Safety tips for Childcare Providers and Parents
We would all love to spend our time with our kids but unfortunately thats not always feasible for everyone. Childcare is an option for many parents however we can all appreciate the worry of leaving your children with strangers for the first while.
The best way to levitate some of the parents worry is to have strict safety policies that all childcare providers follow and educate parents on these policies Having this in place for day to day activities and routines and also for emergencies will have everyone, both parents and the childcare providers, ready for any event and reduce potential accidents.
According to The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents ROSPA – On average 62 children under the age of five died as a result of an accident and over 76,000 under the age of 14 are admitted for treatment of which over 40% are under 5 years of age.
We have listed some of the top safety concerns and solutions to each;
Staff undertrained for medical emergencies
Concern
Parents want to feel like they are leaving their children in a safe environment. An environment that will act fast and effectively if any injuries or emergencies occur. The single beat way to improve the safety procedures in a childcare facility is to put processes in place to prevent injury. Prevention is key to a safe environment.
Solution
All staff should undergo Paediatric First Aid training. Legislation requires that all registered childcare providers are trained in First Aid for children and are readily available to the children. Paediatric first aid is also a very informative and useful course to have if you are a parent of young children. All creches should have regular checks and drills to make sure all staff are up the date with training and following procedures. A refresher course in Paediatric First Aid training should be taken at least once a year so staff are confident in emergencies.
Please see our Paediatric First Aid training course here.
Food Safety
Concern
Accidental poisoning is the leading cause of illness and death in young children.
Solution
Understanding the legislation and importance around food hygiene, how to identify food safety hazards and understand proper waste management and cleaning procedures.
Please see our Food Safety training course here.
Fire Safety
Concern
Failure to properly prepare for a Fire Emergency. Where do the children go? Who is responsible for leading them out and who is responsible for doing a head count etc..
Solution
Every child care facility should have a fire emergency procedure plan. This should cover fires starting from all areas of the facility and to have multiple fire exits routes in place and kept clear. Child care facilities should;
- Have regular fire drills for evacuation practise and keep a log of them
- Have multiple fire extinguishers and smoke detectors- these should be inspected on a regular basis
- Keep fire doors closed
- Fire first aid kit on hand
Please see our Fire Safety training course here.
Here at Elearn we have put together a childcare training package for your convenience. Our childcare package offers to those who work in the industry and to those who have young children at home. This package includes an introduction into the four core safety training modules that are required when working with and looking after young children.
This package includes the courses listed above and also Manual Handling for your staff to prevent staff injuries which is a safety concern for your employees and also leads to sick leave. For more information on our childcare package click here.
Why is it important to have Food Safety training?
Every restaurant needs to take pride in serving safe and great food to their customers. It is one of the most important focuses in all food establishments. A thorough understanding of food safety is essential for food handlers to demonstrate food hygiene best practice, to prevent risk of contamination or foodborne illnesses. Food handlers and food businesses are responsible for the safety of the food that they provide to consumers. Their responsibilities include ensuring food is safe for consumption, and that its quality meets expectations.
The different types of foodborne illnesses
Chemical contamination
Chemical contaminants may be harmful to health at certain levels. It is necessary to manage their levels in food and reduce exposure to consumers. This type refers to food that been contaminated with some type of chemical. Chemical contaminants can enter the food chain from multiple sources. Contamination can occur during primary production from various environmental sources including:
- Pollution
- Waste from factories
- Landfills
- Incinerators
- Fires
- During cooking and processing
- Storage – mycotoxins
- Transportation and handling
- Time, temperature and humidity
Common types of chemicals are in cleaning products you use to clean the kitchen. However there are certain chemicals that occur naturally in food. There are many natural chemicals present in our foods, including nutrients such as vitamin C as well as chemicals responsible for the aroma and flavour that we love in our foods. Natural food chemicals may also be poisonous to humans, which is why some plants are poisonous to eat.
Physical contamination
This type refers to contamination by a foreign object at some stage of the production process. These objects have the ability to injure someone and can also potentially carry harmful biological contaminants, which causes illness. Examples of physical contamination include;
- Band-aids
- Fingernails
- Pieces of cooking equipment
These are the last thing you would like to find on your meal. That is why all bandaids must be bright blue by people working with food so it is easily identifiable as its an unnatural colour in the food industry.
Biological contamination
This type refers to the food that has been contaminated by substances produced by living creatures, such as humans, rodants, pests or microorganisms. This includes bacterial contamination, viral contamination or parasite contamination that’s transferred through;
- Salvia
- Pest droppings
- Blood
- Fecal matter
Baterial contamination is thought to be the most common cause of food poisoning worldwide. Bacteria need a constant source of food to survive, especially protein. High protein foods such as meat are particularly vulnerable to biological contamination from bacteria, which means they’re considered high-risk foods.
If you are looking to get qualified in Food Safety (HACCP) have a look at our course breakdown here.
Managing Safety, Health and Welfare in Schools
Who is responsible for managing safety, health and welfare in schools?
The board of management is responsible for managing safety, health and welfare of students. All of the members of staff in the school including teachers;
- Special needs assistants
- Ancillary staff
- Students
- Parents and visitors
They all have a role to play in securing their own safety and welfare. Everyone has a part to play.
How does the Board of Management begin the process of managing safety, health and welfare more effectively? By using the guidelines set out by the Health Safety Authority.
The Board of Management might consider taking the following steps
-
- Decide who will lead the process on behalf of the Board. This could be the principle or the deputy principal, or an employee or member of the Board appointed to act as a Safety, Health and Welfare Officer.
- The Guidelines on Managing Safety, Health and Welfare in primary Schools (The Guidelines). This is both a guidance document and a toolkit to assist schools in managing safety, health and welfare.
- This resource is a guide to help school plan, organise and manage a safe and healthy school environment for staff, students and visitors.
- All of the members of the school community have responsibilities for their own safety, health and welfare and that of others. The school is charged with informing staff, students and visitors of these responsibilities.
These guidelines do not place any additional responsibilities on schools that are not already in legislation or part of the school’s common lay duty of care.
What should I know about fire safety?
We are talking today about fire safety because it’s that time of the year again when temperatures start to drop, and you find yourself turning on your stove and cranking up the heat. Being up to date with the fire safety procedure is essential. To protect your family, you need to take the following steps to help prevent fires in the home—and to keep everyone safe in the event of one.
Install and Maintain Smoke Alarms:
Smoke alarms give you an early warning of a fire, giving you time to escape with your children before your house is filled with flames and smoke. Most fatal fires occur at night, when people are sleeping, so an early warning is crucial. Smoke alarms can cut the risk of death by 50 percent.
How Many Smoke Alarms Do You Need?
The amount of smoke alarms you should have depends on the size of your house. Bryant recommends a minimum of one alarm per level of your house. If your house is multi-leveled, he says you should have one at the top of the stairs, in every cooking area and in the living room. You should also make sure that there is an alarm outside every room that a person sleeps in.
Test your Smoke Alarms
Make sure that smoke alarms are in order and everyone in your family is familiar with its sound. Educate them that this particular sound means danger and they must evacuate the building immediately.
Change Smoke Alarms batteries
Remind yourself to change smoke alarms batteries one or twice a year. Give it fresh batteries and your smoke alarm will stay awake and watch for fire while you are sleeping.
How to escape during a fire.
It is always important to make a family escape plan by highlighting two escape routes for every room and a safe meeting place for all family members to gather outside of your home. This worksheet offers a handy way to make a fire escape plan for your family. Once you’ve established your escape plan, practice it regularly with your family. Choose a meeting place outside, so you would know that everyone has gotten out safely.
Fire is a dangerous thing but if you are fully prepared and have a plan in place it could help you to save your life and lives of your loved ones. Do not ignore safety procedures make sure that you are aware of the danger and comply with safety regulations.
Our Fire Safety training course can help you to control the risk of fire and trains participants how to act safely in case of emergency, get more information here.