When a Child Becomes Ill at Nursery

With the welfare of the ill child in mind and in the interests of the remaining children in the nursery, if in the opinion of staff a child is too ill to be cared for at nursery, the parent or carer will be contacted and asked to collect their child as soon as they are able to.

The child will be made as comfortable as possible until collection and as much time and attention will be given to them as necessary, without having an adverse effect on the care of the other children. This may include support from the manager or staff within other rooms.

Temperature & Medication

Parents are responsible for providing all medications. We suggest that when a child joins the setting, parents bring a bottle of paracetamol or ibuprofen labelled with the child's name that can be stored permanently at the setting.

If your child has a bottle of paracetamol or ibuprofen on the premises, staff will administer this whilst the child awaits collection, should permission be given over the phone. Children will also be offered fluids to keep them hydrated, kept comfortable, and kept out of draughts.

Should your child become unwell and we are unable to contact parents/carers or emergency contacts, we will have an emergency bottle of paracetamol on site that can be issued if your child's temperature is very high — this will be administered to prevent convulsions and any prolonged suffering.

Serious Injuries

Should your child suffer a serious injury resulting in a sprain, bone break/fracture or similar injury, each incident will be assessed on a case by case basis. Children will be allowed into the nursery setting at the discretion of the nursery manager.

Our insurance provider and HR company may also need to be contacted before the child can attend the setting, to ensure that all safety procedures and risk assessments are in place to keep the child and other children safe and prevent further harm or injury.

Returning to Nursery After Illness

When children have been unwell at home we ask that they are fully recovered before returning to nursery. At Tiny Toez we understand that many parents and carers work and have other commitments, however bringing poorly children to nursery often means that staff then become unwell, which may have implications on the operation of the nursery setting.

We take our guidelines on exclusion periods from the NHS website and Health Protection Agency nurses who are trained in communicable diseases.

Tiny Toez reserve the right to reduce hours that we are open to children if there is a staff shortage due to illness. This will be a last resort if cover cannot be arranged and ratios cannot be maintained.

Exclusions Table

Please refer to the table below for exclusion periods for common childhood illnesses. This policy is used in conjunction with our Medication Policy.