Rodent droppings, incomplete incident logs prompt closure of Saint John daycare

A child-care centre in Saint John has had its license pulled, effective Friday.

The families of the 40 children attending Rhymes & Chymes Daycare have been told another facility will help on an emergency basis.

Inspectors deemed the facility presented imminent danger to the health, safety and wellbeing of the children.

According to the province, the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development issued several compliance orders to the facility, and inspections were increased to ensure the safety of children.

The final inspection took place on Tuesday.

Publicly available documents showed two educators were conducting services at the daycare without valid first-aid and CPR training, and it was their fourth warning by inspectors to complete them.

The two “cannot be alone with the children until completed and confirmation sent to Inspector,” the report reads, with a Friday deadline to complete the training.

The facility also lacked proof of professional learning, and there was no documentation of children’s learning in the small pre-school room designated for children aged two and three.

The pre-school room also lacked forms of literacy, with no books observed by inspectors.

Most of the compliance orders had to do with general health standards under the Public Health Act.

The Tuesday inspection documented a wall with “a hole, wet gyproc, [and] wet insulation.” The report also detailed cracked and buckled baseboards, as well as insulation and rodent droppings in the pre-school room.

Inspectors say children were not required to wash their hands after playing outside, and gates were not locked in the kitchen area both upstairs and downstairs.

Washrooms were labeled as dirty, and rugs were ordered to be cleaned or discarded.

The large play kitchen also accumulated dirt and debris, while a Fisher Price farm was ordered to be thoroughly cleaned and a small “Cars” chair with a ripped seat to be discarded.

While daycare employees were required to keep daily incident logs, the report notes a log was started for one child, but wasn’t completed by an educator or signed by a parent. Three other incident logs weren’t signed by parents, meaning staff can’t confirm parents have been made aware of incidents involving their children.

Additionally, inspectors noticed a child’s file was left out on the shelf over the weekend, rather than kept in a locked cabinet as required at all times.

Despite efforts by the department, the province says the daycare has failed to comply with orders.