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Illness and Accident Policy

 

At The Man In The Moon, we will deal promptly and effectively with any illnesses or injuries that occur while children are in our care. We take all practical steps to keep crew members and children safe from communicable diseases.

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All parents/carers must complete the Care and Permission Form when their child joins, requesting permission for emergency medical treatment for their child in the event of a serious accident or illness.

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We will record any accidents or illnesses, together with any treatment given, on an Incident Log or Accident Record as appropriate, which the parent/carer will be asked to sign when they collect the child.

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The Man In The Moon cannot accept children who are ill. If any children are ill when they first arrive, we will immediately notify their parents/carers to come and collect them. Any children who have been ill should not return until they have fully recovered, or after the minimum exclusion period has expired. For guidance on exclusion periods, we will refer to UK Health Security Agency guidance: Health protection in children and young people settings, including education.

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First aid

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Our designated First Aiders are Paul Branch and Sheila Laughton. The designated First Aider has a current first aid certificate and has attended a 12-hour paediatric first aid course, which complies with the requirements of Annex A of the EYFS. First aid training will be renewed every three years. To ensure that there is a qualified first aider present and available at all times when our activities are running, other crew members will also receive first aid training. We will take into account the number of children and the layout of the premises to ensure that first aiders are able to respond quickly to any incident.

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The location of the first aid box is known to all crew members. The designated First Aider regularly checks the contents of the first aid box to ensure that they are up to date, appropriate for children and comply with the Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981.

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We will ensure that a first aid kit is taken on all outings and that at least one crew member on the outing holds a current paediatric first aid certificate.

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Procedure for a minor injury or illness

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The first aider at the session will decide upon the appropriate action to take if a child becomes ill or suffers a minor injury.

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  • If a child becomes ill during a session, the parent/carer will be asked to collect the child as soon as possible. The child will be kept comfortable and will be closely supervised while awaiting collection.

  • If a child complains of an illness which does not impair their overall well-being, the child will be monitored for the rest of the session and the parent/carer will be notified when the child is collected.

  • If a child suffers a minor injury, first aid will be administered and the child will be monitored for the remainder of the session. If necessary, the child's parent/carer will be asked to collect the child as soon as possible.

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Procedure for a major injury or serious illness

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In the event of a child becoming seriously ill or suffering a major injury, the first aider at the session will decide whether the child needs to go straight to the hospital or whether it is safe to wait for their parent/carer to arrive.

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  • If the child needs to go straight to the hospital, we will call an ambulance and a crew member will go to the hospital with the child. The crew member will take the child's Care and Permission Form with them and will consent to any necessary treatment (as approved by the parents/carers on the Care and Permission Form).

  • We will contact the child's parents/carers with all urgency, and if they are unavailable we will call the other emergency contacts that we have on record for the child.

  • After a major incident, we will review the events and consider whether any changes need to be made to our policies or procedures.

  • We will notify Ofsted and child protection agencies in the event of any serious accident or injury to a child in our care as soon as reasonably possible and within 14 days at the latest.

  • We will notify HSE under RIDDOR in the case of death or major injury on the premises (e.g. broken limb, amputation, dislocation, etc. -see the HSE website for a full list of reportable injuries).

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Communicable diseases and conditions

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If a case of head lice is found, the child's parents/carers will be discreetly informed when they collect the child. Other parents will be warned to check their own children for head lice, but care will be taken not to identify the child affected.

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If an infectious or communicable disease is detected on our premises, we will inform parents and carers as soon as possible.

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If there is an incident of food poisoning affecting two or more children we will inform Ofsted as soon as possible and within 14 days at the latest.

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If there is an outbreak of a notifiable disease, we will inform the local health protection team, HSE under RIDDOR (if appropriate), and Ofsted.

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Useful contacts

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Health Protection Team: 0344 255 3861

Ofsted: 0300 123 1231

RIDDOR Incident Contact Unit: 0845 300 99 23

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Related policies: Medicine Administration and Risk Assessment.

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​Reviewed: 10 May 2022

Review Period: 24 months​

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