Under new Government guidelines issued to childcare providers at the end of May, children must be divided into “pods” of between six and 12. “I completely understand why the creche is not opening and why the childminder is in two minds,” Milligan says. The school, which usually caters for 22 early childhood care and education children and 20 afterschool children, employs two other qualified early years teachers in addition to Davey. “Childcare providers go back to work Monday on the back of personal debt with no funding approved and no allocation of the grant money promised by Katherine Zappone,” she says. Her son’s childcare facility is reopening this week, but with reduced hours and increased fees.

Source: The Irish Times June 28, 2020 05:03 UTC