• Every worker – whether part-time or full-time – is entitled to 5.6 weeks’ annual leave.
• A week’s leave should allow workers to be away from work for a week. It should be the same amount of time as the working week: if a worker does a 5-day week, he or she is entitled to 28 days’ leave; if he or she does a 3-day week, the entitlement is 16.8 days’ leave.
• The leave entitlement under the regulations is not additional to bank holidays. There is no statutory right to take bank holidays off.
• Workers must give the employer notice that they want to take leave. In the absence of an agreement the notice period that a worker must give should be at least twice the period of the leave to be taken.
• An employer may refuse the worker permission to take leave requested within a period equivalent to the period of the leave.
• The leave entitlement under the regulations is not additional to bank holidays. There is no statutory right to take bank holidays off.
• Employers can set the times that workers take their leave, for example for a Christmas shutdown.
• If a worker’s employment ends, he or she has a right to be paid for the leave time due and not taken.
• Further guidance and leave calculator regarding the regulations and calculations for leave can be found on the link to the right

OfSTED National Standards state the baseline of quality, below which no provider may fall below, for the provision of under eights day care is:

• All supervisors hold a level 3 qualification appropriate for the care or development of children.
• At least half of all other child care staff hold a level 2 qualification appropriate for the care or development of children.
• All staff have induction training which includes health and safety and child protection policies and procedures in their first week of employment.

Further Information:

• It is the Government’s aim to have an EYP in every full daycare setting by 2015, and in every Children Centre offering full daycare by 2010
• The Government are considering making level 3 a qualification minimum requirement by 2015.

If you have any questions about the qualifications and professional development, contact the Dorset Sure Start’s Workforce Development Team on 01305 228444 or e-mail dorsetsurestart@dorsetcc.gov.uk Recruitment

Recruitment

Advice on recruitment is available from Dorset Sure Start, which also offer a staff bank service for temporary staffing. Please contact the Recruitment Officer on 01305 228428.

OFSTED Requirements

Staff Ratios

The minimum staffing ratios vary, please check the National Standards for guidance.

Ratios include any children of staff or volunteers.

See www.ofsted.gov.uk for more details or contact Dorset Sure Start on 01305 851391

Every employee has a contract of employment, whether in writing or not. The fact that an employee has agreed to work and you have agreed to pay is likely to constitute a contract of employment. However, if a dispute arises e.g. as to the rate of pay or entitlement to bonus, it will be more difficult to prove that your version is correct if a written contract is not in place.

Further information and advice is available from ACAS on 08457 474747 or go to www.acas.gov.uk