1. Does a child have more contact with his or her key person during the day than with other members of staff? If not, then the relationship is unlikely to have any special meaning for the child.
2. Is the day organised so that children can spend special intimate times with their key person? Nurseries need to plan opportunities for attachment.
3. Does the key person have the particular responsibility of settling the child -and the child's parents - in the nursery?
4. Do parents have opportunities to share what they know about their child with the key person?
5. Is the child's progress closely monitored and recorded by the key person to enable effective planning?
6. Do staff have support and time from their managers to talk through the difficult issues and feelings which may arise?
7. Does each key person feel confident enough to 'let go' when a child is ready to move away and seek new experiences with other people?
8. Are children given 'permission' to show feelings including sadness or anger during the day with a consistent and trusted adult, or are they passed around a number of different adults to 'keep them happy'?
9. Are there clear professional boundaries? A key person is a friendly professional, not a friend. If you invite a parent round to your house, for example, then might the other parents feel left out and less valued?
10. When a key person is going to be away on holiday or planned leave, is this explained to the children? Are the children and parents told who will be looking after them during the key person's absence?
