usually pick up. We have 2 days of after school club, one of Granny, one of daddy and one day when another parent collects them as she gives them a Spanish lesson. If you are known to be friendly, then if you say you are collecting X, this has ever been a problem.

It is usually more chaotic for our older children, coming out of the remaining 2 gates, but again, by then the staff know who collects who, who is related to who (we have 2 sets of cousins at our school and we are all down as designated collectors for all the children in cases of emergency or traffic!)

It wasn't clear from my post, children and teachers inside gates, parents on outer playground to which the children do not have access until released by teacher.

My DC are older now, but at Y1, they lined up inside the classroom and the teacher wouldn't release them until she had made eye contact with an adult who was "approved" to pick them up. If an unknown adult was picking up, they would have to go up to the teacher and give the "password". If no one had arrived, the child would be asked to stand to the side of the door and wait.

Your system does sound very chaotic!

Thank you. We have no boundary, like a gate, the children just come into the playground where parents are waiting in a bunch around the teacher. Likewise there is no list of approved people to pick up. I always write a note or call if plans change during the day as I understood from reception that that's what was required, but they don't seem to be that interested. The teacher who let DD go today wasn't her usual teacher, so perhaps she thought my mum always collected her, but she wouldn't have been able to recognise any of us as far as I know. Am just quite horrified at the change in routine from reception, where they were released from classrooms to this process which seems potentially very open to the children wandering or going with the wrong person.

Reception, year 1 & 2 are lined up inside and let out by the teacher when they see the parent. They will not let a child go with another adult if they have not been told. They write a note on a board in the class room so everyone knows.

The office will contact the parent.

Children in a bunch, not parents, although the parents then all pile in and get their children and are meant to tell the teacher.

So it doesn't seem normal procedure. I don't know what to do now really. The head has said they consider it fine and won't be changing it. Who else can I approach? Office tells me that route for contacting parent governors is through them. All very unclear. Any suggestions?

My DD, throughout yR, y1 and Y2 has only been released to mother/usual carer, childminder unless the mother has written specifically in the 'going home" book that a different adult is collecting her.

How do teachers manage to check the "approved" list when there is 30 in the class.

My school is same as OPs and it is fine. Children come out of their classroom door into the playground with the teacher. Parents are standing around the playground (if they are there yet). It is expected that if the child is going home with someone other than someone with parental responsibility we are told at the start of the day or the office is notified so they can send us a message slip before end of school. Children are drilled with only going with their expected person and stay near the teacher until they see them. We scan playground as child points to their adult and walks towards them. If it is a newly nominated collector (that we must already know about in advance from parent) we expect them to introduce themselves ("I'm Auntie Judy or I'm Johns's new child-minder Mrs Bloggs") and children know they must stay with us until this happens (we usually place them near the back of the line).

Notes in bookbags are not ideal. Teachers often don't have to check bookbags every day, notes can go astray as a reading book gets changed and it is accidentally tucked inside and children don't remember the note is there.

If you unpick the logistics behind it, is it really chaotic? If you are in disagreement with the school, how do you think they could do it, bearing in mind many parents want and need to collect their children quickly at the end of day not have drawn out process.

DD goes to an Infant school, 7 classes in total.

4 doors, 2 classes each share one door, one class has an extra entrance. The parents are waiting near "their" door and the classes come with their teacher and the teacher only releases a child when she sees the respective parent or childminder or whoever is the regular pick up. If my child is picked up by somebody else like leaving with a friend then we need to tell the teacher in the morning when dropping off.

The playground has a gate which only opens at 3.10pm for the 3.15pm pick up.

Our Y1 and y2 come to the door, and the teacher calls them when they see the parent. When there are a few left they line up outside by the wall until they/teacher spot the adult.
If it is someone unusual collecting them you tell the teacher in morning or the office.

If the child has said 'I'm going to XXs for tea' or 'YY will be picking me up' they would almost certainly let the child go even if parent hadn't contacted office.

If a child has particular people who should not collect the child, eg absent father, alcoholic grandparent, then they would be particularly careful.

Once your Mum has been seen once they would know her and be happy to release to her. I don't think that's a problem. Otherwise the whole going home process would take ages.

When you filled in the forms did you name your Mum as a possible picker-up?

I think it's worth having a look at the school's safeguarding policy, maybe there's one online if the school has a website, or maybe it's in the bumpf you got when your child was accepted as a pupil there?

PS am assuming you are in England

Hi Lightmin:

I can see you are worried but two things, but:

1. Most schools are aware if there is an 'issue' with a particular child (i.e. separated parent with restraining order, child at risk, etc...) and have stringent procedures for those children.

2. Most schools wouldn't be alarmed if a small child said 'That's my grandmother miss, she's taking me home....'

I know you feel there should be a strict procedure but usually teachers at the end of the day just want them off home, some time to tidy up the class and maybe do some prep and then get off home for a well earned break.

My advice is that if you want there to be more of a procedure be proactive. I occasionally can't make a pick up and have friends collect one of my DDs - I tell the teacher in advance, send in an e-mail to the office notifying them of this and also make sure the DD concerned knows what is going on (forgot once and it caused confusion with DD1 was in YR and very small).

I also sometimes ask friends to just keep an eye on my DD in case X can't make pick-up or is running late. (One friend is lovely but is always 20 minutes late).

I've never found there to be a problem - everybody knows what's going on - and I'm clear who I want my child released to (and in writing).

HTH

Our school operates similarly to OPs and I don't think there's a problem with it.
If a child says "there's nan, she's picking me up today" then that is fine.

Except there are certain children for whom there are family issues and they cannot be given to anyone without the mum (or named person) telling the teacher. I know this because I was picking up for a friend once who'd forgotten to tell. The school then had to contact them on their number before they would release the child. I'm a fairly well known parent who has picked them up before as well.

So unless you're in the second group, then don't worry.

Dd is in year six so there are a list of children who are allowed home unaccompanied (school ask parents to confirm this at the beginning of the school year) Other children are released from the classroom door, which opens onto the playground, when the teacher can see their parent/carer. If someone else is collecting a child we inform the teacher at morning drop off or send a message into school during the day. If the teacher hasn't been told she would contact the office to confirm before releasing the child. Dd's school is very vigilant, whether it is because they have to be or not I wouldn't know.

I'm finding this thread reassuring, thanks. We don't have a list of approved people, last year the teacher just got to know us am recognised us. DD is usually very excited to see my mum, so I think they probably felt it was fine, and it's common for her to be picked up by me, DH, and both sets of grandparents, so I guess a lot to remember. I always write a note to say if she will be picked up by anyone except me or DH, but we were having a bad morning and I forgot to give it to the teacher, so it just stayed in the bag. My worry is that I don't know how worried to be, iyswim. I think it does look more chaotic to me than it seems to the teachers, but there is still a fair bit of randomness going on. I will just have to be careful always to provide a note and call to ask them to hold her if the picker upper is late so she doesn't try to go with anyone else. Tbh I don't think she'd do that anyway. No website atm so I'd have to ask for safeguarding policy and, based on the reaction I and others have had to concerns about the process, that would not go down well so am a bit reluctant.

Children sit in their places until a grown up is seen in the playground. Any unfamiliar faces are asked who they are and who they have come to collect. It is a bit hectic at the beginning of the school year as some children have up to 5 different people picking them up - granny, mum, dad, childminder, older brother/sister, aunt etc. I find parents get annoyed and I get attitude when I am beginning to familiarise myself with possibly 150 new faces I see for a few seconds and they have to wait while I ask each one! Unless I had a photo over the summer holiday I would not know who is who at the beginning of the term. The parents get more irate when it rains because they all stand there with their hoods up and brollies so I can't even see faces properly and they want a swift exit as they are getting wet! Often I tell them I could not recognise them with hoods up or with a brolly covering half their face but to me I would much rather have a whinging wet parent than a missing child!