Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. Electrical cables from a phone charger, were in reach of children during the inspection posing a risk of injury to a child. 2. In the indoor little garden used by the children, an asthma inhaler was stored in an unlocked drawer posing a risk of harm to a child if they accessed it. Infection Control: 3. In the sleep room used by the Twinkler room, the mattresses on three cots used by the children were not waterproof or did not have a waterproof protective cover on them, the mattresses could not be effectively cleaned posing a potential risk of cross contamination to children. Administration of Medication: 4. Although it is acknowledged that staff were familiar with administration of medication, no pre-consent documentation had been sought to inform staff of the procedures or amount of medication to administer to two children requiring asthma inhalers. Both inhalers were stored in zip locked bags and not in original containers. The medicine policy states that pre consent will be sought before medicine is administered to children. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
General Safety: The registered provider has stated: 1. The electrical cables from the phone charger in the Montessori room have been secured. All staff have been remined to secure all cables in the room and to remove any equipment when not in use. 2. The asthma inhaler has been moved to a secure cabinet with a child safe lock on it. All medication will be secured in a locked cabinet going forward. Infection Control: 3. The cot mattresses in the cot room used by the babies were temporally removed and cleaned, the service purchased mattress protectors to ensure the mattresses are protected. Administration of Medication: 4. The service has implemented a care plan. They are now ensuring that all inhalers are stored in separate zip locked bags for each child. These zip lock bags are clearly identified with the child’s name and photograph. The service has advised parents that in future all inhalers must be kept in their original packaging. The revised care place has been circulated to all relevant staff, who have read and confirmed their understanding. The service will update this care plan on an ongoing basis when needs arise
Found compliant: Regulation 9, 11, 15, 19, 25, 26.
Immediate action notice. An immediate action notice was issued to the registered provider on the 13 August 2025 during the inspection in respect of Regulation 23, general safety. A response was received from the service on the 14 August 2025 which sufficiently mitigated the risk identified.
Regulation 9 — Management and recruitment
(2)(d) International Police vetting for one adult who had lived outside the State for a period exceeding 6 months as an adult was not available. It is acknowledged that the registered provided had evidence to show an attempt to secure International Police vetting for this adult had been previously sought. (3) The registered provider did not take appropriate measures to ensure that all adults were suitable to work in an early years service prior to their commencement as follows: • There was no evidence available to demonstrate that 3 references in respect of 2 adults had been validated by the registered provider before they commenced working in the service. • Garda vetting disclosures for one adult had not been received prior to the adult commencing work in the service. The above non-compliance was found on the last three inspections dated 23rd January 2023 and 10th May 2024 and 14 November 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from re-occurring
Provider's corrective action:
(2)(d) The registered provider has stated that the person who required police vetting was contracted to the service for a short time and is no longer working in the service, in future, the service will not accept any contractors unless all documentation is available. (3) The registered provider has stated that all references and Garda vetting are now in place and verified and that references and Garda vetting will be obtained and verified in advance of a person commencing employment. If a reference cannot be obtained from a previous employer a reference will be obtained from a reputable source
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. When the inspectors arrived at the service, the side gates were in use for access. The outer gate was not locked or monitored by staff to restrict unauthorised persons from gaining access to the premises and to prevent children from exiting the service unsupervised. The inner gate is low level and leads directly to the outdoor play area and to the childcare facility. This was observed to be in use for entry and exit throughout the day and was easily opened from the inside and outside. An immediate action notice was issued to the registered provider on the 13 August 2025 during the inspection in respect of Regulation 23, general safety. A response was received from the service on the 14 August 2025 which sufficiently mitigated the risk identified. Infection Control: 2. In the toddler room, the handwashing practices observed on the day of inspection were inconsistent, staff were observed to wipe children’s noses without washing or sanitising their hands. This poses a risk of cross contamination to children. 3. In the Twinkler room the cushions in the cosy area were heavily stained and required cleaning. Children were observed lying on the cushions throughout the inspection. This poses a risk of cross contamination to children. Safe Sleep: 4. The temperature in a designated cot room where children between the age of one and two years were sleeping was recorded at 22.8°C which is outside the recommended range for safe sleep. Although efforts were made by staff to reduce the temperature such as placing two fans into the room and opening windows and doors these measures were ineffective, and the temperature increased to 23.1°. The inspector acknowledges that a staff member remained in the room with the children when the increase in temperature was brought to their attention. 5. The temperature in the toddler room where children age two years were sleeping was recorded at 25.1°C which is outside the recommended range for safe sleep. Although efforts were made by staff to reduce the temperature such as opening windows and doors these measures were ineffective. The inspector acknowledges that two staff members remained in the room with the children during sleep time. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
General Safety: 1. The registered provider has stated that an key code system has been installed at the side gate to restrict unauthorised persons from gaining access to the premises and to prevent children from exiting the service unsupervised. Infection Control: 2. The registered provider has stated that hand sanitisers have been installed in the care rooms and in the outdoor area to support hand hygiene practices and to ensure additional means of infection control are available 3. All cushions were removed and washed accordingly. A checklist for cleaning will include weekly cleaning of cushions and soft furnishings. If a cushion is stained and cannot be cleaned, it will be removed and replaced. Safe Sleep: 4. The registered provider has stated that mobile air conditioners will be used in the cot room on days where the temperature exceeds the recommended level of 22°C 5. The registered provider has stated that mobile air conditioners will be used in the toddler sleep room on days where the temperature exceeds the recommended level of 22°C
Immediate action notice. The inspection was triggered by information received by the Inspectorate on the 23rd September 2024. Following this inspection the service was escalated to the National Registration Enforcement Panel (NREP). A Regulatory Enforcement Meeting (REM) was held on the 17th January 2025.
Regulation 9 — Management and recruitment
(3) The registered provider did not take appropriate measures to ensure that all adults were suitable to work in an early years service prior to their commencement as follows: • There was no evidence available to demonstrate that seven references in respect of four adults had been validated by the registered provider before staff commenced working in the service. • Garda vetting disclosures for one adult had not been received or considered prior to the staff members commencing work in the service. • International Police vetting for one adult was not sought prior to the adult commencing work in the service. The above non-compliance was found on the last two inspections dated 23rd January 2023 and 10th May 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from re-occurring
(b) The registered provider did not demonstrate that they had taken all reasonable measures to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of children attending the service and to comply with the regulations. Significant levels of non-compliance was found during the inspection across a number of regulations. Many of these concerns had been identified on the previous inspections in January 2023 and May 2024. It was observed that corrective and preventive actions submitted previously by the registered provider had not been implemented. The Agency held a regulatory compliance meeting with the registered provider on the 28th June 2024, however this proved ineffective in bringing the service into compliance with the regulations. (c) The inspectors were not assured that the registered provider had sufficient knowledge of the regulatory requirements to achieve compliance within the service. It was observed on inspection that a number of actions submitted by the registered provider to address non-compliance on previous inspections had not been implemented. It was also evident through observation of care and infection control practices that staff had not received an appropriate level of supervision or training in order to achieve compliance with the regulations
Provider's corrective action:
• The internal checklist as previously provided is strictly adhered to. All reference checks will be dated going forward and this will be added to our checklist. • For the individual the inspector was referring to, International Police vetting was obtained to confirm that they had no previous criminal record. The fact that we also needed confirmation that this individual had no previous record on the Central Register of Sex Offenders was an oversight which has now been remedied, and our checklist has been updated. In this particular instance, confirmation that this individual was not on the register was received two days after she started. New employees are never left alone for a period of two weeks post commencement. All prospective staff are now aware that both the Criminal & Sexual records are required
We have updated all our policies and reviewed these with all our staff members. We have also carried out internal checks and held staff meetings for each room. We attached a copy our internal inspection report, these are being done on a monthly basis for each room to ensure Lilliput Childcare policies and procedures are being adhered too
Regulation 11 — Staffing levels
(1) An adequate number of adults were not working directly with the children at all times during the inspection as outlined below: (2) The minimum ratio of adults to children for full day care services was adhered to at all times during the inspection as follows: • Between 1.45pm and 2.04pm, and 2.07pm and 2.12pm, the minimum adult to child ratio was not maintained in the Twinkler room. During these times one adult was supervising eight children aged one year. The required adult to child ratio is 1 adult to 5 children for children aged one year
Provider's corrective action:
(1)(2) We would accept that there were a deficiency in staffing for the 19 minutes and 5 minutes as outlined in the report. This arose as one staff member went to the cot room to prepare a cot for a child to sleep. Staff training has been updated to ensure staff are aware that the requisite staff numbers are adhered to at all time
Regulation 19 — Health, welfare and development of child
Appropriate and suitable care practices were not observed to be in place in the Twinkler room which may negatively impact the health and wellbeing of the children as follows: • The sleep needs of three children were not met. Children were observed displaying signs of tiredness including rubbing eyes, lying on the ground and crying intermittently for up to an hour. Staff repeatedly commented on how tired the children were and that a cot would be available soon. When questioned by the inspector staff were unable to bring them to sleep as there were no cots free as there were other children asleep in them. One child was observed to show signs of tiredness at 12.37pm. At 1.28pm the child fell asleep in a staff members arms. The staff member moved the child onto a cushion on the floor. Another child was observed climbing on the sleeping child, pinching and scratching them on the face, and climbing on top of them until they woke. The above non-compliance was found on the last inspection dated 10th May 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from re-occurring. • When the inspectors began their walk around at 10.20am the children in the Pre-Montessori room were already in circle time. This continued until 11.12am, children were observed distracted, getting up off their chairs, and banging their feet on the floor not engaged with the activity
Provider's corrective action:
(1) We have added another cot since the inspection to bring the total cot numbers to 8 to reduce the possibility of this recurring. (2) We accept that that when the sleeping child was placed in the “cosy corner” that we should have prevented any other child disturbing her. (3) We accept that circle time on this particular day was longer than usual. However, the staff ensure that the circle time involves diverse activities to ensure insofar as possible that this will prevent boredom
Regulation 20 — Facilities for rest and play
There were insufficient sleep facilities within the service. A sample of attendance records reviewed by the inspectors evidenced that on the busiest day in the Twinkler Room, thirteen children aged between one year and two years require sleep. The seven cots available did not meet the minimum sleep requirements. The above non-compliance was found on the last inspection dated 10th May 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from re-occurring. The above non-compliance was found on the last inspection dated 10th May 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from re-occurring
Provider's corrective action:
We had added an additional cot to being the total numbers to 8, and also tweaked the sleep scheduling to ensure cots are available at all times. The attachment specifically outlines the following: • Sleep times per child • Daily attendance • Sleep check sheet • Room attendance by child
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. In the pre-Montessori room there were ten chairs stacked on top of each other. Staff instructed children to take a chair from the stack. This practice poses a risk of injury to a child should the chairs fall down on them. Infection Control: Inspectors observed a number of practices which were ineffective for infection control purposes and posed a risk of cross contamination within the service as follows: 2. The children attending the Twinklers room were of an age where they explored toys with their mouth. Inspectors observed there was no attempt made to remove the toys when mouthed. The toys remained in use between the different children posing a risk of cross contamination. 3. On a number of occasions children were observed taking other children’s beakers and drinking from them. Staff did not remove these and sterilise them. This poses a risk of cross contamination 4. The handwashing practices observed on the day of inspection were inconsistent and at variance with the policy in place in the service. Children’s hands were not washed before dinner or after outdoor play in the Toddler room, Twinkler room or Pre-Montessori room. 5. Some nappy changing practices observed during the inspection were inadequate for infection control purposes and posed a risk of cross contamination as follows: • Whilst observing ten nappy changes a staff member did not wash their hands before or after changing the children’s nappies. • they redressed the children whilst using soiled gloves. • none of the children’s hands were washed following the nappy change • the nappy changing mat was not wiped down in between each change. • The staff member did not change their gloves in between changes and proceeded to handle pens, wipe paper, use the tablet, stroke children’s hair and clean children’s faces with wet wipes with the same gloves used to change all ten nappies. • Another staff member was observed re-dressing a child with soiled gloves and not washing their hands or wipe the mat after the change. These practices are ineffective for infection control and pose a risk of cross contamination. 6. The nappy changing policy was inadequate and did not state when to remove gloves, or when to wash hands. 7. There were no hand towels available to the children to dry their hands in the pre-Montessori and Montessori rooms. They were observed using toilet paper from a roll which is ineffective for drying and poses a risk of cross contamination. 8. The pedal operated nappy bin in the Twinkler room sanitary accommodation was observed to be broken. Staff were observed to handle the lid which contained traces of faeces and did not wash their hands afterwards. This poses a risk of cross contamination. 9. The nappy changing mat in the Twinkler room was torn with exposed foam. This could not be effectively cleaned and posed a risk of cross contamination. It is acknowledged that the mat was replaced on the afternoon of the inspection following observation of a number of nappy changes. 10. The pedal bin in the pre-Montessori room was broken and children were observed handling the lid. This poses a risk of cross contamination. 11. Staff were observed handling bin lids throughout the service and not using the pedal which was in working order. They did not wash their hands after handling the bin lid posing a risk of cross infection. 12. There was no warm water in the pre-Montessori room for children to wash their hands effectively. 13. Children were observed not to wash their hands after using the toilet. 14. Cleaning schedules in the Twinkler room were reviewed at 11.26am on the day of inspection. Checks had already been marked as completed for 3.30pm and 4.30pm for that day. 15. The adult chair in the Twinkler room required a deep clean. The fabric was heavily stained and soiled with food residue and had a build up of dirt and debris in the crevices. Children were observed climbing on the chair throughout the inspection. 16. The tables of the highchairs in use were heavily soiled and stained with food residue, and were not cleaned prior to children eating their meals. There was a build-up of food particles, dirt and debris present in the crevices of the highchairs. 17. The rest area in the Twinkler room had torn fabric with internal netting and foam exposed. This cannot be effectively cleaned posing a risk of cross contamination. 18. The bouncer chair in use in the Twinkler room was heavily worn and torn in parts and could not be effectively cleaned. The non-compliances identified under points 4 and 5 were found on the previous two inspections dated 23rd January 2023 and 10th May 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from reoccurring. The non-compliances identified under points 2, 3, 8 and 10 were found on the last inspection dated 10th May 2024. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non- compliance from reoccurring. The non-compliance found under point 12 was found on the inspection dated 23rd January 2023. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from reoccurring. Administration of Medication: 19. There was no pre-consent sought for administration of a prescribed medication which was observed being administered to a child on the day of inspection. This can pose a risk of continuity of care to a child. This practice was at variance with the Medication Administration Policy of the service. Safe Sleep: 20. The temperature recorded in the sleep room whilst four children aged one were sleeping was 22.5oCelsius. This is in excess of the required sleep temperature of 16 to 20 degrees. This is at variance with the service sleep policy. 21. There was a temperature recording device available in the sleep room however, it had not been plugged in. Staff did not record or take the temperature in the sleep room whilst the children slept. This non-compliance was found on the inspection dated 23rd January 2023. The corrective and preventive actions submitted by the registered provider did not prevent the non-compliance from reoccurring. Fire Safety: 22. During discussions with a staff member regarding the frequency of fire drills the staff member stated they had not completed a fire drill since June 2024. There was no written evidence detailing any fire drills that had taken place since June 2024. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
General Safety: 1. We have instructed all staff to ensure that no more than 5 chairs will be stacked together. Infection Control: 2. We have increased the frequency of sterilisation of all toys and beakers. 3. We have increased the frequency of sterilisation of all toys and beakers. 4. We have reiterated our policy to all our staff and they are now consistently reminded of this on a daily basis. 5. We would accept that our policy was not completely adhered to on the day in question. We believe all children’s hands were washed as they exited the changing room. Whilst we do use disinfectant sprays between changes, we accept the possibility that this may not have occurred on the day in question. We had reiterated to all staff that gloves must be changed after every nappy change. We had reiterated to all staff the correct policy in this regard. We have met all staff once again and reiterated our policies which stress the risks associated with cross contamination and how we should prevent it. All Staff have acknowledged this, and our policy has being updated accordingly. 6. Our previous policy had been drafted by Canavan & Byrne however we now believe this to be inadequate. We have drafted an updated policy. 7. There were hand towels available but the container had run out on the day. These will be monitored every morning going forward. The hand towels in all rooms will be checked every morning and monitored throughout the day. 8. We were not aware that this particular bin was damaged and has since been repaired. The nappy bin is checked every morning and a spare bin is available should damage occur. 9. We were aware that the nappy changing mat in question was defective and a replacement was ordered but only arrived on the day of the inspection. We have ordered a spare mat to always have an alternative available. 10. We accept that the bin was broken and has since been repaired. We had purchased additional bins which are in storage on site should they be required. 11. We have reiterated our policy that this should not occur as it poses a risk of cross contamination. We have reiterated our hand washing policy that this should not occur as it poses a risk of cross contamination. 12. We will run the taps on in the morning to increase the hot water flow. 13. We constantly inform all children that hands much be washed after using the bathroom, but would accept that it is possible that a child may not have. All staff have been advised to be extra vigilant to prevent this. 14. We have performed further training and reiterated that the forms are not to be completed until the inspection has been performed. Spot checks by management are now performed throughout the day. 15. The chair in question is cleaned on a regular basis but has since been deep cleaned and will continue to be on an ongoing basis. The chair in question is now deep cleaned on a daily basis and is now added to the daily cleaning schedule. 16. We have four high chairs that are cleaned throughout the day but staining may occur. The four high chairs are now deep cleaned throughout the day and particularly before meal times. 17. No corrective or preventive actions submitted. 18. The bouncer chair was originally retained as one particular child was particularly attached to it. It is no longer needed and has since been removed. Administration of Medication: 19. The medication supplied to the child in question had been provided by the parent that morning with the instruction to administer the medication in the stated dosages. The consent form should have been pre- signed but the staff member overlooked this on the day. Going forward irrespective of the instruction by a parent, medications will not be administered unless the consent form is complete and signed. Prescribed medication will not be administered to any child without a signed consent form irrespective of the parents verbal instructions. Safe Sleep: 20. The temperature in the cot room was artificially high on the day as the window was closed in error. We will ensure this does recur. The temperature in the cot room is monitored throughout the day and the window is opened if the temperature comes close to the recommended maximum of 20 degrees 21. There are two temperature monitors in the room, one plug in and one battery powered. Whilst one was not plugged in, the battery powered monitor was operational and monitored. Both monitors (plug in & battery powered) are fully operational and checked throughout the day. A record sheet is maintained recording the ongoing temperature. Fire Safety: 22. Fire drills are performed monthly and we presume the staff member was either on holidays or absent on the days of the subsequent drills. Fire drills are performed monthly and the fire safely file is updated accordingly and available for inspection
Regulation 27 — Supervision
At 1.39pm there were four children aged one left unsupervised in the Twinkler room whilst a staff member changed a nappy. At this time, one child had been placed to sleep on some cushions, another child climbed on top of the child and began pinching, scratching and sitting on top of the sleeping child resulting in them crying and waking up. Adequate supervision was not provided by the staff at this time and is at variance with the service policy
Provider's corrective action:
We accept that the staff member should not have stepped out to change a nappy but requested temporary cover for that room. All staff are now aware that they cannot leave a room to change a nappy or for any other reason until adequate cover is available
Regulation 32 — Complaints
A complaint received was not dealt with in accordance with the service complaints policy as follows: • The complaint was not investigated. • The complaint was not resolved to the parents satisfaction. • As the complaint was received in writing, the policy states it should be acknowledged, a time frame is set and the person dealing with the complaint should be stated, there was no evidence that this was completed. • The policy states if staff members were mentioned there should be a meeting where the staff member is informed and a written record of what is being discussed. The registered provider stated they had not informed the staff member of the complaint, and no evidence was gathered
Provider's corrective action:
We have reviewed our complaints policy. We do accept that we fell down on the paperwork element of the compliant and we will learn from this incident