As parents, the safety and wellbeing of your children is your top priority and it’s ours too. Providing a safe, nurturing environment for children in our nurseries is our core mission. The recent BBC documentary ‘How Safe Are Our Nurseries’, following the heartbreaking loss of Genevieve Meehan, sparked important discussions within the early years sector about whether enough is being done to protect our youngest children. At Acorn, we’re constantly reviewing and improving our practices to ensure your child’s safety is always at the heart of everything we do. In this blog we focus on how we support children through our health and safety processes, as well as safeguarding.

Embedding Safety Through Practice

To ensure the safety and wellbeing of all children, we follow the latest legislation and best practice guidelines. This means that every decision we make, from the environment we create to the care we provide, is carefully thought out to keep children safe and secure. 

Safety in our nurseries isn’t just about physical space or equipment. It’s also about emotional wellbeing, strong relationships, and 

thoughtful daily routines. We want every child to feel safe, valued, and ready to grow.

Recruitment and Vetting

The staff we hire play a key role in keeping your child safe. We take the time to recruit people who are not only skilled and experienced but also passionate about providing the best care. We use value-based interview techniques to help us find candidates who are the right fit for our ethos and care approach, and ensure that they all have a thorough induction about our expectations and high standards.

At Acorn, we also make sure our staff receive ongoing training so they fully understand how the latest safeguarding and health and safety legislation supports their work and your child’s development.

Safeguarding Children  

Every person working in our nursery has a responsibility to safeguard your child. This means protecting them from harm, promoting their wellbeing, and supporting you as parents in meeting their needs. We provide regular, up-to-date safeguarding training to all staff,

volunteers, and students so they are well-equipped to ensure your child’s safety.

We also have a strong culture of care, curiosity, and action, which encourages our team to speak up if they ever have concerns.

  Our ‘Speak Up’ policy ensures that staff feel supported and empowered to raise any issues in a safe, constructive way.

With 17 nurseries, we have a central team who conduct regular monitoring visits to ensure that our high standards are consistently met across every setting.

Use of CCTV    

There’s been a lot of discussion about the use of CCTV in nurseries. While CCTV can sometimes be seen as a tool to deter inappropriate behaviour, we believe it’s not always the most effective solution. Instead, we focus on creating an open and supportive environment where staff work in pairs or teams and only ever work alone when supporting a child’s individual needs but are always insight and hearing of other staff. This ensures that practices are regularly observed, and any concerns can be raised immediately.

In a few places, such as sensory rooms, where one-to-one care may take place, we use CCTV as an additional safeguarding measure but this is only used when one-to-one support is needed to meet a child’s specific needs. Across the rest of the nursery buildings, staff always work within a team to ensure that no-one is in a position of lone working with a child or children.

Health and Wellbeing

A child’s health and wellbeing is at the heart of everything we do. We make sure that good hygiene routines are followed, and that all interactions between staff and children are supportive and nurturing.

At Acorn, we encourage children to learn independence and life skills, such as making healthy food choices and taking care of their own personal hygiene. Children also have access to fresh drinking water, carefully planned and prepared nutritious snacks and meals, and plenty of opportunities to play outdoors. Activities like yoga and forest school help children develop physical awareness, motor skills, and emotional resilience.

Physical Safety

To foster a sense of security and confidence, children need a safe, clean, and stimulating environment. We make sure that every space, whether for active play or quiet rest, is carefully organised and properly supervised.

For example, when children sleep, we ensure that their beds, cots, or sleep areas are safe and comfortable. We also perform regular risk assessments, such as conducting 10-minute checks and ensuring that unsafe clothing (like bibs or hooded jumpers) is removed prior to the child sleeping.

We maintain strict staff-to-child ratios and deploy staff effectively to provide the best support and supervision. This ensures children can explore and play safely while still having the freedom to learn and develop at their own pace.

Empowering Resilience Through Risky Play

We believe that giving children the opportunity to take appropriate risks in play is essential to their development. It helps them build confidence, resilience, and physical skills. By providing safe, challenging experiences, we allow children to explore their boundaries

 and learn from the process.

Staff play a key role by offering guidance and positive reinforcement, like saying, “How do you think you can get down?” or “You’re being very careful...great job!” These simple prompts help children become more aware of their surroundings and enhance their problem-solving skills.

At Acorn, we encourage children to embrace challenges in play, while respecting their natural development stage. We don’t impose activities but create environments where they can explore and discover things at their own pace. This fosters both physical and cognitive development while allowing children to express their ideas and creativity.

Our Ongoing Commitment

At Acorn, we know how important it is for you as parents to feel confident in the care your child receives. That’s why we’re always working to maintain the highest standards of safety and care. Through thoughtful recruitment, continuous staff training, and creating environments where children can grow and learn confidently, we are committed to ensuring that every child in our care is safe, happy, and nurtured.

We value open communication with parents and encourage you to share any concerns or questions you may have. We genuinely want to work in partnership with you, as we know that by working together, we can provide the best possible start in life for your child.