The arrival of the New Year often brings with it lashings of rain and the kind of winds to blow your socks off! So now is a good time to pencil in yourself some time on your site to make it safe. This is by no means an exhaustive list but perhaps consider checking the following:
access/egress to your site- check your gates, fences, locks etc
location of site on the internet- is it accurate? could you update with a What3words location point too?
have there been any changes to policies and procedures and do these these updating on webpages, parent forms etc
now is a good time to take a walk around any areas with trees - look for existing branch falls, large cracks, disease, leaning and uprooting trees. It is a good time to remove any tree stumps if they serve no purpose
You will be used to checking equipment prior to use and on a daily/weekly basis (however you risk assess) but with heavy winds/rain probably due it is perhaps time to also check pathways, muddy areas, roof of the outdoor classroom etc
No such thing as bad weather! get those checklists out to parents and remind them of what the children need as a basic requirement ie wellies and if you have a welly store check that the ones you have are still fit for purpose
If you rely on a outdoor tap speak to the site staff about frost covers and other mitigations to fully ensure that you don't end up with frozen pipes
Remind yourself of your risk assessment with regards to wind speed and make sure that anyone with access to your site is aware of how strong the wind needs to blow before you need to announce the closure of the provision
stock up on hot chocolate!!
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