Pushchair for evacuation, fires etc

[mummy21boy]

My ds is 2.5 and can be at time a little unsteady on his feet, late walker etc
Nursery has asked we provide a pushchair for them to use in case of fires or any other evacuation reasons.. aibu in thinking it would be quicker to pick him up and take him out or hold his hand and walk him out rather than find buggy, strap him in then push him out? Seems a strange request

What if the person evacuating can't carry a child because of a back injury?
It is a little unusual but presumably they have risk assessed and have decided that's what they need

I have worked somewhere where a similar request was made. We would obviously get the child out however we could, but the evacuation point was across a large field and you could be out there for ages in a real emergency. A long time to hold a heavy child.

Surely that's for the nursery to provide? Like extinguishers, fire blankets ect

Also, you are looking at it from your perspective of only having one child to consider
They are looking at it from an entirely different viewpoint and have to consider the health and safety of every child and every adult in the building, which could be over 100 people for a large nursery

Health and safety is the nursery remit though, it's not for the parent to sort out and pay for

Presumably the nursery don't want the expense of paying for specialist equipment for individual children

It does seem unusual but I can see it being the best solution especially if there isn't an obvious safe area to evacuate to that isn't for example by a busy road or unfenced river. The risk assessment might then require that any child able to walk but not able to follow the instruction to stay still and not go anywhere must be strapped into a pushchair. It's not just about getting them out safely, but about keeping them safe while the adults deal with the emergency.

You should be able to get a cheap or free pushchair from Gumtree or social media without any trouble.

A buggy is specialist equipment?

Yes, in this instance
Its only for one purpose and wont be if any use to the nursery if the ops child wasn't there

They could be outside for a long time if there was a fire. Holding him for 30mins/an hour ties up one member of staff who cannot then easily support other children. If he is strapped into a pushchair their arms are free to deal with other children

Right but if its a necessary peice of safety equipment then its for the nursery to provide?

I'm sure that they will pick him up - but then they could be outside for a couple of hours if it is a real fire. Do you want a member of staff trying to hang on to several kids or would you prefer him sitting in his pushchair?

Thanks for all your replies.

AlonsoTigerHeart I’m glad I’m not the only one thinking that.
He is very capable of standing for long periods so he wouldn’t need it anymore than any child his age.. they have said it’s specifically for getting him out and where they all stand after getting out is only a 5min toddler walk away 🤔

Also when they asked us to provide it they said that they used to have 2 but they got broken! 😏

Maybe then ask to see their risk assessments. Does it say specifically that all children must be put into a pushchair or just some?

I will happily provide it, I just have an image of him being left in the buggy all day.. I’m sure they used to use a buggy to get him to nap but he hasn’t been napping lately.. now they’ve said about their buggy’s being broken it kind of makes sense but I feel that they are using the evacuation as an excuse, I don’t quite understand why they haven’t replaced the ones they had...

Nurseries usually have an evacuation cot on wheels for the babies.
If your child proved an issue I'd have put him in that in an emergency situation.
If they need a resource then they should provide it imo.
Would they be happy with you taking it home every night as it's yours?