Guide to nursery first aid training
Velda Bartholomew
Monday, March 30, 2015
What the compulsory first aid training requirements will mean for early years practitioners and providers.
Velda Bartholomew, quality improvement officer, Pre-school Learning Alliance
All early years practitioners do their utmost to ensure the children they care for are kept safe and well at all times.
However, there will inevitably be occasions where children become injured or unwell, and staff find themselves required to act quickly to an emergency situation.
Earlier this month, the Department for Education announced that, under government proposals, new nursery and pre-school staff will be required to undertake paediatric first aid training - a change that the DfE says will bring around 15,000 additional trained first aid staff into the sector.
The changes are expected to come into effect by September 2016.
What are the main elements of the new requirements and who will they apply to?
Paediatric first aid training will be compulsory for all newly-qualified nursery and pre-school staff. In practice, this means that a nursery or pre-school employing a newly-qualified Level 2 or Level 3 practitioner must have an emergency paediatric first aid or a full paediatric first aid certificate if that practitioner is to count towards the setting's ratios.
The new proposals do not apply to childminders.
How did the change come about and why is it needed?
The proposal is a result of the work of parents Joanne and Dan Thompson, who campaigned to make it compulsory for early years practitioners to be trained in paediatric first aid after their nine-month old daughter Millie tragically died while at nursery in October 2012.
More than 103,000 people signed an official e-petition supporting their call for a change in the law, which prompted the DfE to carry out a review of current training requirements.
The government has confirmed that a consultation on the proposals will be carried out during the next parliamentary session.
What are the options for obtaining qualifications?
The emergency paediatric first aid certificate requires the equivalent of one day's first aid training, and refresher training would need to be completed every three years.
The full paediatric first aid certificate normally takes place over two days and provides a more extensive review of all emergency scenarios that could occur when working with young children. This qualification is also valid for three years, after which refresher training would be required.
There will also be an opportunity for early years settings to receive a special certificate, known as "Millie's Mark", which is intended to illustrate to parents that the provider in question has achieved a "gold standard" in terms of safety and knowledge.
Specific details on how settings will be able achieve this mark are yet to be confirmed by the DfE, but the scheme is expected to be in place by early 2016.
How will the training be funded and does it have cost implications for providers?
As yet, the DfE has given no indication as to where the money for the new training is expected to come from, and while the new requirement has been broadly welcomed by the sector, concerns have been raised about the potential cost implications on settings.
When the new requirements were announced, Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Pre-school Learning Alliance, said that, while the initiative is a hugely positive step for which Joanne and Dan Thompson should be congratulated, it is important that early years providers are "fully supported" financially.
With existing challenges to providers including the decline in local authority support in recent years, as well as historic funding shortfalls, the alliance has said it looks forward to hearing from the government how it will work with the sector to ensure that the new training requirements are rolled out successfully.
How will the requirements be monitored and enforced?
Ofsted will be responsible for checking the paediatric first aid certificates held by staff when registering and inspecting early years providers, as is currently the case.
What support is available for providers?
To strengthen the proposals, the government has announced that a deal to purchase defibrillators at a reduced cost - previously only available to maintained and independent nursery schools - will be extended to include pre-schools; private, voluntary and independent nurseries; playgroups; and holiday and out-of-school providers.
These machines are designed to treat children in the event of a cardiac arrest and work by delivering a controlled electric shock to the heart, causing its rhythm to return to normal.
The alliance is also preparing to launch a new online training course in partnership with EduCare entitled "Management of First Aid".
The course, which will be free for alliance members, includes an overview of current statutory requirements relating to paediatric first aid training, guidance on how to find a suitable trainer, and advice on how to create and maintain a safe culture within settings.
More information on the course will be available at www.pre-school.org.uk/educare-training