HR Update - Don't fall foul of the new EYFS

The new EYFS came into force on 1 September. I have been reviewing many HR documents for nursery owners to make sure they are compliant with the new standards.

Many nurseries don't have the correct procedures or policies in place, or the policies and contracts they do have are not robust enough.

Even more worrying is that many employment contracts are so out of date they don't allow the nursery owner to do some of the things he or she needs to be able to do without breaching the contract. The risk is that employees can bring a claim in an employment tribunal, which can award up to £25,000 for breach of contract claims.

It is really important that all your documents are updated in line with the EYFS.

A big problem is that what is required by Ofsted can conflict with employment law. As a nursery owner you are then in a difficult situation - either to comply with Ofsted or potentially break the law.

Problems can arise when Ofsted wants the owner to dismiss an employee for a safeguarding issue. I always put the safety of the child first, but it's not always that easy to dismiss someone, especially if they have been employed by you for more than two years. Even if it is a safeguarding issue, the disciplinary procedures must still be followed. If they are not, this would automatically be considered an unfair dismissal at an employment tribunal. The financial consequences could be huge.

You may need to suspend an employee while you carry out an investigation, but you need to make sure the reasons for the suspension are accurate. The timing is also crucial.

Disqualification by association is becoming more of an issue. So:

• - do you have anything in place to deal with a situation where a member of staff would be considered disqualified by association?
• - does your employment contract cover this?
• I recommend adding some additional clauses to employment contracts to make sure the business is protected. Currently, many only contain the basics needed to comply with employment law.

To protect your business you need to have additional clauses that cover, for example, disqualification and qualifications.

I recommend that all nursery owners have HR policies and contracts reviewed every 12 months to ensure that they are legally compliant.