Report on Compliance with Health and Safety Standards at Native American Head Start Facilities

This report points out concerns regarding compliance with health and safety standards at Native American Head Start facilities. Significant numbers of health and safety deficiencies have been reported at Native American Head Start facilities. Of 106 facilities for which we reviewed safety inspection reports, 76 had fire safety problems, 55 had structural integrity concerns, 54 had water supply or rest room inadequacies, and 53 were identified with playground deficiencies. Recurring, serious deficiencies were reported at 23, or about 22 percent of the 106 facilities reviewed. In most instances, health and safety inspections were performed by the responsible entities. However, our review disclosed that health and safety inspections: were not standardized; were sometimes inconsistent with previous inspections of the same facility; were not always performed annually; and were conducted by agencies which lacked authority to require correction of deficiencies. Officials from the Administration for Children and Families generally agreed with our findings.