At CJ’s Little Pickles we aim to ensure that all children have enough sleep to support their development and natural sleep in a safe environment.
The safety of babies’ sleeping is paramount. Our policy follows the advice provided by The Cot Death Society and Lullaby Trust to minimise the risk of Sudden Infant Death.
We make sure that:
• Babies are placed on their backs to sleep, if a baby has rolled onto their tummy, you should turn them onto their back again, however once a baby can roll from back to front and back again, on their own, they can be left to find their own position
• Babies/toddlers are never put down to sleep with a bottle to self-feed
• Babies/toddlers are monitored visually when sleeping. Staff carry out sight and touch tests on the children which are recorded, these checks are carried out 10 minutes. When the room reaches a temperature of 28°C or higher; checks are then carried out every 7 minutes. Children are never left in a separate sleep room without staff supervision at all times.
• When monitoring, the staff member looks and feels for the rise and fall of the chest and if the sleep position has changed
• As good practice we monitor babies under six months or a new baby sleeping during the first few weeks every five minutes until we are familiar with the child and their sleeping routines, to offer reassurance to them and their families.
We provide a safe sleeping environment by:
• Monitoring the room temperature
• Using clean, light bedding/blankets and ensuring babies are appropriately dressed for sleep to avoid overheating
• Only using safety-approved cots or other suitable sleeping equipment (i.e. mats) that are compliant with British Standard regulations, and clean fitted sheets are used.
• Not using cot bumpers or cluttering cots with soft toys, although comforters will only be given to children over 1 years old. Soothers such as a dummy can begiven to babies but any clips or straps will be removed
• Keeping all spaces around cots and beds clear from hanging objects i.e. hanging cords, blind cords, drawstring bags
• Ensuring every baby/toddler is provided with clean bedding
• Transferring any baby who falls asleep while being nursed by a practitioner to a safe sleeping surface to complete their rest. Children on sleep mats will not be laid head-to-head to prevent spread of germs in case a child sneezes or coughs when asleep
• Children under one years old are only allowed a dummy when they sleep. No soft toys, cloths or other aids are allowed. All bibs are to be removed and long sleeves pulled down.
We recognise parents’ knowledge of their child with regard to sleep routines and will, where possible, work together to ensure each child’s individual sleep routines and well-being continues to be met.
However, staff will not force a child to sleep or keep them awake against his or her will. They will also not usually wake children from their sleep.
All sleep periods will be recorded on Parenta so parents are aware of the time and how long their child has slept.
Sleeping twins:
We follow the advice from The Lullaby Trust regarding sleeping twins.
Further information can be found at: www.lullabytrust.org.uk
CJ