Telephone Management Policy 

Objective: To ensure that the telephone is available for use by administration and staff, and that Bright Beginnings is made accessible to parents/whānau and respective clients.

Policy and recommended procedure:

• Personal calls should be limited to calls of an urgent nature, or those made during break times, and must be kept as brief as possible. Business calls will take precedence over personal calls.
• If a personal call is received during a staff member’s work hours, the caller will be informed that the person concerned is working on the floor, and they will be given the option of either leaving a message or to call back during that staff member’s break time. If it is a message that needs urgent attention, the staff member may be able to answer the call straight away.
• Personal calls may be noted in the diary, with relevant contact details. All business calls must be recorded accurately, so that information can be passed on and child details confirmed
• Toll calls and cellphone calls for private use need to be recorded in the administrator’s diary
• On answering the telephone, the instruction must be clear and professional– “good morning/afternoon Bright Beginnings, ­­­­______ speaking”
• Staff should be aware that people calling could hear background noise in the centre and will act accordingly.
• Ethics of statutory requirements regarding confidentiality will be kept.