Home Corner Hairdressers - risk assessment, health & safety?

[Nanuk]

Hi all,

I have having my assessor come out next week and I suggested to my Manager that we change h/c to a hairdressers. She is very keen on this idea but I was just wondering what the H&S issue would be with children sharing brushes/combs and towels etc. Can anyone advise me?

We have already decided not to have the scissors on our drawing table that week as it is quite close to h/c and we don't want any 'real' attempts at cutting hair.

Thanks in advance,
Caroline

[Ruthierhyme]

Hiya, sounds like you've identified & have all the risk under control

To open it up a little - re-evaluate or reflect, is it possible to have a staff member deployed to stay within/around the home corner? Scissors are such a huge part of hairdressing it seems a shame to omit them due to what might happen. Maybe organise the environment a little to include the scissors in role play rather than at the drawing table?

Move the focus of using scissors to cut real hair to cutting dough and wool hair. Build pictures for a stylists gallery - face outline?

To help you feel more reassured you could also send out a note to parents letting them know what you've planned or will/have been doing with a hairdresser theme, explain that whilst you've focussed on cutting things other than real hair the children may have a heightened awareness of scissors, hair and the effect of cutting.

Invite feedback so that everyone's happy with what's provided - if you know head lice are present in the setting, cradle cap, alopecia or a skin condition/infection you could perhaps use dolls & soft toys for brushing/combing/accessory dressing

If you do find attempts are made at cutting real hair staff can intervene gently by explaining that people train for a very long time to cut hair neatly. If the children say they do cut neatly, agree & ask if they want to be a hairdresser later, explain how it's not always a good idea to cut own or other's hair because if they accidently cut it wonky or not how someone else wants it, hair takes a long time to grow back.

A great theme for exploring people who help us - hair professionals, bug busting and basic care routines/all about me - wash, dry, brush.

Hope you have fun xx

[poppit2k]

at my setting we have a hair dressers and we use the blunt scissors out of the doctors set and use the make up heads for brushing and styling the hair, so no brushes are shared via the children.

We have pretend hair dryers and tongs that you can get in some toy shops.

hope this ois of some help

[Nanuk]

Thanks for your replies, the hairdressers is going down a storm even with the boys

[ray]

we also provided nit combs so the children could see what they are . . . we had empty shampoo and conditioner bottles, empty hair product bottles for afro carribean hair with hair picks ect . .. we read two books about hair Bippity Bob Barbersshop and the mathcing one for girls ( cant remember the name got them on Amazon) . . . . we had parents bring in old hairstraightners and hair dryers which we cut the wires off...... the kids absolutely loved it