(d) See Statutory Notice section in relation to Improvement Notice 0268 served
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. The outdoor play area contained damaged items which posed potential risks to children’s safety. This included: o Broken spindle on railing on back wall of outdoor play area. o Broken square bracket mount on back wall which posed a pinch risk. o Worn and flaking exterior paintwork on the wall of outdoor play area. On the morning of inspection, a young child was observed to be playing in the area. 2. The sanitary basin designated for children washing their hands in a care room was found to be defective. Consequently, on the day of inspection children did not wash their hands in line with HSPC guidance in relation to infection control protection measures. It is acknowledged that this issue was highlighted in the daily risk assessment carried out by the service. Infection Control: 3. Hand washing was observed to be at variance with the service hand-washing policy and was not in line with best practice. This was evidenced by the following: o Children not washing their hands after outdoor play and before mealtimes o Pedal operated foot bins not being used effectively to ensure hygiene disposal of paper towels. This posed a risk of infection and cross contamination. Action submitted by the Registered Provider
Provider's corrective action:
General Safety: 1. Maintenance has taken place in outdoor play area-the broken spindle and the square bracket mount have been repaired, and painting work has been carried out by maintenance. 2. Children were directed to use an alternative sink outside of the classroom and staff in all care rooms were briefed on communicating risks identified when carrying out risk assessments with the manager. Infection Control: 3. Staff were briefed on the service’s infection control policy and the alternative options for handwashing in the instance of their main option not being in operation. This item was on the agenda in staff meeting to ensure that staff are aware of the back-up plan when issues arise for infection control and how to communicate risks to management
Found compliant: Regulation 11, 19, 25, 26.
Inspection of 24 November 2023 — Inspection Report
(4) There was not sufficient evidence to show that one adult working directly with the children held at least a major award in Early childhood Care and Education at Level 5 on the National Qualifications Framework or a qualification deemed by the Minister to be equivalent
Provider's corrective action:
Corrective Action The registered provider has stated that the DCEDIY Letter was applied for that same day. Preventive Action The registered provider has stated that they will ensure that DCEDIY letters are available before the staff member starts if applicable
Regulation 19 — Health, welfare and development of child
(1)(a) On the day of the inspection, it was observed that one child’s basic needs were not met. Example as follows. • At 10.46am it was observed by the inspector in one of the care rooms that the front of the child’s jumper was visibly wet with a large damp patch. The child was not at a stage where they could remove the jumper themselves. At 11.41am when a staff member removed the child’s jumper before sleep time the inspector noticed that the top under the jumper was also visibly wet. The underneath top was not changed before sleep time. Wet clothes can cause a child to feel discomfort
Provider's corrective action:
The registered provider has stated that all children’s clothes will be checked for signs of wetness before being placed down to sleep. At the staff retraining management discussed the importance of staff being vigilant for spillages, signs of wetness and for staff to always check children before sleep for damp clothing
Regulation 23 — Safeguarding health, safety and welfare of child
General Safety: 1. There was a wooden garden kitchen unit in the outdoor area. The wood had separated causing it to splinter and presented a risk of injury to children. Infection Control: On the day of the inspection the following was observed which poses a risk of cross infection. 2. There was a soiled cushion in the toddler room with no cover. 3. Three nappy changing procedures were observed and were not completed as per the service policy and best practice guidelines, for example: • One staff member did not wash their hands between two nappy changing procedures. • Three children did not have their hands washed after nappy changing procedures. 4. There were not the correct systems in place to support hygienic hand washing. Examples as follows: • There was no hand soap available in preschool 2 room and the upstairs sanitary accommodation at 10.42am. In addition, the sanitary accommodation hand wash basins did not have warm running water. • Thermostatically controlled water was not available in the sink of two of the downstairs rooms to ensure that hot water is no hotter than the recommended 43℃. Water temperatures were recorded at 46℃ in the changing bay at 1.17pm and at 46.7℃ in the wobbler room at 1.34pm. It is acknowledged that water temperatures in the two downstairs rooms had increased in the afternoon after the early years’ inspector informed the person in charge that there was no warm water in the upstairs sanitary accommodation. However, the temperature of the changing bay was recorded at 45℃ in the morning above the recommended 43℃. It is also acknowledged that the soap dispensers which had not been working at 10.42am had the batteries replaced and were working at 11.32am. Safe Sleep: 5. Bed linen was observed to be stored on the individual beds which were stacked one on top of the other at 10.38am. Staff informed the inspector that bed sheets are washed weekly. The inspector observed that two beds in use were not labelled with children’s names for identification purposes. In addition, bed linen was not individually stored and labelled. This poses a risk of cross infection. Action submitted by the Registered Provider General Safety: Corrective Action (1) The registered provider has stated that the outdoor kitchen was removed and disposed of on the same day. Preventive Action (1) The registered provider has stated that the service will ensure staff know the importance of reporting maintenance issues to management. Infection Control: Corrective Action (2) The registered provider has stated that the soiled cushion was removed the same day after the inspection. Preventive Action (2) Management has advised that the service will ensure soiled items are removed immediately for washing
Provider's corrective action:
s (3) The registered provider has stated that re-training on the correct nappy changing procedures was completed with all staff. Staff retraining involved management demonstrating the correct nappy changing procedures to be followed and all staff reading and signing off that they have read and understood the service’s Nappy Changing Policy. Corrective Action (4) Soap dispensers which had not been working had the batteries replaced on the day of inspection. The service had a plumber in as a precaution who checked all taps and thermostatically controlled them. Staff have been retrained to use the system and the timer for water and heat as management noticed on the day of inspection that the system had not been used correctly by staff and felt this may have been the issue. Staff have been checking the temperatures and they haven’t risen above the 43 degrees since using the timer correctly. Preventive Action (4) The registered provider has stated that the service has added ‘check batteries in soap dispensers’ to their daily risk assessment. Staff will measure water temperatures and will report any discrepancies to management. Safe Sleep: Corrective Action (5) The registered provider has stated beds have been labelled with individual children’s names. The registered provider has stated that the service has also reviewed their storage of linen and it is now stored individually and labelled. Preventive Action (5) Staff retraining covering the importance of checking daily that individual bed labels have not come off and that bed linen is to be individually stored with children’s names