Should I raise a safeguarding concern after a mix-up at collection time?

[PurpleFuschia4]

At pickup today, I went to collect my DD (she's nearly 8) and the teachers didn't know where she was. They went looking but she turned up on her own. The whole thing lasted no more than 5 minutes, I think.

I let the teacher on the door know who I was collecting, and she couldn't see DD. She asked the other teacher, who was in the room, who replied "she's been collected by her mum" - but obviously she hadn't as I'm her mum... that teacher then went on to say something about there being "two of them" (my daughters name) but this isn't the case anyway, as there is another child who has a similar name, but it's not the same name. That teacher didn't do anything to look for my daughter, she just carried on doing what she was doing (it looked like she was tidying something away), and the other teacher who was on the door went to look for her.

I spoke to my DD and she said she had gone to the toilet (she has told me she asked the teacher, the one who seemed to think my daughter had been collected, who said yes) but then decided to go get her coat from outside her classroom (she didn't ask a teacher to do this), which meant going to a different part of the school. I have spoken to DD about the importance of telling teachers where you're going and not to go anywhere without telling a teacher where she is going.

Am I right to send an email to the head/safeguarding lead about it? Or am I overreacting?

You are over reacting she's not 4 and in reception! Children of this age frequently move around the building and are trusted to do so.

I wouldn't raise it. If she'd done as she was told, she'd have been where she was meant to be.
Tidy teacher obv knew she'd gone to the loo ages ago, and then got the names muddled cos she was multitasking. Door teacher went and looked and found your child wandering where she shouldn't be. No one got released incorrectly or actually lost.

Just a kid who wandered off when she shouldn't have who was immediately found by a teacher

You are def overreacting.

When my DC were in juniors they just got let out the classroom in to the playground where the parent/care giver would be. Some of us waited at the bottom of the path too so waiting for your DC to come out when they were a bit older.

In infants (up to age 7) you’d wait outside the classroom to be dismissed in to your ‘persona’s’ hands and had to sign a book if they were going on a play date (or call office if it was a last minute decision).

All very sensible. No drama .

This. She was still safely in the school.

The collection thing was just a teacher mishearing the child’s name. This was immediately pointed out by the relevant teacher. The teacher knew your child was still in the school.

Everything was ok, OP.

This!
I really wouldn’t get upset about it - she’s fine and that’s what matters.

What happened to your child is a clear safeguarding issue. That was unacceptable. However, it doesn't make OP's situation a safeguarding issue. Her child was still on the school premises. She had gone to the toilet and then gone to get her coat. She was not at any risk.

Definitely an overreaction!

Have you ever dismissed 30 children at the end of the day?
Just out of interest, if we're not human, what exactly are we???
Obviously children's welfare trumps everything. But we are human and we do make mistakes. Are you perfect at your job?

Crazy over reaction. They were nowhere near letting the wrong kid go home with the wrong parent.

Absolutely! No wonder so many teachers are leaving. In what other job do people get scrutinised like this?

And she should've been there to collect him at the correct time / place! But no, blame the teacher!

What did you think had happened?

a crazy child catcher came to school and ypur 7 year ild went willingly with?

i have a friend who makes her 7 yo wear a tracker when he’s not with her / at a birthday party or out with their dad

lunacy

get a grip. The world’s gone mad