Nursery safety checks records

At The University of Dundee Nursery Ltd we make sure the nursery is a safe environment for children, parents, staff, and visitors by carrying out safety checks on a regular basis in accordance with the timescales set out in the nursery checklists. These include daily checks of the premises, indoors and outdoors, and all equipment and resources before the children access any of the areas. The checks are recorded to show any issues and solutions.  

This policy should be read in conjunction with the fire safety, risk assessments, visits and outings and the equipment and resources policies.

All staff should be aware of potential hazards in the nursery environment and always monitors safety.

Risk assessments

Risk assessments document the hazard, who could be harmed, existing controls, the seriousness of the risk/injury, any further action needed to control the risk, who is responsible for what action, when/how often will the action be undertaken, and how will this be monitored and checked and by whom.

The nursery carries out written risk assessments at least annually. These are regularly reviewed and cover potential risks to children, staff and visitors at the nursery. When circumstances change in the nursery, e.g. a significant piece of equipment is introduced; we review our current risk assessment or conduct a new risk assessment dependent on the nature of this change.

All staff are trained in the risk assessment process to ensure understanding and compliance.

All outings away from the nursery are individually risk assessed. For more details refer to the visits and outings policy.

Electrical equipment

• All electrical cables are kept out of the reach of children wherever possible and shielded by furniture where they need to be at floor level
• Electrical sockets are all risk assessed and any appropriate safety measures are in place to ensure the safety of the children.
• PAT testing is undertaken regularly and is arranged in line with Dundee University Health and Safety Team requirements

Dangerous substances

All dangerous substances including chemicals MUST be kept in locked areas out of children’s reach. All substances must be kept in their original containers with their original labels attached. Safety Data Sheets (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH)) and risk assessments must be kept for all substances and the appropriate personal protection taken e.g. gloves, apron and goggles.

Hot drinks and food

Hot drinks must only be consumed in the staff room. No canned drinks, sweets or crisps are to be kept or consumed in the nursery rooms.

Transport and outings

The nursery has a comprehensive documented policy relating to outings, which incorporates all aspects of health and safety procedures including the arrangements for transporting and the supervision of children when away from the nursery.

Room temperatures

• Staff should be aware of room temperatures in the nursery and should ensure at all times that they are suitable. There is a thermometer in each room to ensure this is monitored
• Staff must always be aware of the dangers of babies and young children being too warm or too cold
• Temperatures should not fall below 18°C in the baby rooms and 16°C in all other areas
• Where fans are being used to cool rooms, great care must be taken with regard to their positioning.

Water supplies

• A fresh drinking supply is available and accessible to all children, staff and visitors
• All hot water taps accessible to children are thermostatically controlled to ensure that the temperature of the water does not exceed 40°C.

Gas appliances

There are no gas appliances in the nurseries

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