it's making me extremely angry

[ajs]

i am trying to write my risk assessments as i still haven't done any yet.
and my hubby came in sat down and said that i'd done it all wrong and that i needed to look at it a different way
he thinks bromley has written the outings assessments incorrectly.
particularly http://www.bromleycma.org.uk/eyfs/Risk_Assess_Outings_template_walking_sample.doc

he says there are too many questions to answer in each box
and it doesn't cover real risks like
plants overhanging onto the pavement
animal faeces and other things i cannot remember all of them

i feel ready to cry as i have been asking him to help start me off for months now then when i decide to make a start he comes in and tells me what i am doing is wrong.

if bromley cannot get it right what hope do i have

[miffy]

Oh Mandy - it's the weekend so chill

You've asked David to help and now he is - it's just his timing that's wrong (this is a common male problem :rolleyes: :laughing: )

I haven't done any risk assessments yet either so I'll just crib yours when you've done them :D :thumbsup:

miffy xx

[manjay]

I have revamped mine this weekend too. Although knew better than to ask dh for help. My answer would always be right anyway.

I would have a break and look at it again with fresh eyes another day

Hugs to you honey!

[ajs]

you're welcome to them,

it's not the timing so much more that i can see what he means that bromley's outing is too basic but i don't know what i need to do to make them more detailed
do i need to write it like a policy
or in text boxes that i fill in
what is the most acceptable form and the most common.

i am trying to chill but i have so much to do and no time to do it in. i am making my self very stressed by it all

[manjay]

I bought Sarah's book and used her format. Infact anything I want to do I pinch from sarah. She writes it so much better than me.

Try not to get stressed. Easy to say I know but you will get there in the end

[angeldelight]

Poor you Mandy

The big question is though before David came in was you happy with what you had done ?

How do you want to present it ?

Do you want to do it like Bromley - well of course not the same but that idea ?

What and how do YOU want to do it?

Angel xx

[Lou]

Oh Mandy dont let it stress you out so much, i dont think there is a right or wrong way.

I have written mine as sort of blank charts with headings and then have filled them in, i review them regularly and do new ones if the need arrises.

Ofsted were happy with this.

I agree leave it for now and look at it again tomorrow.

[angeldelight]

I agree with Lou

Keep them simple maybe you are trying to hard ?

Dont stress about it either its not worth it Mandy

Angel xx

[sarah707]

Mandy, Ive sent you an email with some thoughts xx

[crazybones]

Mandy I am rubbish at that sort of stuff. (I love Sarah). But just want to say Mwah Mwah xx Take no notice of David's - What the hell do they know. :p

[breezy]

try to relax hun :group hug:

[ajs]

you all make it sounds so easy
well sarah does anyway, thanks sarah , more bed time reading.

no angel i wasn't particularly happy with the way it looked before d stuck his nose in anyway so i knew i needed to do something else.
i think my biggest problems is that instead of doing it in bite size pieces i look at the issues as one big exercise so it terrifies me.

the big O seem to be on my mind the whole time, even though i am not even due an inspection until the end of september, but i am dreading the call coming with 24 hours notice like poor miffy had, and i know you're all going to say you'll be fine, but my paperwork is a mess right now.

i am trying to get my parents to sign everything i have to have in place, but that is an issue on it's own.

i never have an evening or a weekend where i can just do the paperwork. i am more or less ignoring my own kids, other than shouting at them to tidy their rooms (it's one less job for me to do) and the house and garden are a disgusting state.

on the plus side my mindees are lovely, and although i hate the paperwork and working harder than i have ever done in my whole life. one kiss from my 10 month old (tongue and all) makes the whole job worth while
can anyone tell i'm extremely hormonal at the mo

[Monkey1]

Sounds like a drink is called for babe!:D

[Twinkles]

Mandy , great minds think alike. I've been doing my risk assessments today too.
I started with the Bromley ones as guides and added what I thought I needed. I have decided to take a form with me wherever we go next week and add things as I see them. I will have one for each place we go. A general one for shops etc and one for home.
I did find a spelling mistake on one of their forms though. They put reigns instead of reins. Ah well it doesn't take much to amuse me :D

[ajs]

Mandy , great minds think alike. I've been doing my risk assessments today too.
I started with the Bromley ones as guides and added what I thought I needed. I have decided to take a form with me wherever we go next week and add things as I see them. I will have one for each place we go. A general one for shops etc and one for home.
I did find a spelling mistake on one of their forms though. They put reigns instead of reins. Ah well it doesn't take much to amuse me :D

they also put dinning instead of dining on their tick list for the home, someone told me that's because they want to be able check that you're not just printing them off and using them word for word but adapting them to suit your setting.

thanks i am going to walk everwhere tomorrow marking off the risks as i go and how i deal with them

[ajs]

Sounds like a drink is called for babe!:D

if only
i am finding it hard enough to keep it together right now i think a drink or two will send me over the edge.

[sue m]

I'm the same as you Mandy, I love looking after children but all this paperwork and Ofsted scares me to death, it really does. I was a childminder for 15 years before and didn't have to do all this paperwork and nothing bad happened fortunately and Mum's were more than happy to go to work and leave their little ones with me all day. I think I'm just getting the hang of things and then I read something and get in a state again so you're not on your own.

Love Sue x x

[Trouble]

i know its easy to say but once their done thats it

another thing to dust:clapping: :clapping:

[flora]

I was going to suggest putting the kettle on :blush: thats what we do in our family mandy.... make tea. It all looks so much better after a brew:D

I don't think there is a right and a wrong way exactly. I think going on the walk is a fab idea. Thats what I did on the school run home.

I noticed things like the trees and nettles hanging over the path, the fact that we have to walk a diff way home as there is no path to walk on, so you would have to walk on the road with the traffic not against it etc. etc.

I think risk asssesmnets aren't supposed to be infallable. They are there to show Ofsted that you have thought about what your doing and all the things that could go wrong.

As for hubbie, just make sure he's on kettle duty, bit like those ever so helpfull passer by at accidents, they need something to do.

Chin up.

[donnahay0]

Mandy, Just remember we are not working as Health and Safety Executives or Risk Assessment Writers. The very fact that you have put a risk assessment onto paper (however, you have set it out) will go down well with Ofsted.

I am sure you will have done a perfect job. It might seem like hard work now but once you have finished writing it up it is easy to keep on top of and only takes a few minutes to actually do the assessment.

Keep smiling

[Pedagog]

The Bromley Risk Assessment is very basic and the sort of thing I expect my son to produce when he is risk assessing activities for cadets, the ones I am used to producing are a lot more detailed. That said it covers the important information, and that is all you need.

If you look at any activity and identify the Hazard (The thing that could cause harm) then think about the Risk (The harm it could cause), then the chances of it causes harm and of course what you can do to prevent or reduce the risk of harm.

So an example, in the garden

A Pond (Hazard)
Falling In (Risk)
Very likely with small children (Chances)
Fence pond, Net over top, Supervision Fill Pond (are the precautions you can take to prevent/lower the risk)

When you start to think about it you realise that you constantly risk assess things around children, just that as you do not make it formal and recorded you do not realise you are doing it.

We have all looked at toys or playground equipment and thought about "what if?"

Hope that helps.

[ajs]

thanks for that charlotte,

i am used to visually assessing every risk as you say and often see dangers in things where others may not, but it's the recording and how ofsted want/expect us to record it that was bothering me.
i have had a look at some different ways of doing them now (thanks everyone who has sent me copies of theirs) and have thought about how i am going to present them.
i am still unsure whether ofsted want them to be very formal or more relaxed but i think if i go for the more formal type then i can't go wrong

[Pedagog]

I always think its better to be more formal with this sort of thing, it also inspires confidence from parents, I know I would rather see a childcare provider show me a formal well thought out RA, than something very basic.

Good Luck

[sarah707]

I always think its better to be more formal with this sort of thing, it also inspires confidence from parents, I know I would rather see a childcare provider show me a formal well thought out RA, than something very basic.

Good Luck

Totally agree! :D

[Pauline]

the big O seem to be on my mind the whole time,

No wonder you can't concentrate then! :eek:

Oh sorry, you mean Ofsted............:laughing:

[ajs]

ha ha pauline that was very funny:laughing: :laughing:

yes it did read a little like i meant that didn't it

i wish it was that, that was on my mind though

i'm far too busy for any of that shenanigans

[crazybones]

ha ha pauline that was very funny:laughing: :laughing:

yes it did read a little like i meant that didn't it

i wish it was that, that was on my mind though

i'm far too busy for any of that shenanigans

I'm not ;)

[ajs]

I'm not ;)

i bet you've written your risk assessments then
i'll tell him if he writes them then i won't be so busy will i;)