CYP – Core 3.4 – Support Children & Young People’s Health and Safety
Understand how to plan and provide environments and services that support children and young people’s health and safety
Describe the factors to take into account when planning healthy and safe indoor and outdoor environments and services The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 covers many health and safety legislations in England and Wales. These include, RIDDOR, COSHH, First Aid, Fire Regulations etc. All of these legislations need to be understood and adhered to when planning any activities.
I would ensure that that the participants age, needs and abilities are taken into consideration. These could be specific to one person, eg. pregnancy, sensory impairments, or specific to the group as a whole. Needs of carers would also need to be taken into consideration, for example, extra seating. If a disabled child was present, their individual needs would also need to be taken into consideration. These could be extra space required to accessibility, extra lighting if visually impaired.
We all have a duty of care, and I would ensure that children, carers and others were made aware of the fire evacuation procedures if they were not familiar with the surroundings.
Any physical hazards would need to be removed to eliminate potential risks. For example, trailing leads, ensuring that fire exits are clear at all times. I would ensure that any equipment that was to be used was in safe and good working condition before the activity started.
I would ensure that the space to be occupied was large enough to occupy the number of participants and also ensure that sufficient light was provided. Harsh lighting could become uncomfortable after a long period of time. I would also ensure that the area was not too noisy or too dark, as this could also have a health effect on the children. The space and height of desks/work area would need to be checked to ensure that it was suitable for the task to be carried out.
If the activity was to take place outside, I would ensure that the security of the area was sufficient. I would also check to ensure that there was not any debris, eg. litter, glass, animal mess, if there was, I would ensure that it was cleared away appropriately.
I would ensure that the children were made aware of how to use any equipment safely that was provided.
Explain how Health and Safety is monitored and maintained and how people in the work setting are made aware of risks and hazards and encouraged to work safely
Health and safety can be monitored in various ways. At St. Mary’s school the governors have overall responsibility for the health and safety function determining the policy. They are responsible for ensuring that all statutory requirements are adhered to, and will review the policy continually. Statutory requirements can cover a multitude of services, for instance, legionella testing, electrical testing, fire evacuation procedures and fire extinguisher testing. The head teacher and staff oversee the day to day management of the health and safety policy. The head teacher will ensure that an annual risk assessment of the whole school is carried out, and updated/reviewed once a term. If during an inspection risks or hazards are identified, immediate and effective steps would be taken to rectify the situation. They will also ensure that all statutory registers and records are accurately kept, for instance PAT testing. The head teacher will also ensure that all staff are adequately trained and fully aware of any hazards in their work.
Staff are encouraged to work safely by making themselves familiar with and conform to the school’s health and safety policy. They should make themselves aware of any hazards associated with their work and ensure that they are familiar with emergency procedures. All accidents, damages, hazards and defects must be reported to the head teacher to ensure that...
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