Accident & Incident Policy & Procedure

Every possible care will be taken to keep your child safe and well, however accidents and incidents do happen and in this instance, we will follow the procedures below. Procedure The member of staff witnessing the accident or incident, including choking, will support the child. A first aider will be asked to attend if necessary. The child will be comforted and attended to medically with sensitivity. Gloves will be work when attending to cuts or bodily fluids. Children will be monitored as appropriate after an accident. The accident/incident will be recorded on a form, dated, and preferably signed by staff member who dealt with the accident or another informed staff member. The accident or incident form will be shared with the parent/carer at collection time, and they will be required to sign the form, upon collection of the child, where possible or as soon as possible The original form must be retained securely on site and in accordance with GDPR regulations but can be shared by Tapestry if a parent requests this or if staff feel it is necessary. If an accident is deemed significant by a first aider or the child remains distressed, we will call their parent for assessment by them or for collection. Staff should inform the administrator of any items that need topping up from the first aid box. Head Injury Procedure Any child with a head injury will be attended to and monitored closely by a first aider, checked at regular intervals and this will be noted on the accident form. We will inform parents by Tapestry as soon as possible after the injury occurs and upload a copy of the accident form and head injury advice at the same time. If the injury is significant, we will phone parents or carers and may advise them to come and check on or collect their child for monitoring at home or further assessment by a medical professional. Staff should inform the administrator of any items that need topping up from the first aid box. Further Measures and Injuries Outside The Setting 68 WHYTEBEAMS NURSERY Protective gloves are supplied and will be worn by staff when cleaning wounds, and when dealing with blood and bodily waste. Significant incidents including choking will be recorded in the incident book, dated, signed, and witnessed. The manager or deputy should be informed. Significant incidents will be reviewed and any relevant actions will be implemented. Staff holding paediatric first aid certificates have up to date training, and there are always at least two qualified first aiders with up-to-date training on site. All staff are informed and updated about first aid procedures and policy. Should a child come to nursery with an injury which has occurred outside the setting or the child had attended A&E or been admitted to hospital, parents will be required to inform staff and complete a notification of injury form, as part of our safeguarding policy. If an accident occurs here which requires a child or adult to be taken to hospital, we will inform OFSTED and Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) if required. We will then carry out and record a full risk assessment. The First Aid box will be stocked appropriately, comply with the current advice and checked termly with particular attention to ‘use by’ dates. Staff should report items needed to the administrator and inform the manager of any urgent items. DEALING WITH CRITICAL INCIDENTS Should there be an incident deemed as ‘critical’ by the manager or deputy, all staff will endeavour to keep children safe and calm whilst we prepare to evacuate or implement emergency closure in accordance with our procedures. All staff are aware that emergency contact details for both staff and children can be found in the register as well as information about local agencies that may assist a critical incident. If contact information cannot be accessed on site, an emergency contact list is held at a secure location by the nursery administrator. In the event of a critical incident the following considerations will be made. Do Ofsted need to be notified? Identify who will need to be contacted: staff, parents. Do we need to advise the wider community? Do we need to contact our Early Years Foundation Stage Advisor for advice? Do we need to notify our insurance company?