Interview Questions On The Second Visit To The Crèche, Lillie Road Fitness Centre.
(We asked Ann – the manager – the following questions)
Q. What facilities are available for the disabled people?
A. There is a ramp at the main entrance of the centre, and there is a very wide corridor. Also, all the facilities are situated on one floor, so there aren’t any stairs.
Q. Do Parents have to pay for you to look after their child(ren)?
A. Yes. They pay at the main reception desk. You can pay a minimum price of 50p up to £1.20.
Q. What exactly is your job?
A. To look after, entertain, amuse, and protect the children. I also promote health and safety for them.
Q. Is your job different to what your assistants carry out?
A. Yes, I am the main supervisor, and I deal with the more challenging kids – the older ones.
Q. How long have you been working for the council, under childcare?
A. As a whole, 30 years. But, I have been working here, for about 11 years now.
Q. When this room is not being used as a crèche, what is it used for?
A. Mainly, judo, karate, and general meetings.
Interview Questions On The Visit To Chelsea & Westminster Hospital.
(we asked Alison Webster the following Questions)
Q. How is this hospital funded?
A. By the NHS. The Department of Health pay for the hospitals across the whole country.
Q. What qualifications are required to carry out this job?
A. As a play manager, you need a suitable degree, and masters would be a bonus (but that is not necessary). However, the surgeons and doctors need a medicine degree.
Q. Could you briefly explain your typical day at the hospital?
A. There is no such thing as a typical day. You come in everyday, expecting a whole new day, which differs from the day before.
Q. Are there any access centres for disabled individuals? If so, where?
A. Well, as part of the disability act, we have wide doorways. We do not need ramps, be3cause there are lifts, and wide passageways. Also, we try to focus on the abilities, rather than the disabilities.
Q. What is the age limit admitted at this ward?
A. Well, from babies to teenagers of 16 years old. But, if an individual of disability comes in ,we accept them from the age of 1, to 19 yrs, because a 19 year old would not have emotionally developed yet.
Q. Are you a qualified doctor, or just a play manager?
A. Yes, I am qualified, but I am not a doctor.
Q. If you have no qualifications, is it possible to become a manager at the hospital?
A. No, because you need to be able to work within these environments, and deal with many challenging problems.
Q. Do you usually work shifts?
A. Obviously so, but we are here to work 37.5 hours per week, but it does not work out like that – ever.
Q. Does the health of the patients relate to the amount of hours you and your staff work?
A. Yes. Especially in stressful environments, so we do a lot more work than planned. Because of this, we work many shifts. But, then again, we are more interested in quality, rather than quantity. My overall answer to that, is yes, it does.
My Account Of The Crèche At Lillie Road Fitness Centre – 1st Visit.
It was more or less a 5-minute walk from the school, to Lillie Road Fitness Centre. As soon as we entered the centre, there was a long queue of people, waiting to be seen. The receptionist spotted us as we approached the counter.
My first impression, was that the receptionist was not welcoming, and that the entire place would not be welcoming.
The receptionist asked us to sign in, and rather than escorting us to the crèche, she gave us short, imprecise directions that said: “through there.” So, we decided to use our common sense, and follow the directions on the wall.
When we eventually found the crèche, we stood outside for about 3 minutes, before the receptionist approached us, and said (a bit more freely, and optimistically than at the counter) “You can come in you know!”
As soon as we entered, all went silent. The supervisor broke the silence by laughing. There were two ladies, one was in uniform ,and one was in casual clothing, and children surrounded them both. There were only 4 children (2 babies, and 2 toddlers). Soon enough, one of the toddlers had to be taken swimming, which only left 3 children!
The 2 ladies were very welcoming; they spoke to us frequently, kept us company (as well as playing with the children) and were always wearing their smile.
The environment was not the atmosphere I had in mind before coming. I had expected it to be full of loud, messy, stubborn children. I had also expected more children to be there, with a load of stressed out adults, close to ripping their hair out, and bloodshot eyes!
However, the atmosphere was very calm, there were few kids, and the staff seemed to be enjoying their selves, as well as “laid back” about their jobs.
After settling in, I noticed that the staffs were somehow trying to impress us, as well as make us feel welcome. We sat down and observed the children, and how they reacted to the adults. I noticed that one of the babies – Charlie, would burst out into tears each time an adult were to leave him alone.
After observing for about 35 minutes, we decided to ask our questions. The questions were answered in detail, and were not “blunt” answers.
Before leaving the crèche, we asked if it would be possible to come and visit again. The staff agreed, we confirmed our visiting time and date at the reception desk. The receptionist looked half asleep at the counter!
My Account Of The Crèche At Lillie Road Fitness Centre- 2nd Visit.
As soon as we reached the centre, we spotted the receptionist at the desk, staring in to space. When we reached the desk, the receptionist did not acknowledge us, so we signed in. Without the receptionist uttering a syllable, we made our way to the crèche.
Finally, we reached the crèche. The environment seemed livelier than the visit beforehand. There were many more children (8 children – 5 babies, and 3 toddlers). There was also 3 supervisors, 2 of which were qualified workers, and one of which was not qualified, she was a helper.
The helper was working with 2 babies, Donna was working with 3 babies, and Ann – the manager, had three older kids. There were many toys out, so that the kids would always be kept occupied. Charlie – an 8-month-old baby – would burst into tears each time an adult left him, which basically means that he needs 100% attention. I also noticed that the helper was trying to help the babies walk.
After about 15 minutes, all the staff seemed to drift away from us, leaving us feeling isolated. Without the staff paying any attention to us, they started their singing session with the children. Everybody had an instrument, and they sang roughly 6 short songs. The children did not seem to be paying that much attention, with the exception of 2 or 3 older children.
After the singing was over, Ann approached us, to see if we needed anything, we said that we needed her to answer a few questions. 5 minutes before the session ended, she decided to sit with us and answer our questions quite briefly.
Introduction
There are numerous amounts of early years services available for children. a few of these include
Parent & Toddler
Groups
Childminders
Playgroups
After School Care Early Years Child Guidance
Services Services
Crèches
Nurseries
Family Centres
My group and I have decided to investigate a crèche. Crèches look after children under the age of 5 for a certain period of time.
There are privately run crèches, and statutory crèches, the crèche my group and I have decided to look into, is a statutory crèche, and accepts children of all abilities, races, cultures, and ethnic background.
Organisation & Funding
The National and Local framework, is as follows (the cycle):
The Government (National)
Department Of Social Services (National)
Secretary Of State To Social Services (National)
London Borough Of Hammersmith & Fulham (Local)
Director Of Social Services (Local)
Children Services (Local)
Lillie Road Fitness Centre (Local)
The Crèche At Lillie Road Fitness Centre (Local)
It was not possible to find out the amount of money Lillie Road Fitness Centre obtains, as part of their budget.
However, by looking around at the crèche, and the centre as a whole, it looks as if they receive a fair amount of money. By observing the resources, and the quality of the resources, I assume that the money obtained, is used very well.
Some of this money is spent on the drinks provided for the children – as well as the fee that is paid at the reception desk each time a parent brings their child to the crèche.
Occupation – Crèche Manager
At the crèche, there were both direct and indirect care workers. I have decided to look into the role of the manager of the crèche, who is a direct care worker.
Direct care workers deal with the patient/client on a regular basis (or a small group). The manager of the crèche would have more responsibility, as she works with the older kids, and in my own judgement, the more dominant and demanding ones.
Principally, the manager aims to develop new skills in the older children, in order to prepare them for primary school. They make use of play, and reading in order to introduce the children to new concepts.
Generally, the daily routine of the manager – Anne – consists of the following:
- Playing with the children for approximately 20-30 minutes:
- Older kids – (3,4,and 5 years old) would be playing at the main activities table, with jigsaw puzzles, and making various different images from play dough.
- Younger kids – (young babies, and toddlers of 1 and 2 years) would be playing with the softer toys, and the equipment put out – toys.
- Singing – 5 songs; each child and member of staff will play an instrument while singing.
- Reading – baby/ toddler books, with pop-up pictures, to capture the children’s interest and attention.
- Play outside – if it is sunny, or there is dry weather.
If any individual would like to take up this type of job, there are various qualifications and regulations to be followed in any early years service:
BTech National Certificate
NVQ at GCSE QUALIFICATIONS GCSEs
(COMPULSORY)
Police Clearance Certificate
Chatty Passion For
Entertaining Working With
Children
Amusing QUALITIES Energetic
(VERY USEFUL)
Bubbly Happy Playful
The Care Value Base
Care values are very important principles that all employers/employees from all occupations should follow. There are 5 main care values, and these include the following:
This means that prejudice should not be permitted, i.e. judging people by their gender, age, race, religion, culture, and nationality.
Clients should have the right of privacy, meaning that if a client were to tell their doctor something personal, then the doctor should not tell other staff, or individual.
The preferences of the clients, and all colleagues should be respected.
Every individual’s personal beliefs, such as religious, cultural, ethical, and sexual beliefs should be respected at all times.
This basically means that listening to other individuals in an effective way, should be carried out in a variety of ways, e.g. posture, understanding, language.
If we were to summarise these 5 points, it would merely come down to one word: equality. Equality and respect for all human needs and rights.
The staff at the crèche would apply the care value base, by covering the children’s needs as well as giving their parents a say. By mentioning this, I mean hat the care value base was successfully applied for the reason that they had accepted both genders, and all races. They had also accepted a girl of disability. Although she was disabled, she was not treated differently from the other children their. This basically means that there is respect for all clients.
The care value base also leads the staff through their work, for the cause that it protects the rights of all, meaning that it will protect all individuals from abuse, which will make all clients equal, again all will come under the topic equality and respect.
If the care value base was not applied, it could affect the whole crèche:
Care Value Base – Not Applied:
- Harder for parents to find a service, if this service is near to their house.
- Low employment.
- Number of customers decrease.
- An unprotective service.
- A bad reputation from the public.
Care Value Base – Applied:
- Parents would be worry free.
- Equal opportunities and human rights would be applied.
- Number of customers increase.
- A protective service.
- A better reputation from the public.
Care Needs
Both parents and children use the crèche. The parents use/can use various other facilities and resources, whilst their children are attending the crèche.
At the crèche, there are many facilities in which the children may be kept occupied with.
These needs are covered from the budget obtained, in order to buy high quality toys, ideal for learning with in a variety of ways.
These needs are an opportunity for the parents, for the reason that these resources are available for a substantial price, each time their children are cared for.
In my judgement, the service has met the care needs of the individuals, for the reason that they have produced a suitable structure, in which the parents can trust the staff to be left with their children.
The crèche would/could have not met the care needs, there are 2 different diagrams, in which I can explain this:
Bored Children
Less Clients Care Needs
Not Met Low Income
Bad Reputation
Amused/Entertained Children
More Clients Care Needs
Not Met Higher Income
Good Reputation
Barriers
“Barriers” means something that stops an individual from approaching something else.
The principle barriers are as follows:
Cost/Finance
Lack Of Lack /
Resources BARRIERS Inadequacy
Physical Access
We can break this up into four sections to explain each type of barrier in detail:
- Lack/Inadequacy:
- Not enough knowledge and/or experience to help the child/client, e.g. the helper at the crèche do not have enough knowledge and experience, to fully help/ work with the child alone.
- Lack of advertisements; not enough information regarding the service, and the treatment available, so not many people will have access to the service. For instance, my group and I did not know that a crèche was being held at the centre, until we phoned the service, and confirmed. The centre did not have any leaflets or advertisements regarding childcare.
- People currently using the service do not “spread the word”, this could affect both clients, and the service:
- Clients – may not find a suitable service to take their kids to.
- Service – will not gain/have many clients using their service, a loss of customers.
- Physical Barriers:
- Stairs/steps at the main entrance – the elderly and disabled will have difficulty entering the service; (Lillie Road Fitness Centre did not have a problem with this, since they have both steps and a ramp).
- Financial & Cost Barriers:
- A fee will have to be paid if a private service is in use.
- A small amount of money to be given or funded at a number of statutory services: e.g. at the crèche a minimum fee of £0.50p will be paid at the reception desk, to fund the resources bought, and the juice provided for the children.
- Lack Of Resources:
- Resources (activities/toys) should meet the needs of the child/parent: e.g. the resources at the crèche were of very high quality, and will help the babies and toddlers learn in a variety of ways. Additionally, the resources are renewed every April, for the health, hygiene and safety of the children.
- The service could “let down” the clients (parents); e.g. at the crèche, the parent will need to ring, to inform the crèche, on whether or not they will be bringing their child in. The crèche could “let the parents down” if there aren’t any available spaces. This is because there are a limited amount of children aloud per adult:
Fig. 1
Fig. 1 shows the amount of children that are permitted to stay at any one time, regarding the amount of supervisors/helpers available to look after them.
There are many ways in which these barriers can be overcome, I have thought of the following (these are only referring to early years services):
Evaluation
The crèche at Lillie Road Fitness Centre, in general, have provided both the parents, and the children with a satisfactory, statutory service. The staffs are not only looking after the children, but they are also educating them, in many different types of ways.
Education plays an important part in the development of children. The following principles should be taken up by all early years services, like the fitness centre – which in my opinion, are fulfilling these expectations/standards:
- Parents should be involved in discussions, and decisions about their children.
- The needs and welfare of the children should be/are important.
- Children should have the right to play and learn in a safe and stimulating environment.
- Services should take account of the needs of all children, whatever their gender, race, religion, culture, language, or ability.
The crèche provides two sessions each day – with the exception of Wednesdays – for babies of 4 months, to children of 5 years old.
The crèche, and many other services, aim to provide various learning experiences through structured play, which not only amuses and entertains the children, but also helps them think, and learn with the help of the resources available, and through the staff.
Introduction
There are many health care services available for children; a few of these include:
Dentistry Hospital Services
Speech Therapy Health Care Primary Care
Services Teams
Mental Health Care
Maternity Services
Health Visitors
My group and I have decided to investigate a hospital. We will look at the children’s ward in Chelsea & Westminster Hospital.
This ward is an NHS funded Hospital, which means that it is open to all members of the public – free of charge.
Organisation & Funding
The national framework cycle is as follows:
Dept. Of Health
Planning Special
Hospitals
(Psychiatric
NHS Direct Secure
Hospitals)
8 Regional Health Authorities
Strategic Health Authorities
NHS Trusts (Ambulance) Primary Care Trusts
GP’s/Pharmacists
Dentists
NHS Walk In Centres
The budget amount was not possible to find out at Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, for the reason that Alison Webster (the Hospital Play Manager) did not know for sure.
However, it is apparent that the budget is quite a fair amount because the facilities and hygiene of the Ward were of high quality.
Occupation – Hospital Play Manager
At the Hospital, there were both direct and indirect care workers. The vast majority of the staff were direct care workers, which simply means that you treat/help the patient face-to-face.
I have decided to look into the role of a Hospital Play Manager – Alison Webster. Alison Webster deals/specialises with children of all ages, her role is to do the following:
- Understand the effects of hospitalisation on the child, including how this can impact on their family – especially siblings.
- Observe children’s way of coping, and the behaviour they use through play, and thus help assess their levels of understanding and feelings towards their illness.
- Identify specific play strategies to support children’s needs, providing activities and toys appropriate to development and condition.
A hospital play manager does not have a “typical day” because there are many different people to work with, and the working day does not always seem to go as planned originally.
This occupation has not been heard of very much, but to become a Hospital Play Manager, you will need the following qualifications:
BTech/NVQ Level 3 In Childcare
A University QUALIFICATIONS NNEB Or
Degree (COMPULSORY) Equivalent
At least one year of Hospital Experience
The team of Hospital Play Specialists have completed professional training to use play in healthcare, which help-s babies, children, teenagers, and their families to cope with the potential stresses of hospital life and illness.
There are no other possible ways of gaining a qualification other than what is mentioned in the diagram above.
The Care Value Base
Care values are very important principles that all employers/employees from all occupations should follow. There are 5 main care values, and these include the following:
This means that prejudice should not be permitted, i.e. judging people by their gender, age, race, religion, culture, and nationality.
Clients should have the right of privacy, meaning that if a client were to tell their doctor something personal, then the doctor should not tell other staff, or individual.
The preferences of the clients, and all colleagues should be respected.
Every individual’s personal beliefs, such as religious, cultural, ethical, and sexual beliefs should be respected at all times.
This basically means that listening to other individuals in an effective way, should be carried out in a variety of ways, e.g. posture, understanding, language.
If we were to summarise these 5 points, it would merely come down to one word: equality. Equality and respect for all human needs and rights.
Alison Webster and her staff at the children’s ward apply the care value base by treating the children, and as Alison Webster is a Hospital Play Manager, she helps the children come to terms with their illness. By stating this, I mean to say that the care value base is successfully applied, for the reason that all genders, cultures, and the poor or rich are accepted too.
Although there are many children with disabilities, Alison Webster told us that since she is the Play Manager, she tries to make life as normal as possible, which means that she plans activities so that both able-bodied, and disabled children can play together, regardless of their illness or ability. This basically means that there is respect for all clients/patients.
The care value base also leads the staff through their work, for the cause that it protects the rights of all, meaning that it will protect all individuals from abuse, which will make all clients equal, again all will come under the topic equality and respect.
If the care value base was not applied, it could affect the whole crèche:
Care Value Base – Not Applied:
- Harder for parents to find a service, if this service is near to their house.
- Low employment.
- Number of customers decrease.
- An unprotective service.
- A bad reputation from the public.
Care Value Base – Applied:
- Parents would be worry free.
- Equal opportunities and human rights would be applied.
- Number of customers increase.
- A protective service.
- A better reputation from the public.
Care Needs
Parents and children both have access to the hospital. A hospital is a place that is accessible to all members of the public, and is an important place, in which people can be treated.
Moreover, the staffs at the hospital not only have the job to help and treat the patients, but to reassure parents and siblings, and help them come to terms with their illness.
In the hospital, there are many resources in which the children can use/play with, in order to occupy them with when they are put into stressful situations.
These needs are covered by the NHS budget obtained to buy the high quality resources e.g. toys, which are ideal for learning; especially since they may be missing quite a few days off school.
In my judgement, the hospital has met the needs of the clients at the children’s ward in particular.
If the care needs were not met, the outcome would affect both the parents and the service as a whole, in the following ways:
Bored Children
Less Clients Care Needs
Not Met Low Income
Bad Reputation
Barriers
“Barriers” means something that stops an individual from approaching something else.
The principle barriers are as follows:
Cost/Finance
Lack Of Lack /
Resources BARRIERS Inadequacy
Physical Access
We can break this up into four sections to explain each type of barrier in detail:
- Lack/Inadequacy:
- Not enough knowledge and/or experience to help the child/client.
- Lack of advertisements; not enough information regarding the service, and the treatment available, so not many people will have access to the service. People currently using the service do not “spread the word”, this could affect both clients, and the service:
- Clients – may not find a suitable service to take their kids to.
- Service – will not gain/have many clients using their service, a loss of customers.
- Physical Barriers:
- Stairs/steps at the main entrance – the elderly and disabled will have difficulty entering the service; (Chelsea & Westminster Hospital did not have a problem with this, since they have a rotating door).
- Financial & Cost Barriers:
- A fee will have to be paid if a private service is in use.
- A small amount of money to be given or funded at a number of statutory services.
- Lack Of Resources:
- Resources (activities/toys) should meet the needs of the child/parent: e.g. the resources at the Hospital play room for children were of very high quality, and will help the babies and toddlers learn in a variety of ways.
There are many ways in which these barriers can be overcome, I have thought of the following (these are only referring to early years services):
The barriers mentioned above can cause people (that cannot access the service) to feel excluded from society.
Additionally, they would have feelings of anger and resentment toward the service. After observing Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, I have found that there aren’t any improvements that need to be made. There were lifts, and the hygiene and safety of both the patients and the hospital as a whole, is of high quality.
Evaluation
Chelsea & Westminster Hospital provides a range of medical and surgical care for children.
In general, the unique role of the children’s ward – the ward visited by my group and I – is to focus on the needs of the children, in a healthcare setting. It is vital that patients – in this case, the children – feel as welcome as possible. In order to achieve this, the hospital need to make sure that they:
- Help promote the continuing development of the child, and provide a link, with familiar activities recognisable from home.
- Ensure a welcoming environment, which reflects an appropriate range of cultural awareness.
- Help the patient regain their independence, self-esteem, and a sense of realistic control over their environment.
- Create a safe; normalising environment, where stress and anxiety are reduced, and feelings can be shared.
Generally, the aim of the children’s ward is not only to treat, and protect the children from their illnesses, but also to make life at the hospital, as normal as their home-life is.
Conclusion
This unit of my course as a whole has made me understand, and be more aware of the needs of different client groups, from different services. I have also become more alert about how these services receive their budget, and meet government targets, client targets, and obviously, their own targets.
In addition to this, I have become more aware of how services are run, and how different organisations treat individuals regarding their illness, age or gender.
Additionally, my knowledge regarding the NHS has been clearer, and I can now analyse the differences between many services/occupations, such as a physiotherapist and a chiropodist. I have also been surprised by the amount of occupations available in the field: Health, and Social Care.
