Preparing Food; Kitchen Risk Assessment

[mumofone]

Just trying to put together a risk assessment for my kitchen even though I dont plan to use it for minding (ie. no children allowed in it) but i will be preparing food in there. So far ive got fridge/freezer temps to be checked, fire blanket in case of fire, difffernt coloured chopping boards for preparing foods and then I got stuck!! Any other ideas for how to keep it safe/risk assess for food prep?

[watford wizz]

How you will supervise children whilst preping, what you would do if gas/electric cut off, leaks, ...

[mumofone]

Hmm what WOULD i do if gas/electric cut off/leaks etc?! Do I really have to specify that?

re. children, they would be in ear shot, and for babies I could put them in secure place (moses basket, swing etc either in view or in ear shot) - would that suffice?

[FloraDora]

This covers most things related to preparing food:

Safer food, better business for childminders | food.gov.uk

We cook and bake with the children in our kitchen, they don't play in there when lunch is being cooked but I also do water play, messy art etc...so I RA like every other area of my house.

[Maza]

Make sure cleaning products are out of reach or in a locked cupboard. Sharp knives out of reach, bins, cords, don't have pan handles sticking out when on the hob, cords on blinds at the window, trapped fingers, wet floor etc.

I don't know the layout of your house but you might find that you do end up using it with the children. It is the only room in our house (apart from bathroom) which isn't carpeted and so we do painting, baking, messy fun, playdough etc in there. I used to feed babies in highchairs in the kitchen and sometimes they would sit in the highchair and play whilst I cooked if they were awake. The thing about risk assessments is that you can always amend them as you go along and add things once you are up and running - things that you wouldn't have thought of before.

Are you getting close to starting? Exciting! x

[bunyip]

Hmm what WOULD i do if gas/electric cut off/leaks etc?! Do I really have to specify that?

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[rickysmiths]

My kitchen is a large kitchen diner onto which the Playroom Opens so my children have full access to it all the time. I have 12 large drawers under a run of counter tops, a corner cupboard and an under sink cupboard. None have child locks on them. The children learn not to open them unless I say it is ok.

I don't have any cleaning products in any of them they are in a small Utility room which the children don't have access to.

The children do cooking in the kitchen, the love to watch me getting meals ready and we sit around the table to eat together. I have always used the kitchen as part of my minding space even when I was in a flat.

[Simona]

Lots of great hints and support on this matter.

Can I throw the spanner in the works and ask if we need to RA a room we do not intend to use for childminding? as the OP says the children will be banned from it but the kitchen will be used for cooking?

Just curious !

[bunyip]

Good point Simona.

The first principle of Health and Safety at Work is that every individual is responsible for their own safety. Even if the workplace is your own home, I'd say a CM should risk assess their entire working environment. This would become even more important if the CM had an assistant.

[Simona]

Good point Simona.

The first principle of Health and Safety at Work is that every individual is responsible for their own safety. Even if the workplace is your own home, I'd say a CM should risk assess their entire working environment. This would become even more important if the CM had an assistant.

Ah...H&S! the most important policy of them all...for me it is like an umbrella that covers so many little policies many cms write but could actually combine under just one!

I agree the whole working environment should be RA...with an assistant any Cm turns into an employer ...so many more reasons for having a good and proper H&S policy!