Teacher broke schools child safeguarding rules - WWYD?

fabforty

I will start by saying that I am posting this on behalf of a friend (honestly). I was asked for advice and I'm genuinely not sure which way to go. My friends' youngest child is currently in reception (she is nearly 5). The school is very strict about parents being late for collection - if the parent has not arrived 10 minutes after finishing time (which is basically by the time all of the children have left the classroom), the teacher has to take the child to the school office. Attempts are made to contact the parents, depending on how late or how often this happens, parents receive a warning from the school, followed by possibility of Social Services or even police involvement (in extreme cases). On Thursday my friend was late collecting her daughter. It's the first time that it has happened - she was stuck in traffic. Once she realised that she was probably going to be late, she called the school to let them know but couldn't get through. School finished at 3.15pm and she arrived at 3.30pm - ready and willing to receive her dressing down from the school. As she pulled up she met her daughter's teaching assistant who told her that her daughter was still in the classroom (and hadn't been taken to the school office yet). She went to the classroom, expecting to find her daughter and her daughter's teacher but instead found the daughter with another child from her class and his father. The teacher had apparently already left. The boy had lost something and they were searching the room for it. The teacher had left her daughter with him, said that her mother (my friend) was probably on her way but if she didn't arrive by the time they finished searching, could he walk her over to the office! My friend was pretty angry to say the least.
My friend spoke to the teacher this morning (having calmed down considerably) to find out first hand, what had happened and the teacher explained that she didn't want to get my friend into trouble unnecessarily (she is never late etc), and therefore bent the rules. My friend is uneasy - nothing happened to her daughter and it was her own fault that she was late, but on the other hand she doesn't know this parent. Although he said he would take her daughter to the office, what if he hadn't? My first thought was that she should report what happened to the school, but the teacher will no doubt be in serious trouble if she does and she doesn't want that to happen. But, IMHO it was such a stupid thing to do.
WWYD?

Browntoa

Leave it alone , nothing happened and the teacher was doing your friend a favour

Red-Squirrel_2

I wouldn't make a mountain out of a molehill, no harm was done, just make sure the teacher knows that you'd prefer the child go to the office as per the rules if it ever happens again rather than with a parent that you/she don't know.

AylesburyDuck

I'd be livid i'm afraid, if this teacher is going to ASSUME this parent/father was safe to leave another parents child with then why have criminal record checks and the such like AT ALL!
Wether she thought she was doing the parent a favour is irrelevant, wether it all turned out ok in the end is irrelevant also as frankly it may not have, as a parent i'd rather take a dressing down on the chin than have my child in ANY form or other put in potential harms way.

DigForVictory

There's no good way to step around the favour that could have gone awry.

A calm request to be dropped in it another time as better the rocket you know you deserve than any risk your child does not will remind the teacher that their kindness could have gone badly wrong & spared one rocket for a very different heavier calibre sort.

jackyann

Without doubt the teacher was wrong.
And your friend would not have been in serious trouble - Social Services would not have been called. It would have just been annoying and a bit upsetting.

The teacher has put your friend in an awkward position 'oh, I did you this favour (didn't get you 'in trouble' with the head!) so 'don't tell on me'. Not correct behaviour.

However, I do take the point that raking it up may result in poor relationship. This is what I would do:

I would make a note - in my diary, in a document on my computer, even just a dated sheet of paper, noting what happened, date time, exactly (to best of recollection) what the teacher said. Then I would put it away, and forget about it, unless something similar happens again.

That way, should your friend need to complain about the teacher, she has a record to refer to. However, let's hope it was a small lapse & she has no other cause for concern.
I'd add that these things are best not blabbed about - she should tell no-one else, unless she chooses to go to the Head.

LannieDuck

I wouldn't be comfortable with that. Safeguarding rules are there for a reason, and the teacher should be aware that it's not appropriate to leave a 5 yo in the care of an adult that the parents haven't agreed to.

I'd start by having a word with the teacher to say that in future the teacher must take daughter to the office herself. Depending on the teacher's reaction (whether they take it seriously or brush it off), I may also have a word with the headteacher.

Marvel1

You should make more of an effort to be on time next time!

tea_lover

So both the teacher and the TA thought it was ok to leave the child with the parent of another child? I'd definitely be raising that with the head.

fabforty

Thanks everyone for the input. I think I'll just show her the thread - to see if it helps her to decide what to do. I'm not sure that I would think 'no harm done' if it was one of my kids, even if it had been done with the best intentions.
'Couldn't be bothered to be on time' is a bit strong - there was a security incident and she was held up in traffic - a 10 minute drive took an hour.

suejb2

The other child was a classmate waiting with his dad. Does your friend feel uneasy letting her daughter go to parties or teas at classmates houses?