If you’re already an EYF subscribing member, the safer sleep audit can be accessed in the members' area as part of your subscription.

Overview

Self-evaluation tools for group care & childminding settings

This audit was developed in response to a recent tragedy in an early years setting.

 

The questions in this audit have been designed to help you to reflect on your leadership, systems, processes and practice, and will support your monitoring and self-evaluation activities meaning that you’ll have a greater understanding of what is working well and where things could be strengthened or improved.  

 

This self-evaluation tool explores safer sleep practices and the way that they impact children’s safety, health and well-being.  

Why are safer sleep practices important?

We have both a legal and moral duty to ensure that children’s health, safety and well-being is at the heart of our safer sleep practices.  In terms of our legal duties, the EYFS stipulates that we must ensure that:

  • sleeping children are checked frequently,
  • bedding/ cots are in a good condition and suitable for children,
  • staff have been trained to work with babies,
  • those working with infants are following the latest government safety guidance.

The EYFS outlines the minimum standards to which providers must work, but the footnotes in the statutory requirements also refer to guidance from the NHS and research charities like the Lullaby Trust. There is, therefore, an expectation that providers will use this additional guidance to ensure that their practices minimise and wherever possible, mitigate risks to children. 

This self-evaluation audit goes beyond the minimum requirements of the EYFS and has used research from Government, the NHS and the Lullaby Trust to shape its approach.

How will this self-evaluation tool support your monitoring activities?

The format of each self-evaluation tool has been modelled on the questions in our best-selling book ‘101 audit questions to evaluate your practice and prepare for inspection’. Each audit provides a set of questions, but also provides a ‘think about’ box that will help you to look at what is being asked in more depth. Once you have completed the audit, your responses are immediately emailed to you in a report.

This way of working is quick, simple and draws attention to areas that need work or things that you need to check out.

Prior Access

You can undertake this audit without the need to complete any other audits in this series and there is no need for any prior background reading. References have also been provided to strengthen professional knowledge.