Paddling pool at nursery. Is it safe?

[bambino1]

I work at my daughters nursery and today turned up to find there was a paddling pool in the outside area. In the afternoon 4 of the children including my dd went in it. I was stood there thinking this is not right.
I'm going to say something tommorow when I get to work but I just need some back up advice like should there be chlorine to kill bacteria.
I also thought what if one of the children wees and then another put it in there mouth. Quite scary now i am thinking of it.
If anyone knows if this is ok or very wrong please let me know.

[starlover]

i personally wouldn't have a problem with it.

would you let her play in a friends paddling pool? if so then what's the problem?

[compo]

I'm not sure what a nursery's policy should be n this but I know we did this as kids in our back garden with no chlorine and lived to tell the tale. Tat would have been about 5 kids though, not sure if loads were just passing through during the day in the same water iyswim

[zebraZ]

Do they change the water daily?
Urine isn't dangerous (normally, might be exceptions if a child had a severe infection, but presumably they wouldn't be able to attend nursery if they were that ill).

[bambino1]

Yeah I would be fine with that. Although that is very different to a nursery setting who have to have risk assessments and health and safety legislation to comply with.

[Twiglett]

you mean in this heat you're worried about a bunch of kids playing in a paddlnig pool?

what a shame? and how sad

they've already removed all the fun, adventurous toys from the parks - no more climbing frames at the 1 o'clock clubs and now someone seriously thinks that a paddling pool is a health hazard

in the nicest possible way - relax

[dinny]

wouldn't have any problem with it at all.

[zaphod]

We often have friends over in the summer and all the kids use the paddling pool at the same time. That would be maybe 10 or more of them, and we have never had a problem.

Mind you, the 2 year old regularly gets toothbrushes, swishes them round the toilet bowl and sucks them, so I'm pretty laid back now.

[bambino1]

all due respect to your comments but when working in a nursery you have to be very hot on health and safety or face being shut down.

[hoxtonchick]

we spent today in the paddling pool on hampstead heath, there must have been at least 50 children there....

[dinny]

the babies at our nursery play with water in paddling pools when hot. I think it's a lovelt thing to do.

[zebraZ]

I'd be more worried about the chances of a child drowning in there than the chances of catching a disease. Presumably the children are all over 3 & well-supervised?

British tap water is arguably the safest and most stringently tested in the world. If they change the water daily & use a proper water source, clean it out once in a while with soap & hot water, I really can't envisage a problem.

[bambino1]

Yeah I can understand where you are coming from. I do want my daughter to enjoy her time at nursery but today just got a gut feeling things weren't right.
My daughter and two others are under three.

[motherinferior]

I cannot refrain from pointing out that a lot of people including I think Mahatma Gandhi drank their own urine.

[bambino1]

ok its ok for people who wish to drink their own urine thats fine by me but for children to innocently become exposed to possible hazard substances i do not think is viable. I know it has already been stated that urine is not harmful but if that is the case why do all staff have to follow strict proceedures when coming into contact with it and any other bodily fluids.

[zebraZ]

Let us know what they say at work, Bambino.

[dinny]

any possible wee in the paddling pool would be v diluted, Bambino. really don't think it is any cause for concern, imo.

[bambino1]

ok fair enough will take it up tommorow at work. I'm not trying to take the fun out of paddling pools, I;m just trying to cover all possibilities of risk as that is my job!

[dinny]

dol you work for a chain or private nursery, Bambino?

[bambino1]

Private commumity nursery who have alot of ofsted visits and I have been brought into try and improve it. This is why I am asking others advice on the subject.

[dinny]

so is it peforming poorly?

[marthamoo]

It wouldn't bother me at all. Your child is far more likely to come into contact with urine (which I would not describe as a hazardous substance) when they go to the toilet at nursery. In a paddling pool it's going to be diluted and presumably they change the water daily.

My one and only concern would be that they were properly supervised at all times and that the paddling pool was not left filled and unattended - even if the children were not supposed to be outside. I remember a little boy who drowned in the puddle that had collected on (I think) a sandpit cover at nursery - he had wandered off on his own

[dinny]

suppose it's one thing having a paddling pool at a nursrey you trust and another thing to have one at a nursery that's not all it should be.

[bambino1]

It was deemed as acceptable but only just in a january report and we get alot of visits now to see all is being improved.

[dinny]

crikey.

[bambino1]

That is why I needed the advice. Thank you for all your comments. Also my daughter is 10 months old and does not sit on a toilet yet.