From Department of Children and Youth Affairs
Published at: 3 June 2020
Last updated 3 June 2020
Minister for Children & Youth Affairs, Dr Katherine Zappone, this week chaired the fifth meeting of the expert Advisory Group on the planned reopening of Early Learning and Care (ELC)/ School-age Childcare services (SAC). The Group, together with the recently established Reference Group, are advising Government as work continues to implement the Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business. The Government’s Roadmap sees crèches, childminders and preschools opening in phase 3 (29 June).
At the meeting, the Group were updated on ongoing work by Government on the development of a funding model for the reopening of the sector. It was agreed that the Department of Children & Youth Affairs will continue to closely liaise with providers in development of this model, through consultation with the Advisory Group and the Reference Group. The Group were also updated on the issuing of the Programme Support Payment (PSP), a total support package of €13 million which will issue this month. The PSP payments recognise the additional time required of providers to complete the administrative work associated with DCYA-funded early learning and care and school age childcare programmes. Providers can apply for the PSP through the Pobal portal.
Following the fourth meeting of the Group and first meeting of the Reference Group last week, HPSC public health guidelines for reopening were issued by the Department to the sector. Further guidance will continue to issue to the sector in the coming weeks. Childcare service providers are being asked to apply the public health guidance to their settings, to determine what capacity they can offer. If there is insufficient capacity for all children whose parents want them to return to the service on 29 June (the initial phase of reopening), childcare providers will be asked to prioritise the children of essential and frontline workers and vulnerable children. If there is sufficient capacity, services will be able to provide places for children who previously registered in childcare services on 12 March, whose parents continue to need childcare for employment or training purposes.
Speaking following the meeting, Minister Zappone said:
“As we continue to work towards the reopening of services at the end of this month, continued consultation and conversation with the childcare sector is more important than ever. My Department will continue to support the sector in work towards an orderly, safe and sustainable reopening of services. Extensive consultation with the sector is a key part of delivering this, and I want to thank each member of the Advisory Group and the Reference Group for their hard work and engagement. I want to encourage parents and providers to make contact with each other as the date for reopening approaches, so we can have as much information as possible on the level of demand and supply we are dealing with. The voice of parents needs to be heard loud and clear as we continue to work to implement the Government’s Roadmap. ”
