Inspection of 1 March 2024 — Inspection Report
Regulation 8 — Notification of change in circumstances
- (1) & (3) (1) The service was registered to accommodate sessional children aged from two to six years of age however on the inspector’s arrival at 9:36am there was a child aged under two years present in the service until 10:04am. (3) The service was registered to operate a morning session from 09:15-12:15 hours but was operating from 9:00-12:00 hours without notification received by the Agency of the change
Provider's corrective action:
- The registered provider advised in a written response that: Corrective and Preventive Action (1) The registered provider stated that there will not be a reoccurrence. (3) A change in circumstances form was submitted to Tusla registration department on the 20 March 2024 requesting a change in the time of the morning session to 9am to 12 noon instead of 9:15am to 12 15midday. The change has been approved
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
- General Safety: 1. One of the entrance gates to the outdoor area was observed to be not adequately secured when the children were playing outdoors. It is acknowledged that this was addressed immediately when brought to the attention of the registered provider. 2. There was a rodent bait box accessible to children in the grass area of the outdoor space used by the children on the day of the inspection. 3. A large number of toys and equipment were stacked high on top of each other in the playroom and posed a potential safety risk to children. 4. The roof of a plastic playhouse in the outdoor area was damaged with sharp edges and was a potential safety hazard to the children. Action submitted by the Registered Provider The registered provider advised in a written response that:
Provider's corrective action:
- General Safety: 1. On the day the bolt was not in the lock properly. The staff secured this immediately once made aware of this. The registered provider checks the bolt every morning to ensure it is in the locked position. 2. The pest control company had visited the Tuesday previously and had left the bait box in view of children. The staff immediately moved the box out of view and reach. The designated person in charge rang the company that day to address the issue with them and ask them to ensure all boxes are out of reach and sight. The designated person in charge will also check this after each visit by the company. 3. Some of the afterschool boxes of equipment had been stacked too high. The staff immediately removed them and placed them in a safe area. All boxes will be stored in a low safe manner in future. 4. The plastic house was discarded immediately
Regulation 26 — Fire safety measures
- (1) (a) Whilst written records of the monthly fire drills undertaken in the service were kept by the staff, the last fire drill recorded as having been undertaken on the 8 January 2024 which was not monthly as required. (b) The most recent record available of maintenance of the smoke/fire alarm system was dated for the 2 December 2018 and was not conducted on an annual basis
Provider's corrective action:
- The registered provider advised in a written response that: Corrective and Preventive Action (1) (a) A fire drill was conducted on the 1 March 2024. A named staff member is now in charge of fire drills and has set a reminder for each month to carry out and record the fire drills. (b) The registered provider contacted a registered electrician to come out immediately to service the smoke alarms. Reminders are also set to have smoke alarms professionally checked annually
Regulation 29 — Premises
- (d) 1. There was a hole in the floor covering under the sink in the sanitary unit posing difficulties for cleaning. 2. A section of the floor covering in the playroom was inadequately secured and lifting upwards presenting a tripping hazard
Provider's corrective action:
- The registered provider advised in a written response that: Corrective and Preventive Action (d) 1. The service has ordered replacement linoleum which will be in place in the next one to two weeks. 2. New tape was placed on the area where the linoleum meets the tiles. The registered provider has put up a notice to remind staff to review these areas to ensure the tape is in good order
Found compliant: Regulation 9, 11, 15, 25, 27, 28.