Inspection of 28 April 2026 — Inspection Report
Regulation 19 — Health, welfare and development of child
- (1) (b) 1. A child in the Discoverers 1 room was not given the opportunity to self-feed. A staff member sat beside the child using a spoon to feed the child. When the staff member got up to move away the child took the spoon and began to self-feed. The staff member returned and saw the child eating with the spoon. The staff member returned with another spoon and continued to feed the child. This did not support the child’s autonomy and independence. The HSE recommend encouraging children to self-feed. This promotes independence and teaches life skills
Provider's corrective action:
- Corrective Action 1. This item was added to the staff meeting agenda and discussed with all staff. The importance of promoting children’s independence was highlighted, with emphasis placed on supporting children to develop self-help skills, confidence, and decision-making abilities in line with their age and stage of development. Staff were reminded to provide appropriate opportunities within daily routines for children to complete tasks independently, while still ensuring a safe and supportive environment. Preventive Action 1. Following the staff meeting, all staff members were issued with the Food, Nutrition and Health Promotion Policy and asked to review and sign to confirm that they had read and understood the policy. Management will carry out regular checks to ensure the policy is being followed and implemented consistently
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
- General Safety: 1. See Statutory Notice section in relation to Improvement Notice IN0266 served. 2. There were two door handles observed to be broken and accessible to children. This posed a potential risk of injury. 3. One of the toilet seats in the Active Cubs 2 ECCE sanitary accommodation was observed to be cracked. This posed a risk of injury. 4. Two trailing flexes were observed to be accessible to children. This posed a potential risk of injury. 5. The gate in the outdoor area used by the children from the Discoverers 2 room was observed to be broken with sharp edges and splinters. This posed a potential risk of injury. Infection Control: 6. Perishable snacks brought by the children from home for morning snack time were observed not to be stored in a fridge in a timely manner in the Active Cub 2 room. This increases the risk of causing illness to young children. 7. Children were observed to have their hands and faces wiped with wet hand paper towels before and after dinner in the Discoverers 1 care room. This posed an infection control risk. This practice increases the risk of cross contamination. Children should be facilitated to wash their hands under thermostatically controlled running water, with liquid soap and paper hand towels provided in line with HSPC guidance in relation to infection control protection measures. 8. There was no foot pedal operated bin for the hygienic disposal of waste in the Explorers sanitary accommodation. This posed a risk of cross infection. 9. There was a sticky residue observed on the radiator and an open play shelving. This posed a risk of cross infection. Safe Sleep: 10. The registered provider did not follow Tusla’s “Guidance for the Early Learning and Care sector on sleep provision for children under 24 months”. Evidenced by the following: o Three children under two years of age who were not provided with a mattress with a minimum depth of 6cms to sleep on. It is acknowledged the service had floor beds with 6cm mattresses available. However, the floor beds were not provided to the three children under two years of age. o An individual sleep plan was not available for the three children. Sleep plans should include an assessment of the individual child’s sleep routines and sleep requirements, to be determined and agreed in collaboration with parents/guardians and consideration of the child’s developmental readiness to move from a cot to a floor bed. o In addition, a risk assessment was not available for the same three children, a risk assessment with appropriate consideration of the risks to children under the age of two years sleeping on floor beds, and how these risks would be mitigated should be developed prior to children under two years of age are transitioned from a cot to sleep mat. Fire Safety: 11. One child who was present in the Active Cubs 2 care room was marked absent on the electronic attendance record. All children need to be marked in the attendance book. This posed a risk of safety in the event of any emergency evacuation. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
- General Safety: 1. See Statutory Notice section in relation to Improvement Notice IN0266 served. 2. The maintenance team were contacted, and the door handles was repaired. At the staff meeting management reminded staff of the importance of promptly reporting all maintenance issues and repair jobs to management, using the correct reporting procedures. It was also highlighted that daily risk assessments must be completed as part of the routine and the risk management policy was read and signed off by staff. Management will increase the frequency of routine checks of all rooms and areas within the setting to identify any maintenance issues or potential risks. 3. The maintenance team were contacted, and the toilet seat was repaired. At the staff meeting management reminded staff of the importance of promptly reporting all maintenance issues and repair jobs to management, using the correct reporting procedures. It was also highlighted that daily risk assessments must be completed as part of the routine and the risk management policy was read and signed off by staff. Management will increase the frequency of routine checks of all rooms and areas within the setting to identify any maintenance issues or potential risks. 4. Trailing flexes have been removed or secured to the wall using a cable case. The areas were checked by management. Sensory tubes/lights will not be used unless the wires are secured. A daily safety check is included in the room opening list which ensures there are no trailing wires. All staff have been reminded of the risk of trailing flexes during the staff meeting and this will be included as a standing agenda item in monthly safety discussions. 5. The maintenance team replaced the two outdoor gates. The gates were installed with child-safe latches to ensure they remain secure at all times. A visual check was completed by management to ensure both gates are functioning and pose no risk to children. The daily outdoor safety checklist is to be completed by staff every day. Staff have read and signed off on the risk management policy and have been reminded to make management aware of any risks they are aware of. Any maintenance issues will be logged to the maintenance system and followed up promptly to ensure all outdoor areas remain safe and secure. Infection Control: 6. Staf were immediately reminded that all children’s snacks requiring refrigeration must be placed in the fridge upon arrival to the service. The issue was discussed with the team to ensure understanding of safe food storage requirements. A designated staff member has been assigned responsibility for transferring snacks to the fridge each morning. This was implemented immediately and communicated to all staff. A daily responsibility roster has been introduced, clearly identifying the staff member responsible for ensuring all the snacks are stored in the fridge upon arrival. Regular spot checks will be carried out by management to verify compliance. 7. Staff were reminded at the staff meeting of the importance of promoting children’s independence and self-help skills in accordance with the service’s policies and procedures. Children are now encouraged and supported to wash their own hands using the child level sinks and to clean their faces after mealtimes with cotton wool provided by the staff. Staff have read and signed off on the hand-washing policy. Additional handwashing visual prompts have been displayed throughout the rooms at child level to encourage independence. Regular supervision by the room leader will ensure children are consistently supported to carry out personal tasks. 8. The hand operated bin was removed immediately and replaced with a foot pedal operated bin to minimise the risk of cross-contamination and support effective infection prevention and control practices. Staff were informed of the change and reminded of the requirement to use hands-free waste disposal systems in all nappy changing areas. Staff have been made aware of the requirement to have a hands-free waste disposal system and were reminded that if they notice any waste equipment requiring replacement to report it immediately to management. 9. The sticky residue on the radiator and shelving was removed immediately using appropriate cleaning and disinfecting products. Staff have been reminded of their responsibility to maintain a clean and hygienic environment and to address any residue or cleanliness concerns as soon as they are identified. Cleaning and infection prevention procedures will continue to be discussed during staff meetings and supervisions to support ongoing compliance and reduce the risk of cross infection. Staff were given Infection Control policy to sign off. Safe Sleep: 10. Sleep arrangements for all children were reviewed immediately and children under 2 years of age were provided with suitable floor beds and individual sleep plans completed in partnership with parents in line with safe sleep guidance. Staff were briefed and retrained on the safe sleep policy and the importance of following each child’s individual sleep plan. A visual sleep plan has been displayed in the room, including photographs of each child and their designated sleep space, to ensure consistency among all educators. Beds have been clearly labelled with children’s names and photographs to reduce risk of error. Sleep plans will be reviewed regularly with parents, and sleep practices will be reviewed monthly during staff meetings and in induction training for new staff. Fire Safety: 11. The attendance discrepancy was addressed immediately. Staff received refresher training on the electronic attendance system during the staff meeting, including the correct procedure for amending entries where a child has been incorrectly marked absent by a parent. Staff were reminded of the importance of maintaining accurate attendance records at all times to support children’s safety. Attendance procedures have been reviewed with all staff. A daily attendance check has been introduced that staff will cross-reference the electronic attendance register with the children physically present in the room to identify and correct any discrepancies promptly
Found compliant: Regulation 9, 11, 16, 26, 28.