Suwon Launches Special Inspections on Food Hygiene and Child Abuse Prevention at Childcare and Youth Facilities

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Seo Dong-young] Suwon City announced on the 8th that it will conduct special inspections on food hygiene and child abuse prevention at all childcare and youth facilities in the city, including childcare centers.

Additionally, the city will conduct special inspections on "children at risk of re-abuse," through which at-risk children will be identified and case management will be provided by child protection agencies and police.

The hygiene and child abuse prevention special inspections will be conducted through the 27th of next month. The hygiene inspection targets include 1,001 childcare centers, 63 community children's centers, and 3 community care centers, totaling 1,067 facilities. Child abuse prevention inspections will be carried out at 1,058 facilities including childcare centers and community children's centers.

Hygiene inspections at childcare centers will be conducted by checking facilities based on inspection standards in three categories: food service, safety, and quarantine measures. Community children's centers will be inspected on compliance with expiration dates and cooking equipment and facilities.

If expired food ingredients are discovered, they will be disposed of immediately on-site. If any inadequate hygiene management practices are found, improvement orders will be issued.

Child abuse prevention inspections at childcare centers will verify CCTV operation status and whether childcare workers have completed child abuse prevention training.

The identification of at-risk children will continue through September 30. Suwon City will visit 520 homes of "high-risk children" identified through analysis of data on unvaccinated children, those who missed health checkups, and children with prolonged school absences to directly inspect for signs of abuse and living conditions. If any signs of abuse are found, the city will immediately report to police and connect the affected child with welfare services.

The "Special Joint Re-abuse Inspection" will be jointly conducted by the city, child protection agencies, police, and the education office through the 29th of this month.

First, each agency will conduct its own inspections of children under case management, and if any signs of abuse are identified, they will be accompanied by police to conduct intensive inspections for re-abuse. If re-abuse is confirmed, a zero-tolerance policy will be applied to prosecute the perpetrator, and the affected child will be separated and placed under protection.