A new section on holidays has been added to the guidance on childcare closures which was issued last week, saying ‘we would encourage early years and childcare settings and schools to continue to look after critical workers’ children and vulnerable children throughout the Easter holidays’ and for settings to contact their local council, responsible for coordinating childcare provision locally, if this is proving difficult.
The guidance also has a new section on hub working, where settings merge and pool staff to enable sufficient numbers of children to be able to be offered a place for a setting to remain viable.
It says settings have to balance limiting the spread of the virus, which remain the priority, with safeguarding and consistency of provision for all children, and practical issues such as how children and staff access settings while limiting travel.
More guidance on this will be published after Easter, the DfE says, adding, ‘We want to ensure the system is sustainable and are working through these points with early years settings, local authorities, and stakeholders, via the Department for Education’s central and regional teams.’
Other updates include:
- Clarification on whether settings are still covered by their public liability insurance.
- Clarification on whether someone with a paediatric first aid certificate still needs to be on site.
- Clarification of DBS requirements.
The guidance has also been updated to include information on the Self-employment Income Support Scheme announced last week.
