Critical Incident & Lockdown Policy at Mulberry Garden
We plan for all eventualities to ensure the health, safety and welfare of the children in our care. Our critical incident and lockdown policy ensures Mulberry Garden is able to operate effectively in the case of a critical incident. These include:
● Flood
● Fire
● Burglary
● Abduction or threatened abduction of a child
● Bomb threat/terrorism attack
● National outbreaks of infection/health pandemics
● Any other incident that may affect the care of the children at Mulberry Garden.
If any of these incidents impact Mulberry Garden’s ability to operate, we will contact parents via email at the earliest opportunity, e.g. before the start of the nursery day.
Flood
Mulberry Garden cannot anticipate flooding from adverse weather beyond a measured response to national and local weather warnings. We ensure our water and heating systems are regularly maintained to reduce the possibility of flooding. Our central heating systems are serviced annually by a registered gas engineer and conform to appropriate legislation.
If flooding occurs during the nursery day, the manager will make a decision based on the severity and location of this flooding, and it may be deemed necessary to follow the same procedure as the fire evacuation procedure. In this instance children will be kept safe and parents will be notified.
Fire
Please refer to the fire safety and emergency evacuation policy.
Burglary
Mulberry Garden has a lock up procedure which ensures all doors and windows are closed and locked before vacating the premises. Alarm systems are used and in operation Mulberry Garden is closed. Staff check the premises as they arrive each morning. Should they discover that Mulberry Garden has been broken into they will follow the procedure below:
● In an emergency dial 999 or non-emergency dial 101.
● Contain the area to ensure no-one enters until the police arrive.
● Where it is safe to do so, the staff will direct parents and children to a separate area as they arrive. If all areas have been disturbed staff will follow police advice. This may include temporary short term closure.
● The manager will help the police with enquiries.
● Staff will be available to speak to parents, reassure children and direct enquiries.
● The manager will assess the situation following a theft and ensure parents are kept up to date with developments relating to the operation of Mulberry Garden.
● Arrangements will be made to ensure Mulberry Garden is made safe and secure.
Abduction, threatened abduction or missing child
Mulberry Garden has secure safety procedures in place to ensure children are safe whilst in our care; children do not leave the premises unsupervised, and unauthorised persons do not enter the premises. Staff are vigilant and report any persons lingering on Mulberry Garden property immediately. All doors and gates to Mulberry Garden have high handles, have locks and cannot be accessed unless staff members allow individuals entry. Parents are reminded on a regular basis not to allow anyone into the building whether they are known to them or not. Mulberry Garden has visual reminders about closing the door behind them to prevent another person accessing entry. We use signing in-out registers so we know which children are present, the time they have been dropped off, picked up and by whom. Visitors are signed into the visitors’ book so that Mulberry Garden has a record of who has visited the premises and when.
Children are released into the care of a designated adult. Any parent authorising the collection of their child by another adult must inform Mulberry Garden in advance and give the adult an agreed password. Parents must inform Mulberry Garden of any custody proceedings or family concerns as soon as they arise so that Mulberry Garden is able to support the child. Mulberry Garden will remain impartial in relation to any custody arrangements. If an absent parent arrives to collect their child, Mulberry Garden will not restrict access unless a court order is in place. Parents should give Mulberry Garden a copy of relevant documents if they are in place. Mulberry Garden will seek legal advice with regards to any concerns over custody and relay any information back to the parties involved.
If a member of staff witnesses an actual or potential abduction from Mulberry Garden, or believes a child is missing, the following procedures are followed:
● The manager and staff will be informed immediately.
● Staff will be deployed to start an immediate thorough search of the nursery, followed by a search of the surrounding area.
● Mulberry Garden will call the police immediately if they believe the child is missing and follow police guidance.
● The parent(s) will be contacted.
● Staff will supply a recent photograph and a detailed description of clothing to support the search.
● All other children will be kept safe, secure and reassured.
● Any incidents will be recorded in writing.
● If the child is not found, Mulberry Garden will follow B&NES and police procedure.
● With incidents of this nature parents, carers, children and staff may require support and reassurance. Mulberry Garden will provide this or seek further support where necessary.
● Staff will not speak to any media representatives.
● Post-incident risk assessments will be conducted following an incident to reduce the chance of recurrence.
Missing child on an outing
We take all reasonable steps to ensure children are kept safe while on outings by carrying out thorough risk assessments in order to first identify any risks, then take steps to remove, minimise and manage such risks.
Adult to child ratios will be above the minimum statutory requirement and regular head counts of children will be taken throughout any outing or visit. Children’s emergency contact details are always taken on trips.
In the event of a missing child whilst on an outing we will follow the same procedures as those listed above for a missing or abducted child from Mulberry Garden premises. In addition to this we will:
● Inform on-site security.
● The trip leader will inform Mulberry Gardens who will contact the child’s parents.
● The trip leader will ensure there are adequate staff to care for the children and return them to Mulberry Garden while a member of staff will meet with police and continue the search (this may mean contacting relief staff).
Bomb threat/terrorism attack
If a bomb threat is received at Mulberry Garden, the person taking the call will record all details and contact emergency services immediately. The manager will follow the fire evacuation procedure and guidance from the emergency services to ensure the safety of all on the premises. If there is an incident outside Mulberry Garden premises and it is safer to stay inside the building, a lockdown procedure will be put into place.
National outbreaks of infection/Health Pandemics
In the event of a national outbreak of a health pandemic, Mulberry Garden will follow government health advice and guidance, legal advice and advice from our insurance provider. Mulberry Garden will remain open as long as there are sufficient staff to care for the children. Depending on the nature of the pandemic we will implement measures to ensure that risks to vulnerable children and staff are minimised. This may include excluding infected children/staff/parents or family members from the setting for a set period of time, to prevent the spread of infection. This decision will be done in consultation with parents, staff, legal advice and our insurance provider. Each case will be reviewed on an individual basis.
Lockdown procedure
Mulberry Garden will use a lockdown procedure when the safety of the children, staff and others on the premises are under threat and the risk by remaining inside the building, with doors and windows locked and blinds/curtains drawn. Mulberry Garden will activate lockdown procedure in response to the following:
● A report of an incident or disturbance in the local community, with the potential to pose a risk to staff and children at Mulberry Garden.
● An intruder on site.
● A warning being received regarding a local risk of air pollution, e.g. smoke, gas cloud etc
● A major fire or explosion in the vicinity of Mulberry Garden, if it is safer staying inside the premises.
Staff will be notified by the activation of a bell. Staff and children will remain in their current area, if safe to do so. If children are outside, staff will take them into the building. Staff will make efforts to lock doors, close windows and pull down blinds, wherever safe to do so. Staff and children will keep away from the windows and doors and children will be occupied in the centre of the room so they are not placed at risk or are able to see any situation developing outside.
The manager will ensure all children, staff and visitors are accounted for and safe. If Mulberry Garden is in immediate danger of an intruder, the police will be called. In cases where the situation has been alerted by the police or B&NES then Mulberry Garden will await further instructions. Once the all clear has been given staff will return to normal practice to minimise disruption for the children. Parents will be informed about the situation at the earliest opportunity and kept updated.
Mulberry Garden will notify Ofsted in the event of any critical incident. A post-incident evaluation will be conducted to ensure the procedure went as planned.