🍎 Safer Eating in Early Years Settings: Key Reminders

Following recent guidance on safer eating in education and childcare settings, providers should review mealtime and snack-time arrangements to help reduce the risk of choking.

Key reminders:

✅ Children should be actively supervised whilst eating.

✅ Children should be sitting down appropriately when eating, rather than walking, running, playing or lying on the floor.

✅ Practitioners should be close enough to monitor children and respond quickly if needed.

✅ Staff should be familiar with the signs of choking and know the setting's emergency procedures.

✅ Children should be encouraged to eat at their own pace, chew food thoroughly and avoid overfilling their mouths.

✅ Children should wash their hands before eating and snack areas should be kept clean and hygienic.

✅ Food should be prepared in an age-appropriate way, with consideration given to known choking hazards.

✅ A suitably trained paediatric first aider should be available in line with EYFS requirements.

Good Practice Spotlight: Rolling Snack Provision

Many settings find that a rolling snack approach, with an adult seated alongside children, can offer benefits including:

• Smaller groups of children eating at any one time.
• Better supervision and interaction.
• More opportunities for conversation and language development.
• Reduced waiting times.
• Improved oversight of children's eating and drinking.

Providers should regularly review their snack and mealtime arrangements to ensure children are eating safely and receiving appropriate supervision.

Safe eating is everyone's responsibility. Taking time to review snack and mealtime routines can make a significant difference to children's safety, wellbeing and learning.