Health and Safety in Child Care Settings - EYFS

Running head: EYFS
EYFS
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

EYFS
1
Health and safety in child care settings
The legislative framework for health, safety and risk management in child care settings
The ministry of Interior (MoI) had established a higher committee for protection of
child in the year 2009 and the have also established a child protection centre for the
development, implementation and customisation of the initiatives and the processes aiming at
the provision of safety, security and protection for each and every children residing in UAE1.
Some of important legislation related to school safety are banning of the corporal
punishments or behaviours that are contrary to the traditions and customs of UAE. There are
rules of conduct for the educators, such that the obligations and the rights of the teachers are
preserved in both the private and the public school curriculum2. Several initiatives has been
adopted across the country for ensuring a safe transportation for the students for example
banning of the minibuses for the school children1. The UAE’s Supreme Council for
Motherhood & Childhood in collaboration with the UNICEF, Ministry of Education and
Department of Education and Knowledge had launched a guide for the parents against anti-
bullying for stopping the incidents of bullying in the UAE schools1.
An important law is the RIDDOR, hat requires the staffs and the other people to keep
a record of any accidents in the centre, diagnosed cases of certain communicable diseases.
The Health and Safety at Work Act of 1974 imposes duty on the staffs to maintain health and
safety of the employees at school1.
1 UAE, government, 2017.Children’s Safety. Access date: 17.8.2019. Retrieved from:
https://government.ae/en/information-and-services/justice-safety-and-the-law/children-safety
2 ROSPA, 2017.Managing Safety In Schools & Colleges. Access date: 17.8.2019. Retrieved from:
https://www.rospa.com/rospaweb/docs/advice-services/school-college-safety/managing-safety-schools-
colleges.pdf

EYFS
2
Analyse how policies, procedures and practices in own setting meet health,
safety and risk management requirements
The childcare setting where I work as an educator, follow an organisational protocol for
conducting regular risk assessment.
Risk assessment and management
The initial step followed at my workplace is, the identification of the possible hazards that
might be found at the workplace2. The main hazards that are looked upon are edges of the
toys and equipment, the chemical hazards, like the cleaning materials and disinfectants,
biological hazards like airborne and blood borne infections, unattended children,
administration of proper drugs and medications2. The next step is the adoption of the control
measures for reducing the risks, such as finding out who are at risks and the control measures
needed. It is ensured that the outside gates are always locked, there are no loose cables, and
there are no loose pebbles on the outdoor play area, where the child might trip and fall.
Sufficient spaces are allotted for games. In order to avoid sunburn, the parents have been
instructed to send sun hats. The carers put sunscreen on children, before taking them out in
the sun2.
In the concerned childcare setting the main responsibility of the employee is to
provide the right level of supervision, identifying and removing or minimising the hazards,
regular checking of the stocks of the first aid box, keeping open communication with the
parents regarding information about any injuries or accidents3. Written records are kept for
any incidents occurring. The staffs should have adequate knowledge about the evacuation
plan in the child care setting during any adverse events like fire. The kitchen surface should
be kept clean and disinfected. The towels and dishcloths needs to change every day. The
rubbish bins needs to be cleared regularly4. The medicines and the disinfectants should be
labelled properly and should be kept out of reach from the children.
3 Maalouf, J., Evers, S.C., Griffin, M. and Lyn, R., 2013. Assessment of calssroom environments and nutrition
practices in child care centers in Georgia. Childhood obesity, 9(5), pp.437-445.
4 Dahab, A.A., Elhag, D.E.A., Ahmed, A.B. and Al-Obaid, H.A., 2016. Determination of elemental toxicity
migration limits, bioaccessibility and risk assessment of essential childcare products. Environmental Science
and Pollution Research, 23(4), pp.3406-3413.