Safer Sleep at Brighstone Preschool

At Brighstone Preschool, safe sleep has always been a really important part of our practice, and I want to share how we support children to have a safe, calm and reassuring sleep experience.

From 1 September 2026, updated Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) requirements have brought clearer, strengthened safer-sleep requirements into the statutory framework, placing even greater emphasis on creating a safe sleep environment for babies and young children.

While the wording within the EYFS has been strengthened, providing a safe and nurturing environment for sleeping children is already an important part of our everyday practice at Brighstone.

🛏️ Our sleep arrangements

Babies aged 12 months and under sleep in a cot, with a firm, flat, waterproof mattress and a sleepsuit provided by their parents. The updated EYFS specifically requires babies aged 12 months and under to sleep in a cot.

For children over one year, when they are developmentally ready, we use individual sleep mattresses on a firm, flat surface.

Every child has their own labelled bedding bag, so bedding is kept separate and hygienic. We ensure that children cannot become covered by loose bedding, and sleep mats are cleaned after every use.

These arrangements help us provide children with their own comfortable sleep space while maintaining the high standards of safety and hygiene that are so important within our preschool.

🩷 A calm approach to sleep

We want sleep to feel like a peaceful part of the day rather than something children are rushed into.

Just as children have individual personalities, they also have their own sleep needs and routines. We work with those individual needs to help children feel comfortable and secure as they settle.

Our approach can include gentle white noise to help drown out the everyday sounds of preschool, a familiar story while children settle, and their own comforter to help them feel secure.

Children are supported to fall asleep in a calm and reassuring way, with their individual sleep needs and routines respected.

We also strive to maintain appropriate temperatures for sleep by providing cooling systems and gentle fans when needed. The EYFS requires providers to ensure that sleeping children do not become too hot or cold.

👀 Safety checks while children sleep

Our care, of course, continues once a child has fallen asleep.

Children are frequently physically checked throughout their sleep to make sure they remain safe and comfortable, and sleeping children remain within sight and hearing. These arrangements reflect the strengthened EYFS requirements around supervision during sleep.

For us, sleep at Brighstone Preschool is about safety, security and wellbeing.

We want parents and carers to feel confident that when their little ones are sleeping here, they are cared for just as carefully and lovingly as they are during every other part of their day.

Safe sleep. Calm environment. Individual needs. Lots of care. 💚