Is it normal for reception aged children to be left alone in the school sick room if their parent/carer is late? to collect them?

[AcrylicPlexiglass]

I feel awful as I was about 20 minutes late to pick up my little girl today due to unexpectedly heavy traffic. I arrived to find her alone in the school sick room, crying quietly and very upset as she thought I wasn't coming to get her. :( Obviously it is absolutely my fault that I was late and therefore mostly my fault that my daughter was so sad and obviously I will try to ensure it never, ever happens again. At the same time I can't help feeling quite disappointed in the school. My daughter is only just 4 and she was worried and sad and no one was supervising her, so no one noticed or reassured her that I was very nearby and on my way (I phoned to say I was on my way and really sorry etc). Is this approach normal?

If a parent is late collecting at our school the child sits by the office until 15 minutes after collection time then gets taken to the after-school club (for which the parent is charged) but at no time - especially a child as young as a reception aged child would they be left unsupervised.

And as I said earlier, remember that for every poster who says "Ah, but I've only ever been late twice and it was unavoidable," that may be the case, for you. But from the school's point of view, you have to multiply that "twice" by however many families there are in the school.

In a large school particularly, it can soon become a real issue. Especially when some parents then start complaining about how well their child was entertained during the wait. And they do!

I once worked in a school that would phone ss to come and take the child if no one had collected them or phoned by 4pm.