If you run a crèche, a pre-school or a school-age service, first aid training is not a nice to have. It is a condition of operating.
From September 2026 there is a specific PHECC course named for it, and UFAS is approved to deliver it.
What changed
Tusla now includes PHECC First Aid Essentials Paediatric First Aid among the qualifications that meet the first aid requirement for pre-school services under Regulation 25(1), from September 2026.
Universal First Aid Services has been approved by PHECC to deliver the new First Aid Essentials courses, so the training is available now.
The part people get wrong
There are two PHECC First Aid Essentials streams, and they are not interchangeable.
- Paediatric First Aid is the First Aid Essentials course relevant to the Tusla requirement for pre-school services.
- Basic First Aid is a general first aid course and should not be confused with the paediatric qualification.
Not every course with “paediatric first aid” in its title is the same qualification. If you are booking training specifically to meet a regulatory requirement, check that the course and certification are among those currently accepted by Tusla.
Worth checking before you book, not after.
What the course covers
Five modules across one day:
- Introduction to first aid
- Paediatric patient assessment
- Cardiac First Response Community, including CPR, AED use and choking for infants, children and adults
- Injuries and trauma, covering bleeding, burns, head and limb injuries and fractures
- Common paediatric medical emergencies, including asthma, seizures, anaphylaxis, sepsis and poisoning
It is practical from start to finish. Skills demonstrations, hands on practice and emergency scenarios in small groups, with infant and child manikins.
Who should be on it
- Early years educators and room leaders
- Crèche and pre-school staff
- Childminders and Montessori staff
- School and school-age service staff
- Special Needs Assistants
- Sports coaches, youth leaders and volunteers
- Parents, guardians and foster carers
There are no prerequisites. No previous first aid experience or qualification is needed.
How many of your team need it
A person trained in first aid for children has to be immediately available to the children at all times the service is operating.
How many people that means in practice depends on your own setting: your staffing arrangements, your risk assessment, your opening hours and the needs of the children in your care.
In most services it is more than one person. Leave is the usual catch. One trained staff member on paper becomes nobody trained the week they are out.
Not sure how many staff you need to train? Talk to us about your team size and we’ll help you work out the most practical training arrangement.
How the course runs
- 6.5 contact hours, normally one day
- Maximum 8 learners per instructor
- Practical assessments, which must be passed before certification
- PHECC digital certificate on successful completion, valid for 2 years
- Delivered at a UFAS venue or on site in your own setting
On site works well for a full team, because the training happens in the room where the emergency would actually happen.
If you have more learners than one instructor can take, we can put on extra instructors or extra dates.
Checking a provider
Ask any provider for their PHECC Recognised Institution status and check it on the PHECC register. UFAS is a PHECC Recognised Institution and the registration is there to be looked up.
It takes two minutes and it is the difference between a certificate that counts and one that does not.
Book a course
We can train your whole team in a day, at your setting or ours.
Not sure whether you need the paediatric course or the general one? Our post on choosing between them works it through.
Get in touch with us for any enquiries or to arrange a training course.
Telephone: +353 (01) 699 1126
Email: info@ufas.ie
See all our courses at ufas.ie/first-aid-courses.
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