The report of the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs (Igas), published this Tuesday, April 11, points to a quality of reception ” very disparate in crèches, is alarmed by situations resembling abuse and calls for profound reforms.
The report does not hesitate to draw a parallel with the situation in nursing homes. The inspectors were commissioned by the government after the death of an 11-month-old baby in a private nursery in Lyon last June. A case in which an employee was indicted, suspected of having made the child ingest a caustic product. They visited 36 public and private establishments across France, distributed a questionnaire to which 5,275 directors, 12,545 crèche employees and 27,671 parents responded.
Conclusion: in terms of crèches, there is the best as well as the worst, estimates the report of the General Inspectorate of Social Affairs (Igas) published on Tuesday 11 April. Next to nurseries of high quality, supported by in-depth pedagogical reflection “, we also find ” establishments of very poor quality “, which can lead to ” deficiencies in emotional security and in awakening of toddlers, underline the authors of this report.
This topic is “ too little questioned “, even though ” the areas of risk and the facts reported are identical to those observed in any reception of vulnerable and dependent people “, that is to say in retirement homes or establishments for the disabled, note the authors of the report.
“ You’re kidding for nothing »
Many of the adults interviewed thus described situations resembling abuse, the authors point out, evoking children forgotten on the toilet, deprived of a nap for lack of beds in sufficient number, or on the contrary left in tears until they fall asleep. Other testimonies refer to children who are not given anything to drink, ” that way, you change diapers less “, that we leave too long in their soiled diaper, that we humiliate or insult (“ you suck for nothing », « you smell bad “…), which are force-fed by pinching their noses to make them open their mouths, or even physically abused by pulling their hair or tying them to a radiator.
Faced with these observations, all the recommendations ” of this document will be taken into account, assured Tuesday in a press release the Minister of Solidarity, Jean-Christophe Combe, who wishes ” act quickly “. The minister is expected to announce measures later this spring, as part of the “ public childcare service promised by President Macron: this project has a quantitative dimension, with the necessary creation of more places, but also a qualitative dimension, underlined the minister’s entourage.
For Igas, improving the quality of reception must go through a strengthening of controls, an increase in the rate of supervision and the level of qualification of professionals, but also by a mode of financing of establishments conditioned on quality objectives. . The rapporteurs also underline the need to remedy the lack of attractiveness of early childhood professions, “ aggravating factor as much as symptom » Difficulties welcoming children well.
► To listen: Child kings, child martyrs, nurseries and early childhood in Europe
(With AFP)