The Duty of Candour underpins the Scottish Government’s commitment to openness and learning which is vital to the provision of the safe, effective and person-centred health and social care.

All health and social care services in Scotland have a duty of candour. This is a legal requirement which means that when things go wrong and mistakes happen, the people affected understand what has happened, receive an apology, and that organisations learn how to improve for the future. An important part of this duty is that we provide an annual report about the duty of candour within our service. This short report describes how Craighead Early Years Centre has operated the duty of candour during the time between 31st January 2022 and 31st January 2023.

1. About Craighead Early Years Centre
   
   Craighead Early Years Centre is a local authority run service providing day care for children aged 2-5 years. The centre is based within the grounds of Craighead Primary School and is registered for 40 children aged 3-5 years at any one time with 5 spaces for 2 year olds. We provide day care to children between the hours of 9am and 3pm and operate on a term time basis.
   
   
2. How many incidents happened to which the duty of candour applies?
   
   In the last year, there have been no incidents to which the duty of candour applied.
   
   
3.  Information about our policies and procedures
   
   Where something has happened that triggers the duty of candour, our staff report this to the HT/ DHoC who has responsibility for ensuring that the duty of candour procedures that are reflected in the Scottish Governments organisational guidance are followed. The HT/DHoC records the incident and reports as necessary to the Care Inspectorate. When an incident has happened, the HT/DHoC and staff set up a learning review allowing everyone involved to review what happened and identify changes for the future. All new staff learn about the duty of candour at their induction. We know that serious mistakes can be distressing for staff, service users and their families, therefore, we will ensure that every individual affected will be supported through our Health and Wellbeing policies and procedures. The overall purpose of the duty of candour is to ensure that our organisation is open, honest and supportive when there is an unexpected or unintended incident resulting in death or harm, as defined in the Duty of Candour Procedure (Scotland) Regulations 2018.
   
   
4. Other information
   
   As required, we have submitted this report to the Care Inspectorate but in the spirit of openness we have placed in on our website and shared it with our parents too.
   
   
   Duty of Candour produced on: January 2023
   Created by: Lynne Stewart
   To be reviewed on: January 2024