First Aid Policy

Date of issue: September 2022

Date of review: September 2023

Ratified by Academy Governing Council on:

The Co-op Academy Oakwood is committed to safeguarding every student. We acknowledge that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and ensure all of our staff are trained to be vigilant and aware of the signs and indicators of abuse and understand and follow safe working practices.

The viewpoints and voice of students is of paramount importance to our Academy and we will always listen to their wishes, thoughts and feelings, as well as identifying and supporting their needs. We will work alongside students to develop trusting, consistent and professional relationships and show we care by advocating the early help processes where possible. We will identify any difficulties or concerns early in order to act preventatively. We will always provide support and advice for families and parents/carers, whilst acting in the best interests of the student at all times and doing what matters most. Safeguarding also includes ensuring we work in an open and honest way, enabling our students to feel safe by providing a secure learning environment, are equally protected regardless of any barriers they may face and are able to grow and develop in the same way as their peers.

Co-op Academy Oakwood safeguards students by:

• Maintaining a secure site and ensuring that all visitors to the Academy are recorded, monitored and clear about how to raise a safeguarding concern should one arise.
• Ensuring that safer recruitment practices are followed to prevent those who pose a risk to children gaining access to our students.
• Filtering and monitoring all internet traffic into the Academy to ensure that students cannot be exposed to harmful material and communication.
• Ensuring that all staff employed by the Academy have received Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) clearance which is recorded in the Single Central Record
• Providing regular training and briefings for all staff in child protection and ensuring that all staff and visitors know who our designated safeguarding officers and designated senior lead are.
• Ensuring that admission and attendance procedures are robust to protect students, ensure that they are safe and prevent students from going missing from education.
• Empowering young people to identify risks both within the Academy and in their community; ensuring that they have the skills and confidence to help and protect themselves and others.
• Making sure that all students understand the importance of reporting concerns about themselves and peers and giving them the confidence to discuss sensitive issues.
• Providing pastoral and inclusion support to ensure that all students have access to guidance and advice, and when needed referrals for additional agency support to meet their needs.
• Sharing information when appropriate with other agencies and services to ensure that students, children and their families have support to meet their needs and prevent students from harm or further harm
• Taking immediate action and contacting the appropriate agencies when we believe that a student is in danger or is at risk of harm.

Co-op Academy Oakwood is committed to safeguarding and promoting the wellbeing of all of our pupils. We expect our staff, governors, wider professionals, volunteers and all other stakeholders to share this commitment. All of our policies are underpinned and linked to our safeguarding policy through this commitment.

1. Aims

The aims of our first aid policy are to:

• Ensure the health and safety of all staff, pupils and visitors
• Ensure that staff and governors are aware of their responsibilities with regards to health and safety
• Provide a framework for responding to an incident and recording and reporting the outcomes

2. Legislation and guidance

This policy is based on the Statutory Framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage, advice from the Department for Education on first aid in schools and health and safety in schools, and the following legislation:

• The Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981, which state that employers must provide adequate and appropriate equipment and facilities to enable first aid to be administered to employees, and qualified first aid personnel
• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992, which require employers to make an assessment of the risks to the health and safety of their employees
• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which require employers to carry out risk assessments, make arrangements to implement necessary measures, and arrange for appropriate information and training
• The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013, which state that some accidents must be reported to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE),  and set out the timeframe for this and how long records of such accidents must be kept
• Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1979, which set out rules on the retention of accident records
• The Education (Independent School Standards) Regulations 2014, which require that suitable space is provided to cater for the medical and therapy needs of pupils

This policy complies with our funding agreement and articles of association.

3. Roles and responsibilities

In schools with Early Years Foundation Stage provision, at least one person who has a current paediatric first aid certificate must be on the premises at all times. At Co-op Academy Oakwood we have several members who hold a current paediatric first aid certificate. The information in regards to this are held by both the office team and Foundation Stage leader. It can also be found within the policy.

Employers must usually have a sufficient number of suitably trained first aiders to care for employees in case they are injured at work. However, the minimum legal requirement is to have an ‘appointed person’ to take charge of first aid arrangements, provided your assessment of need has taken into account the nature of employees' work, the number of staff, and the location of the school. The appointed person does not need to be a trained first aider. At Coop Academy Oakwood we have appointed persons who are trained in First Aid at Work, Schools First Aid and Pediatric First Aid. The information in regards to who holds which qualification can be found within the policy and is held by the office.

Section 3.1 below sets out the expectations of appointed persons and first aiders as set out in the 1981 first aid regulations and the DfE guidance.

All schools should adapt this section to reflect their circumstances, in line with their assessment of first aid needs.

3.1 Appointed person(s) and first aiders

The school’s appointed persons are Christine Cole, Kurtis Adams and Tracey Hosty. Other members of staff also hold first aid qualifications. These can be found in the appendix of the policy. Appointed persons are responsible for:

• Taking charge when someone is injured or becomes ill
• Ensuring there is an adequate supply of medical materials in first aid kits, and replenishing the contents of these kits
• Ensuring that an ambulance or other professional medical help is summoned when appropriate

First aiders are trained and qualified to carry out the role (see section 7) and are responsible for:

• Acting as first responders to any incidents; they will assess the situation where there is an injured or ill person, and provide immediate and appropriate treatment
• Sending pupils home to recover, where necessary
• Filling in an accident report on the same day, or as soon as is reasonably practicable, after an incident (see the template in appendix 2)
• Keeping their contact details up to date

Our school’s appointed persons and first aiders are listed in appendix 1. Their names are also displayed prominently around the school.

3.2 The governing body:

The governing board has ultimate responsibility for health and safety matters in the school, but delegates operational matters and day-to-day tasks to the headteacher and staff members.

3.4 The headteacher

The headteacher is responsible for the implementation of this policy, including:

• Ensuring that an appropriate number of appointed persons and trained first aiders are present in the school at all times.
• Ensuring that first aiders have an appropriate qualification, keep training up to date and remain competent to perform their role. The operational implementation of this will be delegated to the office team.
• Ensuring all staff are aware of first aid procedures.
• Ensuring appropriate risk assessments are completed and appropriate measures are put in place.
• Undertaking, or ensuring that managers undertake, risk assessments, as appropriate, and that appropriate measures are put in place.
• Ensuring that adequate space is available for catering to the medical needs of pupils.
• Reporting specified incidents to the HSE when necessary (see section 6).

3.5 Staff

School staff are responsible for:

• Ensuring they follow first aid procedures
• Ensuring they know who the first aiders in school are
• Completing accident reports (see appendix 2) for all incidents they attend to where a first aider is not called
• Calling for fist aiders if needed.
• Informing the headteacher or their manager of any specific health conditions or first aid needs

4. First aid procedures

4.1 In-school procedures

In the event of an accident resulting in injury:

• The closest member of staff present will assess the seriousness of the injury and seek the assistance of a qualified first aider, if appropriate, who will provide the required first aid treatment
• The first aider, if called, will assess the injury and decide if further assistance is needed from a colleague or the emergency services. They will remain on scene until help arrives
• The first aider will assess the situation where there is an injured or ill person
• The first aider will give immediate, appropriate treatment bearing in mind that a casualty may have more than one injury and that some casualties will require more urgent attention.
• The first aider will also decide whether the injured person should be moved or placed in a recovery position
• The first aider will arrange, without delay, for the casualty to be transported to a doctor, hospital or home, according to the seriousness of the condition. The first aider’s responsibility ends when the casualty is handed to the care of the doctor, a nurse or other appropriate person. The first aider should not leave the incident scene until they have reported to whoever takes charge and have ascertained whether they could be of any further help.
• The first aider will complete the Accident Report Folder and report any ‘Reportable Incident’ (RIDDOR) using the appropriate Trust forms. It is the responsibility of the most senior member of staff to ensure that the Trust (Deputy Director) is advised in the event of a Reportable Incident.
• If the first aider judges that a pupil is too unwell to remain in school, parents will be contacted and asked to collect their child. Upon their arrival, the first aider will recommend next steps to the parents
• If emergency services are called, the office or pastoral team will contact parents immediately
• The first aider will ensure that there is an adequate supply of all the prescribed materials in the first aid boxes and kits and that the contents of first aid boxes and that kits are replenished after use, and the items are not used after the expiry date which is shown on the packets.

• For accidents staff will follow the grading system below to deal with incidents:

• It is the responsibility of the school employee who deals with the incident to ensure that it is reported to a named first aider, the office team and the appropriate Class Teacher at the earliest, safe opportunity.
• Appointed persons and first aiders can be found in Appendix 1 of the policy.

The treatment of minor illnesses such as the administration of tablets and/or medicines falls outside the definition of first aid.

4.2 Off-site procedures

When taking pupils off the school premises, a member of staff trained in first aid will always accompany the trip. Any trip involving a child who carries an Epi-pen must be accompanied by a member of staff trained in administering an Epi-pen. First aiders will be identified when planning the visit on EVOLVE.

Staff will ensure they always have the following:

• A school mobile phone
• A portable first aid kit
• Information about the specific medical needs of pupils
• Parents’ contact details

Risk assessments will be completed by the class teachers prior to any educational visit that necessitates taking pupils off school premises.

For trips for Early Years Foundation Stage there will always be at least one first aider with a current paediatric first aid certificate on school trips and visits, as required by the statutory framework for the Early Years Foundation Stage.

There will always be at least one first aider on school trips and visits for all other year groups.

5. First aid equipment

A typical first aid kit in our school will include the following:

• A leaflet with general first aid advice
• Regular and large bandages
• Eye pad bandages
• Triangular bandages
• Adhesive tape
• Safety pins
• Disposable gloves
• Antiseptic wipes
• Plasters of assorted sizes
• Scissors
• Cold compresses
• Burns dressings

No medication is kept in first aid kits.

First aid kits are stored in:

• Classrooms
• Reception (at the desk)
• The school hall
• The school kitchen
• School vehicles

6. Medication and medicines

Prescription medicines will only be administered at school:

• When it would be detrimental to the pupil’s health or school attendance not to do so and 
• Where we have parents’ written consent.  

Pupils will not be given medicine unless prescribed by a doctor.  

Anyone giving a pupil any medication (for example, for pain relief) will first check maximum dosages and when the previous dosage was taken. Parents will always be informed.  

The school will only accept prescribed medicines that are:

• In-date
• Labelled
• Provided in the original container, as dispensed by the pharmacist, and include instructions for administration, dosage and storage

The school will accept insulin that is inside an insulin pen or pump rather than its original container, but it must be in date.  

All medicines will be stored safely. Pupils will be informed about where their medicines are at all times and be able to access them immediately. Medicines and devices such as asthma inhalers, blood glucose testing meters and adrenaline pens will always be readily available to pupils and not locked away.  

Medicines will be returned to parents to arrange for safe disposal when no longer required.  

7. Record-keeping and reporting

7.1 First aid and accident record book

• An accident form will be completed by the first aider on the same day or as soon as possible after an incident resulting in an injury
• As much detail as possible should be supplied when reporting an accident, including all of the information included in the accident form at appendix 2
• A copy of the accident report form will also be added to the pupil’s educational record by a member of the office team.
• Records held in the first aid and accident book will be retained by the school for a minimum of 3 years, in accordance with regulation 25 of the Social Security (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1979, and then securely disposed of.

7.2 Reporting to the HSE

The office manager will keep a record of any accident which results in a reportable injury, disease, or dangerous occurrence as defined in the RIDDOR 2013 legislation (regulations 4, 5, 6 and 7).

The Office manager will report these to the Health and Safety Executive as soon as is reasonably practicable and in any event within 10 days of the incident.

Reportable injuries, diseases or dangerous occurrences include:

• Death
• Specified injuries, which are:

• Fractures, other than to fingers, thumbs and toes
• Amputations
• Any injury likely to lead to permanent loss of sight or reduction in sight
• Any crush injury to the head or torso causing damage to the brain or internal organs
• Serious burns (including scalding)
• Any scalping requiring hospital treatment
• Any loss of consciousness caused by head injury or asphyxia
• Any other injury arising from working in an enclosed space which leads to hypothermia or heat-induced illness, or requires resuscitation or admittance to hospital for more than 24 hours

• Injuries where an employee is away from work or unable to perform their normal work duties for more than 7 consecutive days (not including the day of the incident)
• Where an accident leads to someone being taken to hospital
• Near-miss events that do not result in an injury, but could have done. Examples of near-miss events relevant to schools include, but are not limited to:

• The collapse or failure of load-bearing parts of lifts and lifting equipment
• The accidental release of a biological agent likely to cause severe human illness
• The accidental release or escape of any substance that may cause a serious injury or damage to health
• An electrical short circuit or overload causing a fire or explosion

Information on how to make a RIDDOR report is available here:

How to make a RIDDOR report, HSE
http://www.hse.gov.uk/riddor/report.htm 

7.3 Notifying parents

The classteacher, key worker or LSA in a class will inform parents of any accident or injury sustained by a pupil, and any first aid treatment given, on the same day, or as soon as reasonably practicable.

7.4 Reporting to Ofsted and child protection agencies

The headteacher or office manager will notify Ofsted of any serious accident, illness or injury to, or death of, a pupil while in the school’s care. This will happen as soon as is reasonably practicable, and no later than 14 days after the incident.

The headteacher or office manager will also notify the LADO, MAT Chief Education Officer, MAT Safeguarding lead of any serious accident or injury to, or the death of, a pupil while in the school’s care.

8. Training

All school staff are able to undertake first aid training if they would like to.

All first aiders must have completed a training course, and must hold a valid certificate of competence to show this. The school will keep a register of all trained first aiders, what training they have received and when this is valid until (see appendix 3).

Staff are encouraged to renew their first aid training when it is no longer valid.

At all times, at least 1 staff member will have a current paediatric first aid (PFA) certificate which meets the requirements set out in the Early Years Foundation Stage statutory framework and is updated at least every 3 years.

9. Monitoring arrangements

This policy will be reviewed by a member of the senior leadership team every year.

At every review, the policy will be approved by the headteacher.

Links with other policies

This first aid policy is linked to the

• Health and safety policy
• Risk assessment policy
• Policy on supporting pupils with medical conditions

10. Covid specific procedures

This policy will be reviewed by a member of the senior leadership team every year.

At every review, the policy will be approved by the headteacher.

Links with other policies

This first aid policy is linked to the

• Health and safety policy
• Risk assessment policy
• Policy on supporting pupils with medical conditions

Appendix 1: first aid training log