Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 39, September 25, 2024
(a) Suitable
precautions must be taken to eliminate all conditions in areas accessible to
children which pose a safety or health hazard.
(1) The program must take suitable
precautions to prevent the following:
(i)
serious injury of a child while in care at the program or being transported by
the program; and
(ii) death of a
child while in care at the program or being transported by the
program.
(b)
The provider must submit a written emergency plan and emergency evacuation
diagram for the emergency evacuation of children from the premises for each
shift of care provided (day, evening, night), using a form furnished by the
office, or an approved equivalent form. Primary emphasis must be placed on the
immediate evacuation of children.
(1) The
plan, as submitted with the application or changed thereafter, must be reviewed
with the parents of the children in the program and all staff that work in the
program.
(2) The emergency
evacuation diagram, as approved by the office, must be posted in a conspicuous
place in every room.
(3) The
emergency plan must include the following:
(i) how children and staff will be made aware
of an emergency;
(ii) a designation
of primary and secondary evacuation routes;
(iii) methods of evacuation, including where
children and staff will meet after evacuating the building, and how attendance
will be taken;
(iv) a plan for the
safe evacuation of children from the premises for each shift of care provided
(day, evening, night);
(v) the
designation of primary and secondary emergency relocation sites to be used in
the case of an emergency, which prohibits re-entry to the child care premises,
and how the health, safety and emotional needs of children will be met in the
event it becomes necessary to evacuate to another location;
(vi) a strategy for sheltering in place, and
how the health, safety and emotional needs of children will be met in the event
it becomes necessary to shelter-in-place;
(vii) notification of authorities and the
children's parents;
(viii) roles of
staff; and
(ix) procedures related
to the reunification of children and caretakers.
(4) Each program must hold two
shelter-in-place drills annually during which procedures and supplies are
reviewed. Parents must be made aware of this drill in advance.
(5) The program must maintain on file a
record of each shelter-in-place drill conducted using forms provided by the
office or approved equivalents.
(6)
Parents must be made aware of the primary and secondary relocation sites and
any changes to the plan in advance. In the case that a program is directed to a
different location by emergency services, the program must notify parents and
the office as soon as possible. In the event that relocation is required, a
written notice must be placed on the main entry to the child care space unless
an immediate threat precludes the program from doing so.
(7) Each program must have on site a variety
of supplies including food, water, first aid and other safety equipment to
allow for the protection of the health and safety of children in the event
parents are unable to pick up children due to a local disaster. The plan must
take into account a child's needs for an overnight stay. Food supplies must be
non-perishable and of sufficient quantity for all children for an overnight
stay. Programs that serve food daily and have a food supply stored on site for
their daily operation or are co-located at a site with a cafeteria, pantry or
eatery of some kind are not required to store emergency food or water supplies
if they can show that they have access to and permission to use those foods in
a declared emergency.
(c) Portable electric heaters or other
portable heating devices, regardless of the type of fuel used, may not be used
in small day care centers.
(d)
Radiators and pipes located in rooms occupied by children must be covered to
protect the children from injury when the heating system is in use.
(e) Porches, decks and stairs with more than
two steps must have railings with a barrier extending to the floor or ground to
prevent children from falling. Acceptable types of barriers include, but are
not limited to, banisters, intermediate rails, and heavy screening.
(f) Barriers must exist to prevent children
from gaining access to unsafe areas. Such areas include, but are not limited
to, swimming pools, drainage ditches, wells, ponds, or other bodies of open
water, holes, wood and coal burning stoves, fireplaces, pellet stoves and
permanently installed gas space heaters or any other unsafe areas.
(g) The use of pools that have not received a
Department of Health permit to operate, spa pools and all fill-and-drain wading
pools are prohibited.
(1) No child shall
participate in aquatic activities including, fishing, boating, swimming or any
other activity on a body of water without a certified lifeguard present:
(i) The certified lifeguard can be either a
staff person from the day care center, or an employee of the venue.
(ii) If provided by the center, the certified
lifeguard must be certified for the body of water they are supervising children
in or near.
(2) No child
shall participate in activities at or near a body of water, without a person
who is certified in cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and first aid
present.
(3) Only those swimming
pools and bathing beaches that have a valid permit to operate issued from the
local health department having jurisdiction for the bathing facility or those
operated by a government agency may be used.
(4) The program shall develop and implement a
method to keep track of the location and maintain safety for all children
during swimming and other off-site activities. The program shall establish and
follow a written plan which details the system of supervising and checking
swimmers. This includes a plan for children who are non-swimmers. In addition,
a plan for a lost swimmer must be established.
(5) All staff attending the aquatic activity
must review the aquatic activity plan before departing for the
activity.
(h) Public
swimming pools and adjacent areas used by the children must be constructed,
maintained, staffed and used in accordance with chapter 1, subpart 6-1, of the
New York State Sanitary Code, and in such a manner as will safeguard the lives
and health of children.
(i) When
swimming is included as part of the program activities each child shall have a
signed statement of permission from the parent to participate.
(j) All field trips with an itinerary that
includes an activity where emergency medical care is not readily available
and/or an activity such as, but not limited to, wilderness hiking, rock
climbing, horseback riding, bicycling, must be accompanied by a staff who
possess a current first aid certificate and cardio-pulmonary resuscitation
(CPR) certification.
(k) If
off-site events are part of the program's activities, the child care program
must develop and share with its program staff written plans that cover field
trip events. The safety plan must at least include requirements set forth in
subdivision (g) of this section, sections
418-2.6, and
418-2.8
of this Subpart.
(l)
Animals
and pets.
(1) Any animal present at the
program must present no evidence of disease or parasite and pose no
threat.
(2) All animals present at
the program that require a license must be licensed.
(3) All required vaccinations must be kept
current.
(4) The license and record
of vaccinations must be available to the office when requested.
(5) The program must immediately notify the
parents of children in care and the office when an animal kept on the premises
harms any person, including a child in care.
(6) The provisions of this subdivision apply
to all animals present at the program regardless of who owns the
animal.
(7) The program must
provide parents with a written description of all animals kept on the premises
prior to a child's enrollment in the program.
(8) Within 24 hours that an animal is first
kept on the premises of a child care program, the program must provide written
notice to the office and parents of children in care that such animal is being
kept on the premises.
(9) Animals
that have bitten a person must be immediately and permanently removed from the
program.
(10) Reptiles and
amphibians are not permitted at child care centers.
(m)
Communication.
(1) The small day care center must have
immediate access to a minimum of one landline telephone for general use and
emergencies. A working mobile phone(s) is permitted for the purpose of
promoting children's safety and ensuring the orderly operation of the program,
but its use does not remove the requirement for a designated on-site landline
telephone.
(2) 911 and the poison
control phone number must be posted conspicuously on or next to all small day
center telephones.
(3) Devices used
for purposes of caller identification or call blocking shall not be used to
block in-coming calls from parents of children in care, representatives of the
office or agents of the State or local government during the hours of operation
of the small day care center.
(n)
Materials and play
equipment.
(1) Materials and play
equipment used by the children must be sturdy and free from rough edges and
sharp corners.
(2) Play equipment
must be installed and used in accordance with the manufacturer's specifications
and instructions, be in good repair, and be placed in a safe
location.
(3) Play equipment must
be used in a safe manner.
(4) Play
equipment and apparatus may be used only by the children for whom it is
developmentally appropriate.
(5)
All programs that substantially modify, or install new, outside play equipment
must do so in accordance with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's
Public Playground Safety Handbook.
(o) Clear interior or exterior glass doorways
must be marked clearly to avoid accidental impact.
(p) Glass in outside windows less than 32
inches above the floor level must be of safety grade or otherwise protected by
use of barriers to avoid accidental impact.
(q) Windows above the first floor that are
accessible to children and present a fall hazard must be protected by permanent
barriers or restrictive locking devices to prevent a window from opening fully
thus preventing children from falling out the windows.
(r) An operable flashlight or battery powered
lantern must be kept in each classroom. Such equipment must be properly
maintained for use in the event of a power failure.
(s)
Door latches, locks and
covers.
(1) Every closet door latch
that is accessible to children must be constructed to enable children to open
the door from inside the closet.
(2) Every bathroom door lock must be designed
to permit opening of the locked door from the outside in an emergency. The
opening device must be readily accessible to the caregivers.
(3) Egress doors from the small day care
center must be able to be opened from the inside without using a key. Child
protective door knob covers may not be used on egress doors.
(t) Operating carbon monoxide
detectors and alarms must be located in accordance with applicable
laws.
(u) The use of trampolines by
day care children is prohibited, except for small one person exercise
trampolines.
(v) All matches,
lighters, medicines, drugs, cleaning materials, detergents, aerosol cans and
other poisonous or toxic materials must be stored in their original containers.
Such materials must be used in such a way that they will not contaminate play
surfaces, food or food preparation areas, or constitute a hazard to children.
Such materials must be kept in a place inaccessible to children.
(w) Cleaning materials must be stored in
their original containers unless the product's use or the program's health care
plan indicates that the product be mixed with water before use. In this case,
the container used for subsequent use of the mixed product must state the name
of the cleaning material contained within. Cleaning materials must be used in
such a way that they will not contaminate play surfaces, food or food
preparation areas, or constitute a hazard to children. Such materials must be
kept in a place inaccessible to children.
(x) Firearms, shotguns and rifles are
prohibited at the child care program, except that nothing in this section shall
be construed to prohibit a police officer or peace officer, as those terms are
defined in section 1.20 of the Criminal Procedure Law, or a
security guard, as defined in section 89-f of the General Business Law, from
possessing a firearm, shotgun or rifle on the premises for the protection of
the child care program. Each child care program shall post signs providing
notification of such prohibition that read: "No firearms, shotguns or rifles
are permitted on these premises." Such signs, not less than eight and one-half
inches by eleven inches, shall be posted in a prominent manner and within
reasonable distance of each entrance of the child care program. Such signs
shall be distributed by the Office of Children and Family Services.
(y) Protective caps, covers or permanently
installed obstructive devices must be used on all electrical outlets that are
accessible to children.
(z) All
window and door blind cords, ropes, wires and other strangulation hazards must
be secured and inaccessible to children.
(aa) The following items must be used and
stored in such a manner that they are not accessible to children: handbags,
backpacks or briefcases belonging to adults; plastic bags; and toys and objects
small enough for children to swallow.
(ab)
High chairs.
(1) High chairs, when used, must have a
sturdy and steady base and be used only for children who are able to sit up
independently.
(2) A safety strap
must be fastened around children who are seated in high chairs.
(ac) Staff and volunteers must
take suitable precautions to prevent children from receiving burns caused by
contact with hot liquids.
