Leisure and Activities

All Children living in the Home, will enjoy access to a range of social, educational and recreational opportunities, both inside and outside the Home (differentiated by need), including activities in the local community. They will be able to participate in after-school activities, volunteering and community-based activities, school trips and holidays, and will be supported to engage in faith-based activities if they wish. They will be encouraged and assisted to take part in and benefit from a variety of activities that enable them to pursue their interests and hobbies and develop and reflect their creative, cultural, intellectual, physical, and social interests and skills.

Adults will help each child to:

• Develop their interests and hobbies;
• Participate in activities that they enjoy, and which meet and expand the child’s interests and preferences; and
• Make a positive contribution to the Home and the wider community.

Adults should seek to identify and provide appropriate opportunities for children to develop themselves in accordance with their wishes and feelings and as part of the Home's plan for their care. Each child's talents and interests should be understood and nurtured, with children selecting activities based on their personal preferences and abilities, so far as is reasonable. Adults should also support children to try activities that are 'new' for them, where appropriate.

Adults should ensure that children understand what local leisure and other cultural or religious services are on offer for them, support them to access any relevant leisure passes and encourage them to participate in activities in the community and wider if appropriate.

Differentiated Approaches

Some children may require additional support from adults to participate in leisure or cultural activities in the community. The registered manager, in conjunction with any relevant agencies (such as school) should assess what would be safe, achievable and reasonable for each child, in line with their relevant plans, and ensure appropriate opportunities are available for each child to have fun, form friendships and enjoy life, relative to their stage of development and individual needs.

Each child's Placement Plan should set out the permissions that their placing authority has delegated to the Home. This should provide clarity on the Home's ability to give permission for school trips, sleep-overs or the child's involvement in sporting, leisure and cultural activities. Wherever possible the Home should secure the appropriate authority to support children to be involved in the same positive activities as all children.

See also: Consents and Delegated Authority Procedure.

When planning or risk assessing leisure activities, the manager must be consulted and should oversee and approve all arrangements or delegate another person to act on the manager's behalf. All arrangements must be recorded and signed off by the Home's manager or delegate.

If only one adult is taking part, it is always assumed that person is in charge or responsible for the activity. Where more than one adult is taking part, one person must be designated Group Leader (or person in charge) and other adults should be given other responsibilities/roles as necessary. These other responsibilities must be overseen by the Group Leader and approved by the manager.

The Group Leader may complete a Risk Assessment, see Section 12, Guidance Regarding Risk Assessments.

The Group Leader must prepare and produce a route, timetable or schedule for the activity, including dates, times of travel, vehicle(s) to be used, the location of planned breaks, places/locations to be visited and people to be visited.

The Group Leader must identify the children who will be taking part in the activity and consider what arrangements or plans must be made, taking account of:

1. The child’s safety plan and other relevant plans;
2. Recent/relevant events/incidents which may not yet have been included in an updated safety plan;
3. Group dynamics, adult/child relationships;
4. Safeguarding Issues;
5. To decide, alongside the Registered Manager, whether or not the planned activity carries a higher risk and, therefore, more careful planning (see Section 13, Higher Risk Activities).

A list of responsible adults who are likely to take part must be drawn up. At least one adult should be known to the child(ren) taking part. Where this is not possible the manager must approve the alternative arrangements, ensuring that the best interests of the child are accounted for; in these circumstances the adults taking responsibility for the child must be provided with relevant information about the child to enable the activity to be undertaken safely.

The Group Leader must ensure the child/adult ratios are adequate to meet the needs of the children and the risks posed. For example, where there are increased risks, hazardous activities are undertaken or remote locations are used. (These activities would fall under the Higher Risk Activities protocol).

Where activities might lead to heightened emotions, with a need for de-escalation the Group Leader/Manager must ensure that staff undertaking the activity are suitably trained and are familiar with procedures and guidelines contained in this manual relating to Positive Relationships, Happy Events and Consequences Procedure and Restrictive Physical Intervention Procedure.

The Group Leader must ensure that parent(s) have been consulted/informed and consents obtained. See Consents and Delegated Authority Procedure.

All staff must carry ID cards.

Adequate Public Liability Insurance must be obtained, usually already in place - consult the manager.

Normally, children's holidays are insured fully under the company insurance policy for any holiday within the United Kingdom. Additionally, resorts or destinations will be expected to confirm they have Public Liability Insurance cover in place.

Holidays outside of the United Kingdom or hazardous activities may require additional insurance. In these circumstances, the Group Leader should consult the manager. When using public facilities e.g. leisure centre or hazardous activities staff should ask to see a valid copy of the current insurance certificate and record any findings on the relevant Activity Risk Assessment.

The Group Leader must decide what financial arrangements are necessary, and agree them with the manager. The manager must decide how finances will be recorded. Any receipts should be kept.

The Group Leader must ensure that adequate arrangements are made for meals, breaks; taking account of the dietary, healthcare and cultural needs/choices of the children and staff.

For detailed procedures, see Transporting Children Procedure.

As soon as practicable before the activity is due to start, the children should be notified of the following, and this must be recorded.

1. The consultation and involvement of the children in the planning;
2. An explanation of the proposed activity, including its aims and objectives;
3. Behavioural expectations for adults and children participating in activities;
4. Appropriate and inappropriate personal contact including sexual activity;
5. Emergency procedures and safety precautions;
6. Rendezvous procedures;
7. Dangers e.g. coastal visits, mountain walking;
8. What clothing they will require.

If an activity holiday is proposed, the name of organisation, activities involved type of accommodation, address and phone number of organisation should be obtained.

There are a number of checks which must be made on activity holidays.

These must be undertaken by the Group Leader unless the holiday has been arranged by the child's school, the school should be asked to confirm that these checks have been made and that sufficient staff or subcontracted staff will be present to supervise the children.

Group leaders will need to follow the Higher Risk Activities guidance in relation to this type of holiday.

Wherever possible, there should be suitable sleeping/bathroom facilities taking account of gender identity considerations for children and staff. If this is not possible, a rota system must be implemented.

Adults should supervise the children at night.

A rota should be devised to enable the maximum supervision possible. The on call person should not retire until the children have been settled for one hour.

Individual/group needs must be taken into consideration at night e.g. a child may prefer not to sleep in a dormitory setting. Are there any safeguarding issues? Sleeping arrangements must reflect the fact that adults have considered the individual needs of and associated risks to children on the activity. Sleeping arrangements must be detailed in the plan and approved by the manager.

Security arrangements must be implemented at night.

If a child goes missing whilst on an activity it will be necessary to follow the procedures set out in Missing Children Procedure.

See: Environmental Risk Assessment and Planning Procedure.

The Home's manager must ensure that any activities or leisure pursuits in which children participate are, so far as reasonably practicable, free from avoidable risks and, on a day to day basis, staff should take reasonable precautions and make informed judgements about when to allow children to participate in an activity. Excessive caution is unnecessary and children should be provided with the opportunity to take risks proportionate to their age, level of understanding and in the light of assessments, historical knowledge and plans/strategies that are in place e.g. where the behaviour or choices that have already been made by a child are poor or have placed them or others at risk, caused injury, harm or damage to property, staff must take this into consideration when planning activities.

It is not necessary to undertake a separate risk assessment for each activity/trip or for trips/activities which clearly pose a low risk to the child(ren) e.g. outings to the pictures, local baths/parks; in such circumstances, staff should use their previous knowledge of the activity and of the child(ren).

Where a range or series of activities may be undertaken (the transporting of children to and from school, a series of supervised contacts, the undertaking of routine activities), the manager may approve a Risk Assessment and associated arrangements such as staffing levels for a period; and then set a date for the review of the assessment/arrangements.

The manager or person delegated to oversee the activity must approve a completed a risk assessment in advance.

A risk assessment for a visit need not be complex but it should be comprehensive. It does not generally require technical formulae or professional health and safety expertise, but specialised information for some visits may be necessary and managers must ensure that the person assessing is competent to do so.

A formal assessment of the risks that might be met on an activity should have the aim of preventing the risks or reducing them. Children must not be placed in situations which expose them to an unacceptable level of risk. Safety and protection of all concerned must always be the prime consideration. If the risks cannot be contained or managed, the activity must not take place.

The risk assessment should be based on the following considerations for individual children:

1. Safety plan;
2. Recent/relevant events/incidents;
3. Group dynamics, adult/child relationships;
4. Child Protection Issues;
5. Behavioural needs;
6. Level associated with any history of drug/alcohol misuse;
7. Any needs specific to the child’s emotional, health, social, physical and mental health needs;
8. What are the hazards?
9. Whom might they affect?
10. What safety measures need to be in place to reduce the risk to an acceptable level?
11. Are safety measures in place?
12. What steps will be taken in an emergency?

In undertaking the risk assessment, all adults taking part and children who can make informed decisions should be consulted and a record the risks should be made and seen/approved by the manager.

Frequent activities/visits to local venues such as swimming baths or where a child is transported to and from school may not need a risk assessment for each trip; but the manager must ensure that a risk assessment is completed for the series/range of activities/visits; and a date set for the review of the risk assessment.

Alternatively, a risk assessment which has been agreed for a series or range of activities/visits must be reviewed immediately after any information comes to light or any event/incident which compromises the safety of the children/adults. In such circumstances, the activities/visits must be suspended until a review has taken place and the manager is satisfied that a suitable new risk assessment has been completed.

The adult should take the following factors into consideration when assessing the risks for the group as a whole:

1. The type of visit/activity and the level at which it is being undertaken;
2. The location, routes and modes of transport;
3. The competence, experience and qualifications of the adults;
4. Ratios of children to adults;
5. The group members' age competence, fitness, and temperament, and the suitability of the activity;
6. The quality and suitability of available equipment;
7. Seasonal conditions, weather and timing;
8. Emergency procedures;
9. The need to monitor risks throughout the activity;

When approving the risk assessment and subsequent plan for the activity, the Registered Manager should determine what latitude staff have to change the plan, the need for a contingency plan, an 'on call' or backup procedure to provide support, advice or direction to the staff once the activity/trip has started.

Some activities for children will carry a higher risk than that of some everyday activities. Examples of higher risk activities are detailed below, but this list is not exhaustive:

1. Holidays outside of the UK (see Section 15, Holidays for Children Outside the UK);
2. Abseiling;
3. Zip wire;
4. Rock climbing;
5. Water or sea sports (classed as different to an everyday visit to a swimming baths and normally requires a certain level of coaching qualification/insurance);
6. Mountain climbing/hikes;
7. Gliding or flying in aircraft (as part of Military Cadet Clubs);
8. Go-karting or driving any motor-powered vehicle;
9. Parkour.

The Group Leader must ensure that they consult with the Registered Manager of the home to establish whether or not the activities on offer fall under the Higher Risk Activity guidance.

When it has been decided that an activity on offer is a Higher Risk Activity, the Registered Manager should oversee the Risk Assessment process and the additional checks/visits/permissions/insurance/qualifications are recorded for each staff member and child taking part in the higher risk activity. The documentation will be presented to a member of the Executive Team (ideally, the Responsible Individual with input from the Health & Safety Manager, who will need to sign-off on the activity going ahead).

Any holiday that we take our children on where there is a proposal for a child to go on holiday in the UK, the child’s social worker must obtain full information about the holiday.

This will include:

• Proposed dates and duration of the holiday;
• The wishes and feelings of the child;
• Address(es)/contact details of the holiday location/what type of holiday;
• Insurance details;
• Who will be present on the holiday e.g. names of other children and other adults;
• If the holiday involves staying with friends or relatives, their names and addresses;
• Emergency contacts;
• Any risk assessments that may be required, which should include any health or other needs of the child as well as the holiday environment itself.

The child’s social worker should seek the views of the child and parent / persons who have Parental Responsibility as soon as practicable.

If the parents’ consent, this consent must be obtained in writing.

If a child is subject to a care order, the child’s social worker will provide their own written consent for the child to go on holiday, after having had sight of all of the risk assessments/safety plans for the child.

Where the social worker, parent and staff/carer agree to the proposed holiday, the holiday can be approved and should be included in the child’s Safety Plan.

Children must not be taken on holiday during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances and the holiday has been approved by the Head of the child’s school and the Social Worker’s Manager. If parents are opposed to the holiday, the social worker and their manager may need to seek legal advice.

Written confirmation of the manager’s decision, together with the reasons, should be provided to the parent.

Where the holiday will involve additional costs, the social worker should obtain approval for the costs from the relevant manager before the holiday can be agreed.

If approved, the holiday should be included in the child’s Placement Plan.

Where the holiday will interrupt contact arrangements between the child and parents, consideration should also be given to arranging additional contacts before and after the holiday.

Legislation, Statutory Guidance and Government Non-Statutory Guidance

Health and Safety: Advice for Schools (Department for Education)