When a child doesn't arrive

If a parent tells you in advance that their child won't be in, that's a planned absence. Record it from the diary instead: see Recording absences and medication. This guide is for a child who is expected, hasn't arrived and hasn't been explained.

1. Know when the alert opens

KinderStart checks every minute while your Home dashboard is open. It opens a Safeguarding Alert for a child when all of these are true:

• The child has a signed or active contract that books them in today.
• More than 30 minutes have passed since their contracted start time.
• No arrival or absence has been recorded for them today.
• Your setting isn't closed or on holiday today.
• The child has a parent linked to their profile.

The alert doesn't open for a child who has left, or who has a temporary absence covering today. Once the screen has opened for a child, it won't open for them again for an hour.

2. Check whether you already know

The screen shows the child's name, says they're more than 30 minutes late, and warns: "You must verify the child's whereabouts." It asks: Have you already been notified of this absence?

Add anything you already know in Additional Note (optional). Then choose one:

• They've Arrived: set the Arrival Time, or tap Use contracted time, then tap Confirm Arrival. The child is logged as arrived.
• Yes, I've been notified: you know why they're not here. This closes the alert and records the day as an absence.
• No, I have not: you can't account for the child. This moves you to Step 1.

3. Step 1: Contact Parent

The screen says "Call the parents immediately." It lists each parent with their phone number. Tap the phone icon to call. If no parents are on file, you'll see No Parent Contacts Found.

Note what happened in Call Notes (optional), then tap:

• Resolved if you reached a parent. This closes the alert.
• No Answer if you couldn't reach anyone. This moves you to Step 2.

4. Step 2: Emergency Contact

The screen says "Parents unreachable. Call emergency contacts." Call each contact the same way. If there are none, it says No emergency contacts found.

Add your notes, then tap Resolved or No Answer. No Answer moves you to Step 3.

5. Step 3: Escalation

The screen says "Unable to contact anyone. Refer to Social Care or Police immediately." It shows:

• Social Care / MASH: your local authority's children's social care number. KinderStart can't show it for you, because every council has its own. Save it in your phone before you need it.
• Police (Non-Emergency): 101.

Write the reference number, officer's name or other details in Referral Details / Notes, then tap Log Referral / Action Taken.

6. Check what was saved

Every choice you made, with the time and your notes, is saved to the child's diary for today as a late arrival check. You'll see "Safeguarding actions have been recorded." Unless you chose They've Arrived, the day is also marked as an absence.

What to do next

• Logging a safeguarding concern: record a wider worry about a child's welfare.
• Recording absences and medication: log a planned absence before the alert fires.