nursery - children outside all day in the snow

[jlm122]

I just wondered if any other nurseries are doing this.

Children playing outside all day, on warmer days not a problem but today it's snowed all day, i collected DD and she didn't have her gloves on, her hands were freezing she could barely move them, got her home and got her wetsuit off and her sleeves were wet and cold i'm assuming from hand washing. Feet were freezing, the nursery put a statement out a few weeks ago asking parents not to ask staff to take the children inside as they can't due to COVID.

I don't feel this is right but on the other hand i'm a key worker so need to send her, she's settled and will be starting school in September so i'm not sure if moving her to a different nursery would be the best thing for her.

@Abracadabra12345

No, I've been out all day.
With children.

When you speak to them, focus on the fact your child was allowed to get cold, no the fact they're outside. You agreed to them being outside, and there's nothing wrong with being outside. Its not OK that DC was able to get cold. That's a safety issue they can't argue with.

@CookieMumsters

When you speak to them, focus on the fact your child was allowed to get cold, no the fact they're outside. You agreed to them being outside, and there's nothing wrong with being outside. Its not OK that DC was able to get cold. That's a safety issue they can't argue with.

I do agree with this

It's fine for children to be outside most of the time (though I think today is pushing it), but it requires an extra level of vigilance from the staff. The staff at the OP's nursery don't sound up to the challenge. Not ok to have small children shivering outside in inadequate wet clothing in sub-zero temperatures. The whole thing sounds very ill-conceived and badly done. My DS is often out for 6-7 hours in very cold temperatures but he has a thermal base layer, cotton longjohns, 2 long sleeve t-shirts, thick jumper, fleecy layer if it's very cold, waterproof mittens and thermal waterproof rainsuit, thermal fleece-lined hat and fleecy scarf. And wool-lined thermal wellies. He is sent with lots of spare clothing and the staff do frequent checks of hands and feet to make sure the children are comfortable. Any who are cold are taken to sit in a heated shelter. Even with all of that, they were unwilling to have the children outside today in temperature of -6/7 when the wind chill was taken into account.

Why is there risk assessment showing that the children have to be outside all day? My child goes to nursery and doesnt and they have done a risk assessment. Surely if all nursery's were following the same early years practitioners health and safety advice all the toddlers and babies across the Uk would be outside. Which from experience and what I have heard they are not.

I agree if parents have okayed this - seems this should of been updated though as the weather changed. And have sent there child in appropriate clothing but at the same time we know kids get messy, wet etc throughout the day so they need the resources and time to look after them properly. I would be absolutely furious if this happened to my child and I would be reporting the nursery.

@mouldyhouse101 just because you’re fine with it, doesn’t mean other parents would be, why are you so defensive about it?

My children go to a forest school nursery and they never went outside today, as it was so cold. And I wouldnt be happy at all if I found out they had to be outside all day every day.

I agree with it tbh, as I've heard of two of my ds2 fiance family catching covid from their kids from nursery.
They are breeding grounds unfortunately.

@Devlesko I suppose we should put all the elderly people in care homes like the one i work in outside in below freezing temperatures as well then

Ours is a very outdoorsy one but not ALL day, in this. No chance. I would move her. It isn't covid regs, its just their policy.

I would move my daughter there is no way she would stay there.
What madness. She's 18 months and refuses to keep gloves on.
Do they have tiny babies outside?! Youngest at our nursery are babies in arms!!

I'm assuming other parents have complained and that's why the message was sent out, i did notice today that the numbers looked lower so i think some people are keeping their children off when the weather is this bad but i don't have that option unfortunately, currently looking into other local nurseries

Presumably still paying for the privilege?

It doesn't sound like they're set up is fit for purpose. Are they out there all day in the rain too?

This is crazy! Way too cold for little ones to be outside all day! Move her op.

They might have the babies inside i'm not sure, i know they did have a baby room but obviously since covid i haven't been inside, but i haven't seen any babies being dropped off/picked up either

No that is absolutely batshit. My daughters nursery is having more outdoor time but they’re still allowed inside. I wouldn’t send her if it was all outdoor, I wouldn’t want to spend all day outside in this weather, outrageous

@SnoozyLou Yes out in the rain too, i wish i'd took a picture of the state i picked her up in the other day, i had to leave her wetsuit outside for the mud to dry then put it through the wash twice for it to look half decent, they said she'd been having fun in the mud kitchen but it looked like she'd been sliding on her belly through it

Our nursery has had two cases recently which have meant we have had to manage two kids on and off under 3 isolating at home while we work. No time outside etc, both of them going stir crazy.
But.
At least they are being kept warm and safe while they are there (when they can go!)

As I say, ours is an outdoorsy one. I have had our little boy come home with no gloves and icy hands, but they were playing outside with toys in the water (pre covid - he's been off for a year and going back shortly as I'm currently on ML). He had gloves but they would have got wet, BUT, this was only for a little bit, not all day.

I took him to the park earlier and it was so cold he was visibly shaking. We had to leave after 30 mins (although that was mostly me 😬).

They have to have an indoors space. We just don't have the climate. Presumably they're not dropping the fees despite changing facilities? As I say, it just isn't fit for purpose.

I'm not sure about minimum work temperatures but I expect there's a duty of care to both staff and children to provide reasonable facilities. I'd be looking at ofsted too. It sounds miserable.

There's no way I'd be happy with that. 2 yr old DD's nursery are operating as normal - mix of inside and outside time.

At weekends we go out with DD in multiple layers, waterproofs, gloves, hat etc and in these temps she's had enough after an hour and asked to come home.

I wouldn't send her to a nursery where she was outside all day in English weather conditions in winter.

I’d report them to Ofsted before a child gets seriously ill. My 5 year old was shaking with numb hands after 1/2 hour outside today. It’s minus temps.

Sounds more like a workhouse than a nursery.

I’m astonished and whoever runs this nursery should spend a whole day outside as well. Bet they don’t though.

You should remove your child and report them to ofsted. It’s bonkers.

You really can't compare an actual outdoor nursery with proper facilities and procedures, experienced staff, detailed kit lists etc with a normal nursery that just randomly goes outside. No proper outdoor nursery would allow a small child to get wet and cold and not wear their gloves in minus 7 temperatures. I would be furious.

If you do decide to leave her there, check out forest nurseries for proper kit lists (worth the investment if she will be wearing the stuff every day, and a lot can be bought second hand) and ask the nursery what they are going to do to ensure that appropriate clothes are actually worn and kept on, and how they are going to ensure that a child being left in wet sleeves will not occur again. Covid is not an excuse for negligence, and it sounds as if they have no idea what they're doing.

My biggest problem would be the wet sleeves. The best kit in the world won’t help if you are wet, and they must check the children carefully and not rely on them to tell the staff if they are wet or cold. Did she seem unhappy? What did she say about her day?

I cannot work out who on earth would be sending their kids in under those circumstances!!

So I can bring my child to you for care for, and you'll put her outside in freezing temperatures and charge me £££ for the privilege?!

Bonkers.

I'm stunned.

That sounds absolutely awful.

I don’t understand the appeal of outdoor nurseries. I can’t even get my head around what you would do in a forest school nursery for eight hours a day, five days a week. Firest school SESSIONS for a few hours a week are amazing, but all day every day for weeks on end? How awful for the kids.

When do they do art? Phonics? Music? When do they play in the home corner? Do puzzles? Do baking activities? How do they wash their hands properly?

I’d rather get covid than force everyone to spend all day every day outside. We’ve all had it anyway at my nursery and it wasn’t that bad. Two weeks and it was all over and done with.