7.0 Valuing diversity and promoting equality
Policy statement
We will ensure that our service is fully inclusive in meeting the needs of all children, particularly those that arise from their ethnic heritage, social and economic background, gender, ability or disability. Our setting is committed to anti-discriminatory practice to promote equality of opportunity and valuing diversity for all children and families. We aim to:
- Provide a secure and accessible environment in which all our children can flourish and in which all contributions are considered and valued.
- Include and value the contribution of all families to our understanding of equality and diversity. • provide positive non-stereotyping information about gender roles, diverse ethnic and cultural groups and disabled people.
- Improve our knowledge and understanding of issues of anti-discriminatory practice, promoting equality and valuing diversity; and
- Make inclusion a thread that runs through all the activities of the setting.
Procedures
Admissions
Our setting is open to all members of the community.
▪ We advertise our service widely.
▪ We reflect the diversity of our society in our publicity and promotional materials.
▪ We provide information in clear, concise language, whether in spoken or written form.
▪ We provide information in as many languages as possible.
▪ We base our admissions policy on a fair system.
▪ We ensure that all parents are made aware of our equal opportunities policy.
▪ We do not discriminate against a child or their family, or prevent entry to our setting, based on colour, ethnicity, religion or social background, such as being a member of a Travelling community or an asylum seeker.
▪ We do not discriminate against a child with a disability or refuse a child entry to our setting for reason relating to disability.
▪ We ensure wherever possible that we have a balanced intake of boys and girls in the setting.
▪ We develop an action plan to ensure that people with disabilities can participate successfully in the services offered by the setting and in the curriculum offered.
▪ We take action against any discriminatory behaviour by staff or parents. Displaying of openly discriminatory and possibly offensive materials, name calling, or threatening behaviour are unacceptable on or around the premises and will be dealt with in the strongest manner.
Employment
▪ Posts are advertised and all applicants are judged against explicit and fair criteria.
▪ Applicants are welcome from all backgrounds and posts are open to all.
▪ We may use the exemption clauses in relevant legislation to enable the service to best meet the needs of the community.
▪ The applicant who best meets the criteria is offered the post, subject to references and checks by the Criminal Records Bureau. This ensures fairness in the selection process.
▪ All job descriptions include a commitment to promoting equality and recognising and respecting diversity as part of their specifications.
▪ We monitor our application process to ensure that it is fair and accessible.
Training
▪ We seek out training opportunities for staff and volunteers to enable them to develop anti discriminatory and inclusive practices, which enable all children to flourish.
▪ We ensure that staff are confident and fully trained in administering relevant medicines and performing invasive care procedures when these are required.
▪ We review our practices to ensure that we are fully implementing our policy for promoting equality, valuing diversity and inclusion.
Curriculum
The curriculum offered in the setting encourages children to develop positive attitudes about themselves as well as to people who are different from themselves. It encourages children to empathise with others and to begin to develop the skills of critical thinking.
Our environment is as accessible as possible for all visitors and service users. If access to the settings is found to treat disabled children or adults less favourably then we make reasonable adjustments to accommodate the needs of disabled children and adults.
We do this by:
▪ Making children feel valued and good about themselves.
▪ Ensuring that children have equality of access to learning.
▪ Undertaking an access audit to establish if the setting is accessible to all children.
▪ Adjusting the environment and resources to accommodate a wide range of learning, physical and sensory impairments.
▪ Making appropriate provision within the curriculum to ensure each child receives the widest possible opportunity to develop their skills and abilities, e.g. recognising the different learning styles of girls and boys.
▪ Positively reflecting the widest possible range of communities in the choice of resources.
▪ Avoiding stereotypes or derogatory images in the selection of books or other visual materials.
▪ Celebrating a wide range of festivals.
▪ Creating an environment of mutual respect and tolerance.
▪ Differentiating the curriculum to meet children’s special educational needs.
▪ Helping children to understand that discriminatory behaviour and remarks are hurtful and unacceptable.
▪ Ensuring that the curriculum offered is inclusive of children with special educational needs and children with disabilities.
▪ Ensuring that children learning English as an additional language have full access to the curriculum and are supported in their learning; and
▪ Ensuring that children speaking languages other than English are supported in the maintenance and development of their home languages.
Valuing diversity in families
▪ We welcome the diversity of family lifestyles and work with all families.
▪ We encourage children to contribute stories of their everyday life to the setting.
▪ We encourage parents/carers to take part in the life of the setting and to contribute fully.
▪ For families who speak languages in addition to English, we will develop means to ensure their full inclusion.
▪ We offer a flexible payment system for families of differing means and offer information regarding sources of financial support in our Prospectus.
Food
▪ We work in partnership with parents to ensure that the medical, cultural, and dietary needs of children are met.
▪ We help children to learn about a range of food, and of cultural approaches to mealtimes and eating, and to respect the differences among them.
Monitoring and reviewing
▪ To ensure our policies and procedures remain effective we will monitor and review them annually to ensure our strategies meets the overall aims to promote equality, inclusion, and valuing diversity.
▪ We provide a complaints procedure and a complaints summary record for parents to see.
Legal framework
▪ The Equality Act 2010
▪ Children Act 1989, 2004
▪ Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001
These policies was adopted at a meeting of: Little Alpacas
Held on: September 2022
Date to be reviewed: September 2023
Name of signatory: Carly Turner
Role of signatory: Director
7.1 Supporting children with special educational needs & disabilities Policy statement
We provide an environment in which all children, including those with special educational needs, and disabilities are supported to reach their full potential.
▪ We have regard for the DFES Special Educational Needs & Disabilities Code of Practice (2015.)
▪ We ensure our provision is inclusive to all children with special educational needs & disabilities.
▪ We support parents and children with special educational needs & disabilities (SEND).
▪ We identify the specific needs of children with special educational needs and meet those needs through a range of SEND strategies.
▪ We work in partnership with parents and other agencies in meeting individual children’s needs.
▪ We monitor and review our policy, practice, and provision and, if necessary, make adjustments.
. Special Needs – Transitions. Where a child has a special need, or disability we would work closely with the
Local schools to make sure the transition goes smoothly for the child by having a link book between the setting and school, photographs, scrapbook and arrange extra transition days at school and extra visits by the teachers to our setting.
Our setting is accessible as possible for all parents and children. If access to the setting is found to treat disabled children or adults less favourably then we make reasonable adjustments to accommodate the needs of the disabled child and parent,
Procedures
▪ We designate a member of staff to be the Special Educational Needs & Disability Co-ordinator (SENDCO) and give her name to parents. Our SENDCO is Carly Turner
▪ We ensure that the provision for children with special educational needs and disabilities is the responsibility of all members of the setting.
▪ We ensure that our inclusive admissions practice ensures equality of access and opportunity.
▪ We use the graduated response system for identifying, assessing, and responding to children’s special educational needs and disabilities.
▪ We work closely with parents of children with special educational needs and disabilities to create and maintain a positive partnership.
▪ We ensure that parents are informed at all stages of the assessment, planning, provision, and review of their children’s education.
▪ We provide parents with information on sources of independent advice and support.
▪ We liaise with other professionals involved with children with special educational needs and disabilities and their families, including transfer arrangements to other settings and schools.
▪ We provide a broad, balanced, and differentiated curriculum for all children with special educational needs.
▪ We use a system of planning, implementing, monitoring, evaluating, and reviewing Individual Educational Plans (IEPs) for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
▪ We ensure that children with special educational needs and disabilities are appropriately involved at all stages of the graduated response, taking into account their levels of ability.
▪ We have systems in place for supporting children during Early Years Action by providing In House support information this is then put onto an Individual Educational Plan. Early Years Action Plan – advice would be sort from outside agencies (providing parental permission is gained) Statutory Assessment and a statement of Special Educational Needs would be undertaken by an Educational Psychologist working with parents and other agencies before the child starts school.
▪ We use a system for keeping records of the assessment, planning, provision, and review for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
▪ We provide resources (human and financial) to implement our Special Educational Needs and disability Policy i.e. advice from our local area SENDCO, toy libraries, working with parents to resolve any issues and to make sure building is accessible.
▪ We raise awareness of any specialism the setting has to offer, e.g. Makaton trained staff.
▪ We ensure the effectiveness of our special educational needs provision by collecting information from a range of sources e.g. Individual Education Plan reviews, staff and management meetings, parental and external agency’s views, inspections, and complaints. This information is collated, evaluated, and reviewed annually.
▪ We provide a complaints procedure.
▪ We monitor and review our policy annually.
These policies was adopted at a meeting of: Little Alpacas
Held on: September 2022
Date to be reviewed: September 2023
Name of signatory: Carly Turner
Role of signatory: Director