Q. I run a small pre-school and have recently employed a staff member who vapes. What are your procedures for staff smoking during their breaks and is it necessary to have the same rules for vaping? It’s not an issue I’ve encountered before.
Purva Vig, nursery manager, Rayners Lane Montessori Nursery & Pre-school, Harrow, London
‘This is not an issue we have encountered before. But across our three branches we make sure our health and safety policies align with staff welfare.
‘Anyone who vapes is not allowed to do it near the nursery premises. If they have to vape or smoke they have to go far away, and change their clothes before they return to work.
‘A long time back we had a new member of staff who joined us and claimed she was allowed to vape at a previous nursery without changing her clothes. There is a perception that vaping is different, but it is not.
‘Our approach is both about removing the risk of children inhaling secondary smoke, and encouraging positive modelling for them. When the EYFS talks about keeping children healthy and safe, getting your smoking and vaping policy correct is one of the most basic factors. It is also important to consider allergies – perhaps vape smoke on clothes could trigger children to react.
‘It is important that staff are not out on smoking or vaping breaks at pick-up times, too. Imagine what an impression it makes on parents if, when they come to collect their child at midday or the end of the day, they encounter a member of staff outside the setting smoking or vaping?
‘We do ask staff if they smoke or vape. We do annual health checks and we include this question on the form. As well as the health aspect, having regular breaks to smoke or vape can interfere with the working day. Like many nurseries, we are facing challenges in recruitment and staff shortages. Managers are having to work in-numbers sometimes, so we keep in ratio. Although we try to be as flexible as possible, every little break puts pressure on the team.’
Sarah Dunn, nursery manager, Holyrood Nursery Salford Royal
‘Workers do not really have breaks in the same way as they used to. Years ago I worked at a nursery where we used to have a smoking shed. We know now that it is not good to smoke around children. But in the old days, people might come back into the setting after a break with the smell of smoke on their clothes.
‘Because of the risks attached to passive smoke, our smoking policy states that a member of staff must change their clothes before going out to have a cigarette. We cannot allow children to breathe in second-hand smoke off a nursery practitioner. Staff can either change their top, or put a coat over it and zip it up to the top. They also have to go off-site – they cannot smoke near the nursery. They have to cross the road and go and sit at the bus stop or something.
‘The same rules apply to vaping. Even though vaping is considered to be safer than smoking, allegedly, we do not want any confusion or risk. There is a bench just outside our staff office, but it would not be OK for someone to sit there and vape.
‘I am unsure if we have any staff member who smokes or vapes. We do not ask people when we recruit them – we just explain the rules.’
Rachel James, duty manager, Kiddlywinks Day Nursery, Penrith
‘We added vaping to our policies and procedures last year after it suddenly became popular. The rules are the same for smoking and vaping. Staff cannot do it on site, and we request that they do not smoke or vape near the nursery. If they go off-site, we ask them to cover up their uniform and badges.
‘This is because it can, obviously, be seen as inappropriate to smoke around children, and staff have to act as role models. We do not want to put out the wrong message in public.
‘We do have some staff members that vape, but they are very discreet about it. They are not allowed to have vapes on their person in the nursery – anything like that should be kept in their car or a locker. Vapes can be colourful and may be attractive to young children. Some of them are even designed to look like sweet packets. We do not want anything like that lying around.
‘Our policy also extends to parents. No-one is allowed to smoke or vape on nursery grounds. No children have ever asked us about vaping, or acted out the action of vaping. But if they did, we would find an age-appropriate way to explain what it is.’