Childcare centres and daycares are usually made up of well-trained teachers and childcare providers certified to care for children. As a childcare provider, parents entrust their kids to you and expect to get their kids back in good shape.

Ensuring the safety of the children in your care is not just a duty, but a crucial aspect of maintaining a positive reputation for your childcare centre. By prioritizing child safety, you not only satisfy parents but also contribute to the growth and success of your centre.

Keeping children safe is not as difficult as it sounds as long as you know what to do and what not to do. We have curated a few tips and a safety checklist for you as a childcare owner. Keep reading to learn about the safety tips.

Safety categories for childcare centres

Food Safety

Children are highly susceptible to food poisoning, and your childcare providers must vet what they feed the kids in their care to avoid bad situations. Below are a few ways you can make the children’s meals safely.

• Store and prepare food in hygienic areas: If you prepare meals for the kids at your childcare centre, you must be extra careful and follow all safety procedures. You don’t want a situation where the kids get food poisoning or other infections from the meals.
• Know each child’s food allergies: Ask parents about their children’s food allergies and consider them when preparing their meals. Asking parents about their children’s medical history shows your interest in their children’s health and safety.
• Refrigerate leftover foods: If you have leftovers from the foods you prepare, you should either dispose of them or refrigerate them properly to avoid contamination.

Indoor Safety

As a childcare centre, one of the first things you should do is childproof your centre. Kids move around, wanting to touch stuff and try out new things. The only things that should be close to them are safe toys. All harmful substances or equipment should be kept far away from their reach.

• Have emergency exits: Ensure your childcare centre has an emergency exit for special cases like a fire accident or security breach. Emergency exits serve as plan B for these uncomfortable situations.
• Get a first-aid box in case of emergencies: A first-aid box is a must-have for your childcare centre, and your teachers should be trained to administer first-aid. Children play a lot and are prone to injuries, which is where the first-aid box comes in at your childcare centre.
• Clean and sanitize your centre regularly: Everybody knows that cleaning and sanitation are critical wherever there are kids—well, maybe not everybody. If you want to improve child safety at your childcare centre, you must take cleaning seriously. Clean and sanitize the kids' toys and every other surface to keep them safe from germs. Kids are safer in clean and sanitized environments.

Outdoor Safety

Kids can’t be kept indoors throughout the day. If you do that, you will have bored and grumpy kids. To make your childcare centre fun for children, you should take them outdoors to play. However, childcare providers are still responsible for making the kids safe on the playground.

• Have a fenced playground: Playgrounds are essential for childcare centres to prevent the kids from walking out and meeting strangers. A fenced playground minimizes many child safety threats.
• Never leave children alone outside: Children should be accompanied by their teachers when outdoors. They need all the supervision they can get from adults to avoid accidents.
• Teach children to stay off the streets: If your playground is open and close to the road, children are not to be allowed on the streets. Teachers or childcare providers must set a boundary and let the kids know what will happen if they go there.

General Safety Tips for Childcare Centres

• Recruit trained teachers: Child caregivers are expected to be trained in basic safety practices that will help keep children safe during their daily routine and in emergencies. Children's teachers are expected to know how to administer first aid and CPR and be prepared for emergencies. Also, it's not just about recruiting trained teachers; these teachers should have ongoing training to improve their skills, which is the childcare centre's duty.
• Follow health and safety regulations and guidelines: Every state has its own safety rules and regulations. If you want to improve child safety at your childcare centre, you should be particular about following your state's health and safety regulations and national guidelines. You must also get all the necessary health and safety licenses to improve your credibility and grow your childcare centre.
• Have a low teacher-child ratio: Nothing screams safety more than the fact that the teachers are available to watch each child and ensure their safety. Low teacher-child ratios help to avoid situations that threaten child safety because each teacher has an eye on the kids. When there are a few kids with a teacher, it helps the teacher concentrate more on the kids, maintain eye contact with them, and help them feel more comfortable. If a child ever feels unsafe, they are comfortable talking to their teachers about it when they have a low teacher-child ratio.
• Have handbooks and policies for your centre: You must update handbooks and guidelines for the parents. It should include procedures like child pickup screening, to mention a few. This helps to avoid situations when a stranger would be picking kids up.
• Advise parents to keep sick kids at home: The best place for children to be when sick is at home, not the childcare centre. This helps prevent other kids from contracting contagious illnesses like Flu and allows them to get better care from their parents.

Childcare givers are expected to be conscious of the food children eat, the people they interact with and their environment. Children must also be taught to keep themselves safe, especially when no adults are around. With an app like Kiddiebox, you can record the kids’ mealtimes, medical history, and other key data.