A Comprehensive Guide to Nursery Safety and Security

Every business in every sector knows how important health and safety is. However, never is health, safety, and security more in the spotlight than when it comes to childcare.

Published on March 19, 2024

As a parent your main job is to keep your child safe and secure. We recognise that. We also understand that as nursery and childcare providers, our job is to take a hold of that responsibility every time you leave your child in our care.

Through the provision of safe environments and enjoyable activities, we take our responsibility incredibly seriously – and have pulled together this guide to nursery safety and security to really draw attention to the things we do to keep every child safe and well cared for.

What are the security requirements for nursery providers?

In order to operate in the UK, a nursery needs to have a thorough understanding of its safety and security requirements – including potential challenges and risks that they may need to overcome.

Slips and trips, as well as falls, bumps, and other minor injuries are all considered fairly common risks that nurseries need to be able to manage and mitigate. It is also crucial for nurseries to put in place steps to protect children from electrical hazards, from hazardous materials including cleaning equipment, and from other risks that should be outlined in a thorough assessment.

But it’s not just children’s safety that needs to be considered. Here at My Ohana, we wouldn’t be able to offer the service we do without our extraordinary individuals and teams members – all of whom are equally protected by our inhouse policies which cover manual handling, lifting, PAT testing of all equipment, and more.

Meanwhile from a security perspective, nurseries need to follow certain procedures with regards to pick up and drop off, and need to have thorough contact lists to ensure that every child is being picked up by an authorised individual and looked after properly when they leave the nursery premises. You can find out more about our nursery pick up and drop off protocol on our website, alongside the fire safety policy, safeguarding policy, and more – all listed in our FAQs.

What are the safety rules at My Ohana nursery?

So, what steps do we take to keep children safe and secure in each My Ohana nursery?

Some of the main areas that we focus on through our safety policies include:

· Fire safety

· Visitor policy

· Pick up and drop off arrangements

· Accidents and injuries

· Safeguarding

· Days out / enhanced security when off site

We operate several different security systems based on the location and reserve the right to refuse to send a child home with someone who is not listed on the approved pick up list.

In addition to this, we always ensure that we have the appropriate number of staff members to adequately care for each and every child and deliver regular training to each My Ohana team member to stay ahead of safety and security concerns.

How do I know my child is safe?

Good communication between the nursery and each parent is one of the most important features of the My Ohana experience – and is why we use the ParentZone app which enables us to upload small achievements and notable moments from your child’s day, for you to browse and enjoy at your leisure. These include meal times, naps, and achievements, as well as accidents and incidents.

In addition to this remote check in function that all parents can access, parents are invited to talk to their child’s keyworker at any time or can request a chat with the setting manager to find out more about a specific nursery activity or area that they are concerned with.

For us, a huge part of our responsibility lies in giving parents the peace of mind they need to leave their child, safe in the knowledge that they are being well cared for.

But it doesn’t end there.

Because as well as being safe and secure, children need to enjoy the freedom to be creative, to explore, and to get to know the world around them. These are all areas that we excel in through our child-led programme and our plethora of indoor and outdoor activities, as well as our balanced approach to self-expression, education, and the formation of life skills.

Want to find out more about the My Ohana nursery set-up and our safety features?

Here at My Ohana, transparency underpins each of our policies, with our team always happy to talk parents through the ins and outs of our safety procedures, activities, and more.

If you want to learn more about My Ohana or have questions for the team about specific policies and safety regulations, then don’t hesitate to get in touch directly.