Inspection of 9 October 2025 — Inspection Report
Regulation 9 — Management and recruitment
- (3) It was noted that the Garda vetting disclosures held in respect of two of the adults were dated after the staff members had commenced working at the service. The registered provider stated that until the vetting was received, the adults were undertaking paperwork, cleaning and other tasks that did not involve contact with the children. However, this was not accepted under part (3) of the regulation, as Garda vetting is required to be in place prior to any person being appointed, assigned, or allowed access to or contact with children
Provider's corrective action:
- The written reply from the registered provider stated that all current staff files were reviewed to ensure that Garda vetting is in place for everyone and that a log regarding the vetting status of all staff and associated adults has been created and updated. A recruitment policy was already in place and management will make sure that it is strictly followed; no person may commence any work or duties in the service, until Garda vetting is received and verified. As a preventive measure, quarterly audits of staff files will be conducted to ensure ongoing compliance and staff involved in recruitment and induction have been retrained on Tusla vetting requirements
Regulation 15 — Record of pre-school child
- (d) Of the 10 forms sampled, 6 did not include the full addresses of the child’s parent or guardian. Only “Cork” was stated. (f) Information regarding whether or not the child had any illness, disability, allergy or special need, was unavailable on four of the records. (g) The name and telephone number of the child’s registered medical practitioner was not detailed on four of the forms. (h) Information in relation to the child’s immunisation status was unavailable on 5 of the 10 records reviewed. (i) Written parental consent for appropriate medical treatment in the event of an emergency, was not provided on any of the 10 child records
Provider's corrective action:
- (d) The full addresses of the children’s parents/guardians were obtained and the child records were updated accordingly. The registered provider verified that all current enrolment forms have full and accurate parent/guardian contact details. As a preventive measure, an enrolment checklist has been implemented to ensure full parent/guardian addresses are provided before a child commences. (f) The missing information regarding illness, disability, allergy, or special needs has been obtained and the child records have been updated accordingly. It has been verified that all current child records now contain complete and accurate health details. A mandatory enrolment checklist has been implemented, which requires full health information to be available, before each child commences. (g) The missing medical practitioner details have been obtained and the child records have been updated. The registered provider verified that all current child records now contain complete and accurate medical practitioner information. As a preventive measure, an enrolment checklist has been implemented to ensure that the medical practitioner’s name and contact details are in place, before each child begins attending. (h) The missing information regarding the children’s immunisation status has been obtained and the forms have been updated. The registered provider verified that all current child records now contain full immunisation information and has implemented a mandatory enrolment checklist, requiring immunisation details for each child, before they commence. (i) All parents/guardians were contacted to obtain written consent for emergency medical treatment and the child records were updated accordingly. The registered provider has implemented a mandatory enrolment checklist, requiring signed parental consent for emergency medical treatment to be in place before a child commences. Staff have been trained to ensure that all information on the child records is collected and recorded accurately and child records will be reviewed every three months, to ensure that all relevant information remains complete and up to date
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
- General safety: Blind cords were not secured, as required to reduce the risk of injury to a child. In the Green room, the two blind cords had been wrapped around the top of the blinds and were not appropriately tethered. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
- The existing blinds with cords were immediately removed from the Green Room, to eliminate any risk to children. These were replaced with cordless blinds, that attach to the window using suction cups and can be safely removed and stored when not in use. A full review of all window coverings in the service was conducted, to ensure there were no blind cords present. Regular safety checks will be carried out every three months, to ensure ongoing compliance with safety standards
Found compliant: Regulation 11, 19, 22.