Health and Safety

This policy is to be used in conjunction with Imperial College Health and safety policy. 

  1. The EYEC are committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for staff and children. 
  1. At all times employees, volunteers, students and visitors will cooperate fully in implementing health and safety initiatives. 
  1. We expect employees to take responsibility for risk assessing activities and possible hazards at all times, this include the safety and protection of the children in their care as well as their own health, safety and wellbeing and other adults.
  1. All staff are responsible for maintaining a safe environment through vigilance and careful planning.  They are also responsible for reporting any defect or occurrence likely to put any child or adult atrisk from illness or injury.  They are also responsible for reporting any near misses to the Departmental Safety Officer and management.
  1. Staff are responsible for ensuring the daily risk assessments are completed and all other necessary risk assessments are up to date and being observed including outings risk assessments and planners garden risk assessment and fire risk assessments.  All staff must take responsibility for constantly assessing what they do and how they undertake all tasks connected with their role and maintaining a safe environment for the children.
  1. The Health and Safety Officer is responsible for ensuring that regular inspections take place and risk assessments are carried out as necessary.
  1. All accidents, incidents, illness must be recorded on the appropriate form and be signed by the witness, a memberof the management team and the parent. In addition they must also be recorded in the office accident book for monitoring purposes.

Parents will be contacted if the nature of the injury or illness requires immediate action away from the centre, such as illness or for further medical attention.

Any accident or illness requiring hospital treatment must also be recorded on the Imperial College SALUS website.

  1. Details of any dangerous occurrence must be reported to EYEC management, the departmental safety officer and recorded on the Imperial College SALUS website. 
  1. It is our intention to ensure at all times that there is a First Aid at Work qualified first aider on the premises.
  1. All staff will have received a minimum of paediatric first aid training 
  1. There are 4 fully qualified First Aid at work first aiders.
  1. It is the responsibility of the First Aid Coordinator to ensure that staff receive regular updates and news on first aid changes and ensure that their training remains in date.
  1. It is the responsibility of the First  Aid Coordinator to ensure that all first aid boxes are fully stocked and in date.  Also that a list of emergency information is displayed by each telephone containing details of qualified first aiders, life savers, nearest first aid boxes, first aid guidance,fire extinguishers and fire blankets and the college emergency telephone number.
  1. We will ensure that where children have known allergies to certain foods we will take necessary precautions to make sure that the children are not given these foods this will include      recording details of allergy and possible reactions, updating information with parents, informing the chef and kitchen staff who will check ingredients of meals and snacks. Labelling milk from home, displaying lists on posters of what the child must not eat, checking lists before mealtimes by two  separate staff and reviewing procedures regularly.  If in any doubt about the contents of food, alternatives must be given or the parents contacted.
  1. Fire alarms and fire doors will be checked weekly by the college Fire Officer; this normally takes place on Wednesdays.  In addition monitored practice fire drills take place every 6 months.  Fire safety inspections are carried out regularly by the college Fire Officer.

All incidents of fire drills are recorded in the Health and Safety file.

  1. We will at all times endeavour to ensure that the spread of infection through the Early Years is prevented as much as possible by taking appropriate measures such as cleaning, sterilising      feeding equipment, wearing gloves and aprons during changing nappies and dealing with spillages.  All staff receive food safety training. Food handling gloves must be worn and protective      aprons. Also by keeping parents informed of illnesses and advisable times to keep children with infectious illnesses away from the centre.

(Also see nappy changing procedure, food handling procedure and Administering medicine and sick children policy.)

  1. We will act on the guidance and advice given to us by outside agencies such as OFSTED, Environmental Health, and Occupational Health and public health London.

Preventing the spread of infection

The main principles for preventing and controlling infections are concerned with:

  • Reducing or eliminating sources of infection (e.g. by cooking food properly and keeping contagious children and adults away from the nursery)
  • preventing the transfer of contamination from these sources (e.g. by using suitable hygiene procedures)
  • Training- all staff to use appropriate hygiene procedures, all staff are required to hold a food hygiene certificate.
  • Educating children and parents about good hygiene practices.

National legislation requires childcare providers to keep their premises and equipment clean. Routine cleaning (e.g. by sweeping, vacuuming or wiping with detergent and water) is necessary to remove dirt and debris, which could otherwise attract pests and help germs to build up. For surfaces in the nursery that are unlikely to be involved in spreading germs from one person to another, either because they are unlikely to be contaminated and/or they have little close contact with people, such as walls and furniture, this type of routine cleaning is often all that is necessary.

The aim is to reduce the number of germs to a level where there is no longer a threat to health. This level varies depending on the circumstances, and dictates what procedures are required. Hygiene procedures include:

  • Heating – Heating (e.g. by hot machine washing) is an effective way to decontaminate items such as clothes, cleaning cloths and other fabrics. Heating (by thorough cooking) can also reduce contamination of foods to a level that is safe for consumption.
  • Sanitizing- staff will spray all ledges handles, surfaces, equipment and toys.
  • Staff wear disposable gloves and aprons for every nappy change and as per the nappy changing policy will use paper towels to cover changing mats also sanitize before and after every nappy change. 

Staff do not:

  • Use nappy-changing mats that are dirty or have torn waterproof coverings
  • Share nappy creams between children – each child should have their own
  • Use fingers to remove cream from containers unless wearing gloves
  • Change nappies in areas where food is prepared or eaten, or where children play. 

Further measures

  • The Domestic support team will have completed a COSHH training.
  • Our Domestic support team are instructed to carry out deep cleaning on a regular basis however in the case of an infection the deep clean will be immediate.
  • The Domestic support team have received induction to hygiene practices within the EYEC,
  • Members of the Senior management team have completed HACCP training
  • Exclusion- it will be necessary for the infected child/ren to be excluded from the EYEC until treatment has been administered and the child is free from infection.
  • There are hand gel sanitizer dispensers around the centre for staff and parents to use when entering rooms or leaving toilets.
  • Pest control- we have regular visits from the pest control to monitor any pest activity and to eliminate.
  • Materials such as sand, play dough, clay etc. which may have been contaminated, will be disposed of and replaced.

Depending on the severity of the infection and the spread of the infection within the centre, the Head of the early Years will make the decision to close the centre; this will be in cases where it is vital to eliminate the infection. Cases of infection will be judged individually.

Designated responsibilities 

  • Departmental safety officer - Tracy Halsey
  • First aid coordinator - Rowena Howe