Health and safety policy

Designated Health and Safety Officer is: Amy Gibson

Health policy

Aim

St Andrews Playgroup is a suitable, clean, and safe place for children to be cared for, where they can grow and learn. They meet all statutory requirements for promoting health and hygiene and fulfil the criteria for meeting the relevant Early Years Foundation Stage Safeguarding and Welfare requirements.

Objectives

We promote health through:

· Ensuring emergency and first aid treatment is given where necessary.

· Ensuring that medicine necessary to maintain health is given correctly and in accordance with legal requirements.

· Identifying allergies and preventing contact with the allergenic substance.

· Having ongoing discussions with parents/carers to develop allergy action plans for managing individual children’s known allergies and intolerances.

· Ensuring that all staff are aware of the symptoms and treatments for allergies and anaphylaxis and that children can develop these at any time, especially during weaning.

· Ensuring that all staff know the difference between allergies and intolerances.

· Identifying food ingredients that contain recognised allergens and displaying this information for parents/carers.

· Identifying and promoting health through taking the necessary steps to prevent the spread of infection and taking appropriate action when children are ill.

· Ensuring that ongoing discussions with parents take place regarding the stage their child is at in relation to eating habits

· Working in partnership with parents to help children to move on to the next stage of using a cup, knife, fork and spoon. To help chew food safely.

· Ensuring that food is prepared for children in a way that prevents choking.

· Ensuring that young children are sat safely in a suitable low sized chair when eating.

· Ensuring that children are always in sight and hearing of a staff member, who is a paediatric first aider, whilst eating and the staff member is sat facing the children.

· Recording all choking incidents that requires intervention.

· Promoting healthy lifestyle choices through diet and exercise.

· Supporting parents right to choose complementary therapies.

· Recognising the benefits of baby and child massage, by parents/carers or staff carrying out massage under conditions that maintain the personal safety of children.

· Pandemic flu planning or illness outbreak management as per DfE and World Health Organisation (WHO) guidance.

Legal references Medicines Act (1968) Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013 (RIDDOR) Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations (2002) Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981 Food Information Regulations 2014 Early Years Foundation Stage 2025

Further guidance Accident Record (Alliance Publication) Allergy action plan

Policies & Procedures for the EYFS 2025/26 (Early Years Alliance 2025)