Inspection of 2 April 2025 — Inspection Report
Regulation 9 — Management and recruitment
- Records of validation were unavailable in respect of the two references on file for one of the adults. (d) • It was acknowledged that police vetting had been obtained for 2 adults, who had resided outside the State while over the age of 18. However, a translation into English, from a reputable source of translation, was unavailable for one of these documents. • The required police vetting was not available for a third staff member, who had lived in another jurisdiction as an adult. • It was not possible to determine the requirement or otherwise for police vetting, or additional police vetting, in respect of six adults, as their curricula vitae were incomplete
Provider's corrective action:
- The written reply from the person in charge stated that the two references identified have been validated. The service’s reference form has been updated, following identification of an error. (d) The translation of the oversees vetting was completed by a certified translator. An application has been made in relation to police vetting. However, some delays were experienced before the police vetting was received. Applications of employment (curricula vitae) were reviewed and updated by each member of staff identified. As a preventive measure, the non-compliant issues have been raised with the HR department and a review is currently underway
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
- General safety: 1. The Garda vetting disclosures available for 10 of the adults were not dated within the previous three years, in adherence to the Early Years Inspectorate Regulatory Notice, ‘EYI-RN12.3 Renewal of Garda Vetting’. Infection control: 2. During the morning snack in the Early Years room, children were observed to eat foods such as crackers and bread sticks directly from the table, as crockery was not provided. This increased the risk of cross infection. 3. In the sanitary facility adjoining Preschool 1, one of the taps at the water trough was not provided with a supply of warm water, as required. A temperature reading of 13.90C was recorded. Cold water temperatures may impede effective handwashing. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
- General safety: 1. Applications for re-vetting have been completed for the nine staff who had not been re-vetted in the last three years. On the day of inspection, the incorrect Garda vetting disclosure was provided to the inspector in respect of the tenth adult, as their in-date Garda vetting had been mislaid. As a preventive measure, an internal review was completed and a team have been appointed to oversee the re-vetting process. Infection control: 2. The manager met with staff to discuss the use of crockery during snack time. It was noted that the table had been sanitised prior to children sitting at the table. Due to the cook being absent on the day, children had a limited snack of breadsticks and crackers, which staff handed to children. A rolling snack has now been introduced into the early years room and an adult will supervise the snack tray and encourage children to use crockery when appropriate. Age appropriate crockery and drinking utensils are readily available to children throughout the session. 3. An additional hot tap has been added, in line with the regulations. A review of all sanitary area will be carried out in preparation for each academic year
Found compliant: Regulation 11, 16, 19, 22, 29.