Setting: St Gabriel's, Rochdale
​Postcode: OL11 2TN
​Effective Period: Monday 20 July 2026 (6 Weeks)
​Review: Weekly, or sooner if site works change
​Created by: Emma Riley

During the six-week engineering works being carried out by United Utilities, there may be temporary interruptions to the mains water supply.

This contingency procedure has been developed to ensure that St Gabriel's continues to meet the Ofsted Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Safeguarding and Welfare Requirements, particularly those relating to health, safety and infection prevention.

All staff must be familiar with these procedures before each session.

The following equipment will be available throughout the duration of the works and must be checked at the beginning of every shift:

Before each session begins, the designated Site Lead must complete the following checks:

Fill all food-grade water containers and toilet flushing buckets while the mains supply is available to maximise reserve capacity.

Ensure each handwashing station is fully operational with:

Important: Under infection prevention guidance, children must never wash their hands in a shared bowl of standing water. Running water from the mobile handwashing stations must always be used.

Confirm that:

As soon as the mains water pressure drops or the supply is lost:

Immediately switch all children and staff to the mobile handwashing stations.

Dispose of dirty, stagnant water down the drains.

Use antibacterial wipes and hand sanitiser where appropriate to support good hygiene practices.

After every use, a member of staff must manually flush the toilet by pouring one bucket of reserve water directly into the toilet bowl.

Use bottled water for all drinking requirements and food preparation.

If the outage continues for one hour, or emergency water reserves begin running low before then, the Site Lead must immediately contact management.

Emma Riley
📞 07494 856133

Alex Ralph
📞 07951 186390

Main Office
📞 01282 525 200

Management will make an immediate assessment based upon:

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) requires providers to ensure suitable premises are maintained at all times, including access to safe toilet and handwashing facilities.

If management determines that:

the contingency plan will move to the next stage and the setting will close.

Once closure has been authorised:

Parents and carers will be contacted immediately and asked to collect their children as soon as possible.

Parents have already been informed of this contingency arrangement via:

This communication advised families that immediate collection may be required should the water supply fail.

Staff will follow the agreed closure procedures and ensure children remain supervised until collected.

Where appropriate, management will notify Ofsted within the required statutory timescales if the incident affects the provision of childcare or constitutes a notifiable significant event.

The safety, health and wellbeing of every child remains our highest priority. These procedures ensure that, even during essential utility works, St Gabriel's continues to make informed decisions based on risk, hygiene standards and the welfare of the children in our care.