Happier Smarter Safer Children

Security and Safety for Your Child

Leap Start Early Learning Child Care Southern River has been designed and fitted out with your child’s Security and Safety as our number 1 priority. This means that each day you drop them off you’ll leave with the peace of mind knowing every effort has been made to keep them secure and loving their learning.

Here’s how:

• CCTV cameras which can be monitored at any time via management computer, laptop, and phones as well by security experts, give us a bird’s eye view of what’s happening from the car park to the outdoor play area so we can respond quickly if any need arises
• The front entrance is secured by an electronic security system meaning only parents/caregivers issued with their individually programmed swipe card can enter
• Once inside you are greeted by a friendly member of our Management Team who helps direct your inquiry – no one can proceed beyond the foyer without authorization; and of course, no children can exit without a registered parent/caregiver
• The U-shape configuration of the buildings, with large areas of tempered safety glass (which exceed the rigorous Australian standards), creates a community among the children because they can not only see but also visit each other if educators deem it to be safe, rather than be separated by age. The unique design was also built for the safety of the children and staff. The buildings act as a barrier to the public and vehicles and prevent any unwanted items and rubbish from being thrown into the children’s play area
• The welcoming Family Room with safe coffee and tea-making facilities is an enormously popular feature of our Centre located immediately beside the Reception where families can talk to our Childcare Educators, parents can look through the viewing window unobtrusively to ensure their child is settled, or even spend time with them to get them acclimatised each day before they move to their designated room; it also doubles as a waiting area on visit days and where our Childcare Educators can meet with specialists without disrupting routines.

Rest assured our security and safety measures are beyond anything available in the childcare industry, to our knowledge in WA, if not Australia.

One thing parents always compliment us on is how clean the learning environment is. To achieve this, we employ professional cleaners who work every weekday, just like in a school. In many centres it’s the teaching staff who do this important job during the day which reduces educator-child ratios. This is not what we believe best benefits children so we employ cleaners and gardeners. You’ll notice too, as many parents do, how clean our glass is. Handprints and the like are normal on all glass but we believe this reduces natural light into rooms and can impede viewing/supervision, so we make sure all windows are cleaned regularly.

You’ll also be amazed by our next-generation hand washing station. Our sinks are lowered to the children’s height, and the taps are placed on the side of the sink, not at the back, for easier reach We have also utilised 4 types of taps to give the children different learning experiences., including a hands-free electronic one to make autonomy possible for all children regardless of ability. It’s the little things that give your child a “Leap Start” to their early education.

Each child in nappies receives his/her own nappy and nappy lotion cubby

Further, in the interests of health and safety, all toys put into mouths in the younger age rooms, are placed into a “Mouthed Toy “ bucket and only returned to children once sanitised to prevent the spread of germs.

Two outside sinks at the entrance welcome anyone entering or leaving the centre to wash their hands.

Hand Sanitizer dispensers are installed next to the entrance door and hand sanitizer is available throughout for families to use

Educators are given another unique Leap Start invention: Zippable Hygiene bags carried around the waist, containing small garbage bags, tissues, hand sanitizer, gloves, masks, bandaids, and pen and notepad, as well as resuscitation charts and supervision diagrams for the outdoor space.

Leap Start has a registered defibrillator – choosing the only model that switches from adult to child mode by pressing a button without the need to change from adult to children/s pad, thus saving valuable time in an emergency.

We also have laundry facilities on site for daily washing of bibs, sheets and tea towels.

Here are 27 Reasons Why Leap Start Early Learning Child Care Southern River is the First and Last Choice for Parents Whose Child’s Safety is Paramount…

1. External Fence
2. Entrance Fence
3. Inner Courtyard Playground – no exposure to unknown persons, no dangerous rubbish thrown into garden
4. All staff First Aid/CPR trained
5. All staff receive annual Fire Warden Training
6. Electronic, individualised access to building
7. No access to children’s area for unauthorized persons
8. Lock down buckets with food, drink, hygiene items, nappies, potty and portable toilet
9. Evacuation bags with socks, blankets, and umbrellas for weather protection. We use Yoga mats to create a safe path exiting the building and to prevent the children’s feet from being burnt on hot ground We practise one kind of Emergency every month for as many times as it takes to perform the drill to the highest standard. All staff receives annual fire warden training.
10. Monitored Alarm System
11. Duress Button
12. Cameras
13. Number Plate Recognition Camera
14. Educators given time to check premises daily before centre opening
15. Educators wearing Hygiene Bags with tissues, gloves, mask, sanitizer, band aids
16. Paediatric Defibrillator at reception
17. All staff receive device specific annual defib training
18. Areas containing chemicals inaccessible to children (laundry, main kitchen, store, staff room and staff office)
19. Safety Data sheets maintained for all chemicals on site
20. Customised Internal action plans are created for each child with a medical condition in collaboration with the parents and the child’s physician, in addition to Official Medical action plans and practitioner plans. We supply children either with an “Anaphylaxis” or “Medical Condition” Wristband and ask parents to train us in their child’s special requirements, such as braces for Hip Dysplasia
21. No food or other possibly allergen containing resources allowed into children’s area not having been purchased by Leap Start
22. Centre provides toothbrushes for staff having eaten something containing possible allergens in their lunch break
23. Daily professional cleaning
24. Hospital grade disinfection wipes (Clinell)
25. Hand wash basin at centre entrance to prevent spread of germs
26. Doorbell system into each Learning Area to prevent unnecessary access into centre- germ prevention
27. Heat guns to monitor temperatures in summer to prevent overheating in the playground