Safeguarding
The safety and wellbeing of children is important to us all. If you are concerned about any child talk to any member of staff or call our Family Support Team on 0121 777 2722
First Aid Policy
Purpose and scope
This policy explains how Mini Springers Nursery provides prompt, safe and appropriate first aid to children, staff and visitors. It applies on the premises and during outings. It should be read with the Accident and Incident Policy, the Administration of Medicines Policy and individual healthcare plans. Accident notification, reporting and retention are covered by the Accident and Incident Policy and are not repeated here.
First-aid provision and responsibilities
• The manager will complete and review a first-aid needs assessment, taking account of the ages and needs of children, staffing, rooms, outdoor areas and outings.
• At least one person with a current paediatric first-aid certificate will be available whenever children are present and will accompany children on outings, in line with the current Early Years Foundation Stage requirements.
• Staff will know who the qualified first aiders are, where first-aid equipment is kept and how to summon emergency help.
• Only staff who are trained and confident will provide first aid within the limits of their competence. Emergency treatment will not be delayed while consent is sought.
• The manager will ensure that individual healthcare plans and emergency medication are accessible to staff who need them.
Immediate response
1. Make the area safe, assess the person and provide first aid using current training.
2. Call 999 immediately for a life-threatening condition, serious injury, breathing difficulty, unconsciousness, severe allergic reaction, seizure lasting longer than the person’s care plan indicates, or whenever there is doubt about the person’s safety.
3. Do not leave a child unattended. A second member of staff should supervise the other children and contact the manager and parent or carer.
4. Follow the child’s healthcare plan where one is in place. Give prescribed emergency medication only as authorised and trained.
5. After treatment, follow the Accident and Incident Policy for records, parent or carer communication and any required notification.
Choking and use of LifeVac-type devices
Staff will follow the current Resuscitation Council UK paediatric choking sequence. Encourage an effective cough. If the cough becomes ineffective, give up to five back blows, then up to five chest thrusts for an infant or abdominal thrusts for a child over one year. Call 999 using speakerphone where possible and continue the sequence. If the child becomes unresponsive, begin paediatric basic life support without delay. Do not perform blind finger sweeps; remove an object from the mouth only when it is clearly visible and can be reached safely.
A LifeVac device may only be used only by a staff member who has received device-specific training, after established measures have failed, in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and without interrupting emergency care. The person must receive medical assessment after a choking episode or device use. Each use must be reported to the manager, recorded under the Accident and Incident Policy, and the device must be checked and replaced as required.
Removal of splinters
A trained first aider may remove only a small, superficial splinter when its end is clearly visible, it is easy to grasp, the child is settled and the procedure can be completed without digging into the skin. The first aider must wash their hands, wear disposable gloves, clean the area and use clean single-use tweezers or tweezers disinfected in accordance with the setting’s infection-control procedure. Pull the splinter gently in the direction it entered, clean the area again and apply a sterile dressing if needed.
Staff must stop if removal is difficult, painful, causes bleeding, or the child becomes distressed. Do not remove a deep, large, embedded or broken splinter; an object near the eye or in a sensitive area; glass; or any object where there is numbness, significant swelling or uncontrolled bleeding. Protect the area without pressing on the object, contact the parent or carer and seek advice from NHS 111, urgent treatment or 999 according to severity. Parents or carers should be advised to watch for increasing redness, warmth, swelling, discharge, worsening pain or fever and to seek medical advice if these occur.
Infection prevention and hygiene
• Wash hands before and after treatment and wear disposable gloves where contact with blood or body fluids is possible.
• Use sterile, single-use dressings and dispose of contaminated waste safely.
• Clean reusable equipment in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions and the nursery’s infection-control arrangements.
• Cover any staff cuts or broken skin with a waterproof dressing.
First-aid kits and equipment
Clearly identified first-aid kits will be readily available but inaccessible to children. Contents will reflect the nursery’s first-aid needs assessment and will include appropriately sized sterile dressings, plasters, eye pads, triangular bandages and disposable gloves. Medication must not be stored in a general first-aid kit unless required by an individual healthcare plan. A named member of staff will check each kit at least monthly and before outings, replace used or expired items and record the check. Any LifeVac-type device will be stored visibly with its instructions, age-appropriate masks and expiry or integrity checks.
Medicines and clinical limitations
First aiders will not diagnose illness, prescribe treatment or give non-prescribed medication. Emergency medication and prescribed medicines will be administered only in accordance with the Administration of Medicines Policy, written permissions, the child’s healthcare plan and staff training. Staff will not attempt invasive procedures or treatment beyond their competence.
Outings and emergency access
The outing risk assessment will identify first-aid cover, a suitably stocked portable kit, emergency medication, children’s essential medical information, charged means of communication and how emergency services will access the location. Staff will maintain appropriate supervision while one adult gives first aid.
Training, checks and review
Paediatric first-aid qualifications will be renewed within the required period, and staff will receive regular practical refreshers on choking, CPR, anaphylaxis, bleeding, seizures and nursery emergency arrangements. Device-specific training is required before use of any LifeVac-type device. Following any significant first-aid event, the manager will review the response, equipment and risk controls and arrange support or additional training where needed.
Policy owner: Nursery Manager
Adopted: September 2026
Review date: September 2027, or sooner if guidance, equipment or nursery arrangements change.
