Regulation 19 — Health, welfare and development of child
Basic needs: 1. In the Wobbler room 1 and Wobbler room 2 the children’s water bottles were not freely available to the children as they were stored in a box on a windowsill and on the radiator out of sight and reach of the children. This prevented the children from taking a drink spontaneously if they were thirsty during the day, without the assistance of a staff member. 2. Before dinner time in the Wobbler room 1 two children had their shoes and leggings removed before they ate their dinner, when asked the staff member stated that this was being done to speed up the process of placing the children to sleep after they ate. This practice does not support the dignity of the children. Supporting relationships around children: 3. The family photographs that were on display in the Wobbler room 1 and Wobbler room 2 were positioned at too high a level for the children to see. A child in the Wobbler room 2 climbed on a chair to try and retrieve the family photograph, the child was told to get down off the chair. The positioning of the photographs does not enable the children to develop a sense of belonging and connectedness in the service and to maintain links with family and home. Furthermore, this does not support conversation with the child and enhancement of the child’s language development. 4. Staff were not observed to sit with children at dinner time in the Toddler room. This did not support a relaxed atmosphere and social interaction among the children and adults at mealtimes. 5. In the Wobbler room 2, 3 children were observed to be playing at the water tray, the children showed signs of being engaged in their play, however the lid was put on the tray, and the children were taken over to the table to do another activity. This does not support the voice of the child or follow child’s interests by reading children’s cues. Physical and material environment: 6. There was no additional equipment readily available to the children in the Wobbler room 1 to use with the play kitchen. The play resources for use with the kitchen were stored on pull out shelves which the majority of children in the room were not developmentally able to retrieve
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective Action Basic needs: 1. Water bottles have been moved to a more reachable spot. Area was labelled with a large A4 page reading ‘Water Station’ with pictures of water bottles so the children know where their water is. This was applied to both rooms. 2. Staff have been advised that it is not best practice to remove children’s clothing while in the classroom and before meals. Children will only have clothing removed in the sleep room when going to sleep. Supporting relationships around children: 3. Family wall pictures are now moved lower down on the wall where children can see/reach. Families have been contacted and asked to create ‘Family Books’ so that children can have constant access to family pictures throughout the day. 4. Encourage staff to sit with children at the table where possible, have one staff member cleaning up and the other’s sitting with the children. 5. Staff have been given printed information on their Child-Lead curriculum to revisit. Physical and material environment: 6. Kitchen play toys are stored in and on the play kitchen and in open baskets beside it. Preventive Action Basic needs: 1. Water station set up has been added to staff’s daily checklist and added to new Room Standards policy. 2. Added to new Room Standards policy. Created posters for rooms RE ‘Comfort& Dignity” Supporting relationships around children: 3. Added ‘family wall/pictures accessible and low down’ to daily checklist for staff and new Room Standards Policy. 4. Create a room roster for the staff so they know who should clean and who should sit at the tables. 5. Ensure regular, on -going training regarding Child- Led curriculum and the importance of the children having their voices heard. Print outs for room as reminders. Physical and material environment: 6. Clearly labelled kitchen toy baskets and areas for storing said toys
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. A small portable trampoline was provided in the outdoor area adjacent to the Wobbler room 2. Trampolines are considered to be inappropriate equipment in an early years setting as they are not recommended for children aged less than 6 years due to safety risks. 2. The chairs provided in the Toddler room were not age appropriate for all of the children present. The Wobbler room 2 children moved to the Toddler room after dinner time. A child from the Wobbler room 2 group was observed falling off the chair due it’s unsuitability. Infection Control: 3. In both the Wobbler room 1 and the Toddler room the children’s afternoon snack of buttered brown bread was placed directly on to the table; no plates were used. This presents a risk of cross contamination. 4. Handwashing was observed not to occur at the following times: • The children in the Wobbler room 1, Wobbler room 2 and the Toddler room did not have their hands washed before they had their afternoon tea. • In the Wobbler room 1 staff and children were not always observed to wash their hands after nappy changing. • Staff members were observed not to wash their hands after cleaning children’s noses. Administration of Medication: 5. Two children for whom medication was available to be administered in the service in the event of an emergency, to include an inhaler, did not have a completed medical care plan with parents’ signature to accompany this in advance of potential administration. Safe Sleep: 6. In the Toddler room a staff member was observed to conduct a sleep check on 5 children while standing at the sleep room door. The children were not individually checked. All children must be individually checked while sleeping to include the children’s colour, breathing and position. Action submitted by the Registered Provider Corrective Action General Safety: 1. Trampoline has been removed and is no longer available for children to use. 2. Smaller chairs are now available in Toddler room for when smaller children are present. Infection Control: 3. Snack is now brought into the room on plates rather than on trays. 4. Registered provider purchased more cloths so that children can have hands cleaned this way rather than transitioning out of the room to the bathroom area to clean hands as this can cause upset, particularly at mealtimes. All staff have been given nappy-changing policy to revise and sign off on and reminded of the importance of hand-washing. Hand sanitiser clearly labelled in room for staff use after cleaning noses. Administration of Medication: 5. In relation to the medicine’s discussed – one was a temporary inhaler which was only used for a short period of time and was mistakenly not sent home as the parent advised they did not need it. The inhaler has now been sent home with the parent for disposal. The second medication was an antihistamine which was sent in along with Calpol should the child need it. Said medication has since been sent home with the child and parents have been advised that any such medication will require a doctor’s note and medicine form. Safe Sleep: 6. Staff have been advised that it is not sufficient to simply investigate the room during sleep checks. Policy has been provided for review. Preventive Action General Safety: 1. Trampoline has been removed from premises and information on trampoline use included in policy. 2. Clearly label smaller chairs for Wobblers so they do not sit on bigger chairs. Infection Control: 3. As above. 4. Posters up in rooms to remind them of the importance of hand-washing before meals, before and after nappy changes and after cleaning noses. Administration of Medication: 5. Staff have been provided with medicine administration policy to review and sign off on. All medicine entering the building must now go through the manager to ensure appropriate documentation. This is now added to policy. Safe Sleep: 6. At next staff meeting they will fully revise the actions to be taken during sleep checks. Posters displayed in all rooms with full instructions. Supporting documentation submitted Evidence of the following was provided: Medical care plan. Signage for hand washing and reminders for staff re process of completing sleep checks. Copy of medication policy. Summary Comment The evidence submitted by the registered provider in relation to regulation 23 - Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child has been reviewed by the inspectors and accepted
Regulation 25 — First aid
(1) A person trained in first aid including first aid responder (FAR) training was not immediately available to the children attending the pre-school service as evidenced in the staff roster and the in-date FAR certifications provided for inspection. One staff member had in date FAR certification only and was not present in the service for the entire operational hours. Eight staff members have in date paediatric first aid training
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective Action (1) Registered provider is renewing current FAR trained staff’s certificate and have 3 more staff signed up to complete FAR training by the 13th of April 2026. Preventive Action (1) Registered provider will ensure to always have minimum 2 staff members FAR trained at all times and will be more mindful of expiry dates
Regulation 16 — Record in relation to pre-school service
The following policy was incomplete and were not in keeping with the requirements of Regulation 10: The Nappy changing policy did not include: • Children’s hands are washed and dried after nappy changing and toileting
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective Action Registered provider has amended this policy to include that all children’s hands will be washed and dried after nappy changing and toileting. Preventive Action A notice has been placed in the bathrooms stating this . Staff have been provided with update Policy and have read and signed off on same
Regulation 19 — Health, welfare and development of child
Basic needs: 1. In both the Wobbler room and Toddler room the children’s water bottles were not freely available to the children as they were stored in a box on a raised shelf out of sight and reach of the children. 2. This prevented the children from taking a drink spontaneously if they were thirsty during the day, without the assistance of a staff member. Physical and material environment: 3. In the ECCE Year 2 room it was observed at 11.08am that the open fronts of four shelving units were turned away from the children and placed tightly in against the wall of the room which prevented the children from accessing the materials and play resources contained within, including specialist Montessori equipment, textured balls, plastic cubes, foam shapes, and lidded plastic boxes of coloured rice, dried pasta and tree bark. At 11.35am when these shelving units remained inaccessible in the same position, a staff member informed the inspector that the contents were not made accessible to the children as they were limited to times when the children were engaging in ‘work’ and additionally ‘”that some of the children don’t understand and put them on the floor which makes a lot of work for me to tidy up”. It is acknowledged that when the inspector discussed her concerns regarding the unavailability of a broad range of play materials for the children with the staff member, she turned 3 of the 4 shelves around and made their contents available to the children who were then observed to play with the materials with enthusiasm. (3) A staff member in the ECCE Year 2 room did not use a partnership approach or show positive regard for the children at all times during the inspection. Instead, on a number of occasions this staff member was heard using negative language when engaging with a child using phrases including “I will show you for the last time”, “Why do you keep asking…” and “For the last time can you please do your job”. This use of negative language towards the child was not supportive and the staff member missed opportunities to provide encouragement and praise to affirm the child in their play and activities and to positively re-direct the child when necessary. It is acknowledged that this staff member’s tone of voice was not harsh or raised during the inspection including during these interactions when she heard using negative language
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective Action Basic needs: 1. All children’s water bottles have been placed at the front of the shelves in the 2 rooms, visible to the children allowing children easy access to water at any time of the day and not stored in a box on the shelf. Physical and material environment: 2. Staff working in the ECCE room have been advised that the units in the room are to be turned around and all material available to the children during the ECCE Session. Units with the Montessori materials only will be tuned back around at the end of the ECCE session
Registered Provider has spoken to the staff member, she will make every effort to always use positive feedback to the children in her class. She will be more supportive and encouraging to the children and positively redirect the children when necessary. She has suggested some courses that are coming up: • “Recognising, Understanding and Managing Big Behaviours and Feelings” • “Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Updated Aistear”, And also, some that are offered during every year: • “Promoting Positive Behaviour” • “Aim Diversity, Equality and Inclusion” The staff member has agreed to attend these. Registered Provider has also asked her to review their Safeguarding Statement and Inclusion Policy. Registered Provider has also recommended that staff member would check out their resource section and see if she might see ideas there to help her in the classroom. Preventive Action Basic needs: 1. All staff in the rooms have been informed that the children’s water bottles are to be kept at the front of the shelf at all times. Checks will be carried out to make sure this is carried out. Physical and material environment: 2. Notice will be placed in room stating that the units with non- Montessori material is to be available at all times during the day
Registered Provider has spoken to the staff member and reminded her that if she is having any issues or difficulty in the classroom that she is to come to the office so that they can address them and see what they can do to alleviate them
Regulation 22 — Food and drink
1. The 4-week menu on display in the service and the food served on the day of inspection demonstrated that the daily nutritional requirements were not always adequately met for children attending the Wobbler room and the Toddler room on a part-time or full day care basis as evidenced in the following findings: • The children attending both the Wobbler room and the Toddler room on a full day care basis are provided with the opportunity to eat 3 times per day. The children are provided with breakfast on arrival to the service between 08:15am and 08:45am, dinner is served at 11am – 11:30am and tea is provided at 3:15pm. However, as detailed in the department’s “Nutrition Standards for Early Learning and Care Services”, children attending a service on a full day care basis must be offered at least 2 meals and 2 snacks whilst in attendance
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective Action 1. At the moment, service serve the meals at these times: Breakfast: 8:15 am-8:45 am, Dinner: 11:15am -11:45am , Tea: 2:45pm -3:15pm . They can serve another snack, but it would happen after the tea snack, as the parents want the children to eat their dinners at 11:15am. Staff will offer them a snack at 4:00pm. Preventive Action 1. Staff is going to try introducing another snack at 4:00pm and see how that works and if not having a positive response they will try a different time. Summary Comment The evidence submitted by the registered provider in relation to The evidence submitted by the registered provider in relation to regulation 22 – Food and drink has been reviewed and accepted
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. A section of the fence at the rear of the outdoor area was loose and unstable and posed a risk of falling over on a child in the outdoor play area. 2. Standard shaving foam was observed being used to facilitate a play activity for the children in the Toddler room during the inspection with the same shaving foam provided on a shelf with arts and crafts supplies in the ECCE year 2 room. The labelling on the product included the statement ‘Keep out of reach of children’. Shaving foam cannot be used for play purposes due to its potential irritant risk to pre-school children. 3. A tall doll’s house in the Toddler room was unstable and not safely secured which posed a risk that it could topple over and cause injury to a child. Infection Control: 4. The children in the Wobbler room and the Toddler room did not have their hands washed after they had their nappies changed or before they ate. 5. A staff member was observed not to wash her hands in between each individual nappy change when changing a number of children’s nappies in succession. It was observed that this staff member wore new gloves for each nappy change but the lack of hand washing in between nappy changes posed a risk of cross-contamination. 6. Play materials were stored in the sanitary area on the ground floor of the service; sanitary areas are unsuitable for the storage of play materials due to infection control risks. Administration of Medication: 7. Some staff members were vague in relation to managing a child with a high temperature in the service. For example, the inspectors were informed by a number of staff members that they were not authorised to administer temperature-reducing medication to a child should they develop a high temperature in the service and instead, the parents would be contacted to collect the child and take them home. This was at variance with the signed consent sought from and provided by parents on enrolment, authorising staff members to administer temperature-reducing medication to their child if this situation arose in the service. Furthermore, the service’s medication administration policy, despite having been updated on 06/03/2024, contained outdated information in relation to the administration of temperature-reducing medication in the service. 8. This was evidenced in the policy statement that written permission for temperature-reducing medication administration was obtained on enrolment but ‘this is not being implemented during Covid-19 in keeping with the guidelines. Safe Sleep: 9. Staff members in the Wobbler room were observed conducting the children’s sleep checks at variance with the service’s safe sleep policy. Rather than checking the children directly, the staff members viewed a small monitor in the care room to check the colour, position and breathing pattern of the children who were sleeping in a sleep room across the corridor from the care room. All sleeping children must be physically checked every 10 minutes to include checking the child’s colour, breathing and sleeping position. 10. Inadequate space was left between the 6 cots in the sleep room adjoining the Toddler room. Spacing between some cots was found to be 30cm apart, with other cots spaced 40cm apart. This was less than the recommended distance of spacing cots at least 50cm apart. The inadequate space could potentially delay staff from accessing children in the event of an emergency and also increased the risk of cross infection. 11. There was no thermometer available in the sleep room adjoining the Toddler room to ensure that the ambient sleep room temperature was maintained within the recommended safe sleep temperature sleep range of 18 -22oC (when all children are aged 1 year and older). In discussion with the inspector staff members reported that the thermostat setting in the adjoining care room was used to monitor the sleep room temperature, but this was unsafe as the thermostat in use was not located within the sleep room nor did it provide a temperature reading. Action submitted by the Registered Provider Corrective Action General Safety: 1. Registered Provider has contacted a contractor, and they have called out to examine the fencing at the back. They said that it was not rotting and that they will just reinforce the stakes. They are going to carry out this work as soon as possible. 2. All shaving foam has been removed from all the rooms and disposed. 3. The dolls house has been reinforced at the back and has also been attached to the wall. Infection Control: 4. All staff have been reminded that they must wash the children’s hands after nappy changing and toileting and also before meals. A 3rd staff member will be present to help at these periods. 5. A reminder to staff that they have to wash their hands after every nappy change as well as changing their gloves. 6. All the toys are in containers that are sealed. Staff has moved these containers to under the stairs in the hall. Administration of Medication: 7. Service’s existing Administration of Medication policy has been revised, and all staff have received and signed it. Calpol can be administered for a high temperature once parents have been contacted to check that sufficient time has lapsed between doses in case any was given at home. Safe Sleep: 8. Staff are reminded to check the children directly every 10 mins with the help of another staff member if needed. 9. A cot has been removed from the Toddler sleep room. 10. A new thermometer was purchased and placed in the cot room. Preventive Action General Safety: 1. Staff have been reminded to bring it to the Managements attention if there is any equipment or areas not safe outside in the gardens, i.e. equipment, fencing, trees, etc. A Risk Assessment is carried out every 4/5 weeks in the creche indoor and outdoor spaces to access safety and suitability. 2. Staff will source an acceptable shaving foam that is “child friendly”. 3. Risk assessments are carried out every 4/5 weeks by the office. If in the meantime there are any issue, all staff have been reminded that if any equipment or toys are broken or could cause harm to a child, they are to be thrown out or repaired and the office is to be advised of the same. Infection Control: 4. A notice put on the white board in both rooms stating when hands are to be washed. Children’s steps have also been made available to help with this procedure. 5. A sign has been placed in both changing rooms to remind staff of washing of hands and changing of gloves between each nappy change. 6. All staff have been informed that the toys are not to be brought into the Wobbler changing area, but placed in their containers and under the stairs in the hall. Administration of Medication: 7. Policies & Procedures are provided to all staff at their Induction. Key policies will also be pointed out to them. Safe Sleep: 8. All staff have been advised that this is in their Policy and Procedures and that they must adhere to this. If any room had an issue carrying this out any day, they are to contact the office for help. 9. All staff to make sure that there is adequate space between the cots. 10. Staff advised to inform the office if there are any broken thermometers so that they are replaced immediately. Supporting documentation submitted 1. E mail to fencing company regarding repairs to fence. 2. Photograph of the Dolls house secured to the wall. 3. Copy of risk assessments. 4. Photograph of new storage area. 5. Administration of medication policy. 6. Photograph of thermometer. Summary Comment The evidence submitted by the registered provider in relation to regulation 23 - Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child has been reviewed and accepted
Found compliant: Regulation 9, 10, 11, 20, 27, 32.
(2) (d) Police vetting was not available for 1 staff member who had resided outside 3 different jurisdictions for a period of more than 6 consecutive months as an adult
Provider's corrective action:
(2) (d) The staff member has applied to the necessary countries for police vetting. The registered provider will ensure that no staff member will commence employment in the service until all required police vetting is sought
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: Garda vetting was available for 1 staff member. However, this vetting disclosure was not dated within the previous three years in adherence to with the Early Years Inspectorate Regulatory Notice ‘EYI-RN12.3 Renewal of Garda Vetting’
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective & Preventive Action General Safety: An application was made to renew the staff member garda vetting. A tracking record will be kept of all staff members garda vetting’s to ensure they are in date