Is there a school gate pick up solution that actually works?

[Gonzales27]

The system at my dc school at collection time seems chaotic and risky but I'm struggling to suggest an alternative system that will work better.

Currently each class is kept together. The teacher of the class stands at the head of each line asking each child if they can see their parent/grandparent. Once the child has confirmed that they can see them then they are released into the sea of parents. There have been several occasions where kids , usually the younger ones, have told the teacher that their parents are there only to get lost and upset when they can't find them.

Of course this is upsetting and unsafe.

But if the teachers have to find and confirm each parent then everyone will be there for hours! What's the solution?

At DS1s infant school, the children are led out by class, and only released when the teacher has seen the parent.

If the child is being picked up by someone the teacher doesn't recognise, they have to have the "password" for that child, rather than the child just saying "yes, that's my grandma"

At our school parents are kept behind a line in the playground. Making it less crowded and easier to spot children. The little kids are let out when child & teacher & parent have spotted each other. Older kids come freely out a different door.

Mine lines the kids up, asks the kid if it sees the carer (usually doing a mad wave), makes eye contact with carer. If carer not yet there, move on to next child in line.

Parents also message school with any change in pick up arrangement eg granny and this list goes to class teacher.

Our school is a large primary. The reception kids are handed over by the teacher in a small fenced rear playground at 3.25. Year 1 are handed over into the main rear playground at 3.25. From year 2 and up, parents wait at the front of the school in the school grounds. At 3.30, the rest of the kids are released and make their way round to the front. They are told that if the person expected to collect them is not there, they should go back in and wait at the office (although in practice, one of the other mums/dads will usually get their friends child to wait with them until their parent arrives if they are a couple of minutes late and would be phoning/texting them if they were more than 5 minutes late).

It works pretty well. The kids are well trained not to wander off. The area is generally safe. Parents by year 2 know other parents and their kids and watch out for each other. Not sure what more they can do as it would be a logistical nightmare to hand over all 500 of them!

Similar to pps: parents go directly to the classroom for Nursery-Year 3 (nursery are let out earlier) and children are called individually when teachers see the parent. Years 4-5 are let out without supervision, but a member of SLT stands at the gate to make sure no one leaves without an adult. Year 6 are allowed home on their own (unless parents say otherwise), parents wait for them outside the gates if they do pick them up, or if there are younger siblings they meet in the playground. Playground isn't big enough for all the parents & kids.

Why can't the teacher clock the parent also?

all our classrooms have outside doors. the parents line up outside the classroom and your child is released directly to u. it works really well but obviously it's only possible due to the design of the school.

All our classrooms have doors to the playground too. Or share a little cloakroom with the exit in it with the next door class.

The Primary One class (Scotland) is handed over to parents in the playground but all the other children are just released into the playground to either:
find their adult
Get in the after school club minibus
Walk or cycle home

Surely in England you don't have 10 year olds being individually handed over?

Reception is let out at 3.15, the rest at 3.25. R-2 come out at the back of school, Y3-6 come out at the front. Child is handed over to parent up to and including Y3, teacher and parent have to make eye contact. I agree if a teacher is not sure they should keep the child back and wait for adult to say -I'm Polly's granny.

Our school is only four years old and there are doors from each into the playground except for reception/nursery who have their own playground and empty into there.
I think unless you fill in a form in year six that the teacher will only relinquish the child to a parent

Each class room has a separate door directly onto the playground so parents just gather round the right door. Children inside with the teacher, as they get to the front a combination of waving collector and child pointing them out is enough for the teacher to let them out. If teacher doesn't recognise person collecting they stand the child to one side until the end. If they can't see collector child stands to the side as well. Teacher seems to recognise all parents now and there are a lot of grandparents collecting as well as childcare swaps.

The kids come out of 2 doors. There are 2 or three classes being released at a time. The teachers keep them in a line/ huddle and ask them one by one if they can see their parent/carer. The parents are all huddled in quite a small area. The teachers look for the correct parent each time but it's all a bit rushed and chaotic, hence the problems that have occurred. TBH it sounds similar to many others here just not carried out as thoroughly.

In Scotland here too and find this all a bit baffling. P1 are handed over. P2 &3 the teacher does take the class to the door and make sure there is nobody left behind. Our p1-3's get out half an hour before the rest. It is drummed in that if you don't see your parent come back and wait it's never been a problem. P4 upwards just flock out whenever they have all their stuff together.

KS1 children sit in their carpet spaces in the classroom and parents wait outside the classroom. When the teacher sees a parent, he or she calls the child to leave. If there is a substitute teacher, the parents let the teacher know who their child is.

For KS2, the parents wait in the playground. The children line up in the classroom and to the cloakrooms and out of school by themselves. The teachers wait by the door to talk to any parent who wants a word, or let parents know about significant events in the day (injuries, sadness, fantastic work etc).

In Scotland here too and find this all a bit baffling.

DD is P4 and DS is P7. There isn't even a particular reason that I need to go and pick them up. It's more for my own social reasons that I do it.