Pregnancy Risk Assessment help please!!

[LittleRabbits]

Hi guys. My childminder partner is pregnant and we need to write a risk assessment. Does anyone have any templates I could use please? Or anyone know what I need to include.

Thank you


Rach

[hectors house]

Who said you need to do a risk assessment?

[Mouse]

I agree with HH - who says you need a RA?

[LittleRabbits]

My local authority

[hectors house]

Is this person your paid assistant (employee)?

[k1rstie]

There is a action on the HPA document regarding pregnancy. They list the risk of chickenpox, German measles, slapped cheek, measles. But state the greatest risk to pregnant women comes from their own children rather than the workplace.
I suppose there can also be risks of polio after polio vaccinations carriers in nappies.
Plus this time of year there are risks involved coming into contact with sheep/lambs.
Plus there may be more care needed lifting children.
Just my initial thoughts- good luck

[hectors house]

Just seems strange that out of all the childminders who have been childminding and then had another pregnancy while minding that this question hasn't been asked before. I can understand it if it was for an assistant who was employed but am still under the opinion that this is the LA making more paperwork.

But K1rstie's points above are valid points to consider.

[bunyip]

My time-honoured responses to anyone telling me I "must" do something are:-

1. Who says so?
2. On what authority?
3. Why?
4. Please show me where it says that in the regulations/law.
5. And what exactly will happen to me if I refuse? (...because I am refusing.)

In other words, why are the LA sticking their neb in? What happens if you tell them to go swivel?

Incidentally, are they concerned for the risk to your partner or the risk to the mindees?

[LittleRabbits]

We are both registered childminders working together

[bunyip]

We are both registered childminders working together

Great, smashing, super, congrats, etc.

So why does the LA require the RA? and what will they do if you suggest they take a hike?

Are they looking at it in terms of the 'risk' your partner poses to the children, or vice versa?

As it's not something an LA would expect of me, I'm beginning to wonder whether you could have considerable fun raising a case against a public body who may be acting in breach of The Equality Act.

[LittleRabbits]

Does she not have a right to have a risk assessment to protect her whilst working? Working in a nursery she would have one done. Is that not the same?

[bunyip]

Does she not have a right to have a risk assessment to protect her whilst working? Working in a nursery she would have one done. Is that not the same?

Yes, she does - absolutely.

But it's unclear from your OP or from the thread as a whole:

1. Why your local authority is involved.
2. Whether you/the LA wants the RA to cover the risk to a pregnant woman or any perceived risk to mindees posed by a pregnant woman.

I'm a bit confused. Your post #4 indicates you're (only?) doing this at the LA's behest. But I infer from your most recent post #11 that you want to do the RA for your partner's welfare, which is a sound motivation if I may say.

If the LA is demanding a risk assessment for a 'condition' that can apply only to a woman, they may well be in breach of The Equality Act, as a person's sex/gender is (usually) a protected characteristic (though, as an aside, that rather unfairly does not always apply to a man in issues of childbirth and childcare. )

There's a bit of a 'thing' going on about the amount of "must-do's" being imposed upon CMs by LAs (not to mention other bodies) for no good reason. It's often unnecessary interference masquerading as "regulatory requirements" when there may be no such requirement at all, and it all makes for unnecessary work and stress for CMs. (eg. I had a recent fight with my LA who claim their very own in-house Tracker Tool is "an Ofsted requirement" for all CMs, and they wouldn't take "like b0ll0x it is" for an answer. ) Hence my interest in what your LA thinks it's going to do to you should you refuse to bow to their edict. So what are they going to do? Do they think your partner is putting children at risk by being pregnant? Are they planning to send a Social Care worker over? Or will they simply do what a lot of bossy LAs do when you stand up to them and call their bluff: back off and go bother some other poor CM?

The very fact that no member has come forward to offer the template you requested suggests this is a bit of a rarity, which I believe is sufficient justification to query the LA's motives and reasons in demanding one. If I had such an RA you'd be welcome to it, but I don't. OTOH, I know there are members who, for good reason, are reluctant to dole out their paperwork which represents a lot of thought, research and hard work.

If I had to draw up a 'pregnancy RA', I would:-

• start with a bit of thinking and reflection about what "reasonable adjustments" can be made
• consult with the pregnant woman about her individual concerns
• refer to NHS advice
• refer to HSA advice
• check the finished article with a solicitor to ensure I was not imposing a document which fell foul of The Equality Act

[Mouse]

If you think it's something your partner is entitled to, is it a risk assessment you actually want, or more of a policy on how things will work while she's pregnant? Or if she is your employee do you need to amend her conditions of employment?

A risk assessment would cover risks to her during her pregnancy. The only risks I could think of specifically related to pregnancy would be the chance of catching an illness that could be a danger to a pregnant woman, or any injury she could do to herself by heavy lifting.

A policy, when there are 2 of you working together, would cover the practicalities - what time off can she have for appointments etc, how will you manage ratios if she isn't there, will she be able to have a rest period during the day, what will you do about ratios when she is on maternity leave, are there any parts of the job that she won't be expected to do.

If she has a contract of employment you would have to look into what her rights are now she's pregnant.

[bunyip]

Try these links:-

Work and pregnancy - Pregnancy and baby guide - NHS Choices

https://www.gov.uk/working-when-pregnant-your-rights

Citizens Advice - Parental rights at work

Hope this helps.

[Simona]

Unless this CM wraps herself in a bubble wrap I can't see how she can be protected against things such as chicken pox...which is contagious 'before' the spots appear?

when I run my preschool and had a pregnant staff member the RA we did as a team was about lifting children and moving and handling heavy equipment

Why the LA wants a RA for a pregnant lady beats me...whatever next?

[bunyip]

Ah, chicken px: my favourite health exclusion. Had this scenario a couple of weeks back.

A 3yo has CP. He can come to my setting, go anywhere he likes, infect anyone he likes until the point the spots appear and we know he's infectious. At this point he can no longer come to my setting. I know I'm not pregnant, and I know none of my mindees have any diagnosed blood disorders, etc. - always assuming their mummies and daddies haven't lied to me on their child information forms. But I can't have them here.

Instead, mum has to take the 3yo on school run with them to get older siblings to school. 3yo cannot be left in the car, so mum has to take him in a playground populated by a couple of hundred children. This mean the diseased child will meet around 200 parents, mostly mums, almost entirely of a the age of fecundity.

IOW, they cannot come here, where no-one will be at risk, but they are forced to go to a place where they will almost certainly bump into several pregnant women. Indeed, it would be hard to find a sample of the population containing a higher proportion of pregnant women without gate-crashing a mass ante-natal clinic.

And people wonder how I can claim we are over-regulated.

As for RAs, I think I need an RA for dealing with the LA. Every time I speak to them on the 'phone I end up wanting to kill somebody. It's costing a fortune in counselling and I'm running out of places to hide the bodies.

[Simona]

Bunyip...you can't say that...the DfE will shoot you ! and then it will be a case of 'Bringing up the bodies'...a la Wolf Hall with your head on a spike!

The DfE say constantly that 'simplifying the EYFS' leads to less regulation and ...of course...Cms agencies will remove all burdens from those poor CMs who cannot cope with paperwork and financial matters!!

Agency Cms will do precisely what the LAs used to do when we had networks: bring up paperwork in excess = more regulation via the back door!

[bunyip]

Bunyip...you can't say that...the DfE will shoot you !

They'd have to find me first. Given their complete inability to send me a simple form in the post I doubt if they know where to look.

Actually, I doubt they could find their own bare 4r5e with both hands in a well-lit room.

[LittleRabbits]

We weren't doing the RA because of the LA. We had a visit to see how we were getting on and we mentioned she was pregnant so they mentioned doing a risk assessment. I dont understand why people are being so rude. I have only asked for advice.

[hectors house]

We weren't doing the RA because of the LA. We had a visit to see how we were getting on and we mentioned she was pregnant so they mentioned doing a risk assessment. I dont understand why people are being so rude. I have only asked for advice.

I don't think people are being rude they are just trying to work out if this RA is needed or if it's another excuse for the LA to justify it's existence by creating more work than is needed to meet the conditions of our Ofsted registrations.

Sorry if the posts have upset you in anyway, - that was certainly not my intention