Childminders & Creches how will they return?

salmocab

deisedevil wrote: »

Seriously? What a plank. How could she go and announce something that was only an idea and nothing like a workable solution. After she announced it I spoke to Pobal, my creche owner and some others. All said they were taken aback by the announcement and had no idea how this was going to work. They never bothered to go through this with the providers of the proposed service. Some parents are hanging on to Frontline and essential jobs by their fingernails. They are desperate for a solution to childcare. If this isn't resolved soon then we will have even bigger problems. Zappone should go now. Regardless of the times we live in this is unforgivable and she is not capable.

Zappone is unemployed from the moment a new government is formed.

deisedevil

salmocab wrote: »

Zappone is unemployed from the moment a new government is formed.

Oh I know and she's lucky to have lasted as long as she did. Childcare was a disaster in this country before Covid ever came about.

salmocab

deisedevil wrote: »

Oh I know and she's lucky to have lasted as long as she did. Childcare was a disaster in this country before Covid ever came about.

That’s the thing she wasn’t lucky, her seat at cabinet was guaranteed as an independent, ineptness was irrelevant as they needed her vote.

pwurple

Shybride2016 wrote: »

Personally until there’s a very rapid turnaround for testing I can’t see crèches and preschools reopening in any sort of “normal” capacity.

It’s time to get rid of the culture of putting parents under pressure to work like they don’t have kids, and parent and look after their children like they don’t have a job.

From my perspective, these two statements are a chicken and egg situation

Many of us working with children are working in either healthcare, or in the supporting industries, like pharmaceuticals, where we are under pressure to either develop new tests, read test slides, work on new treatments, and get prepped for creating billions of vaccine doses. Ireland is a huge bank of pharmaceutical experience and knowledge. If / when a vaccine is created, you can be sure Irish people will be working on it somewhere in the chain.


It's very difficult to reconcile these two for some families... on one hand, you want to help get everyone by working on the virus response, and on the other hand, you have people saying you should stop working and mind your kids.

JDD

My three kids are in creches and afterschools.

I'm getting the impression here that insurance companies won't cover creches if their employees get sick from COVID-19: this insurance issue isn't going to be just confined to providing childcare to healthcare workers. Insurance companies wanted to get out of the childcare sector last December remember? Only for unholy pressure being put on them by the government did many creches reopen after Christmas. This will be the perfect excuse for them to withdraw cover.

I'm seriously considering going back to getting a childminder in the house. After having childminders for a couple of years, I really wanted them to go back to afterschools/creches so that they could get some variety in activities and got to socialize with other kids. Particularly important for my three year old, who had only started in a creche six weeks before everything shut down.

Social distancing measures won't work in a creche, simple as that. And childcare workers won't be able to wear PPE, it would terrify the children. I'd take them out of creche simply for that. It's not that I don't want childcare workers to be safe, it's just my children are my first priority, simple as that.

I don't see how this slow opening of creches is going to work. I simply can't continue only working half days until Christmas. Work expects me back full time in September, when the schools reopen. My employer has been fantastic so far, really accommodating regarding work hours, but this simply can't go on forever - or even until a vaccine is in place next year, should we even get a vaccine.

So it's back to a childminder. I could probably get one in at the end of July - I don't see anything in the measures about in-home childcare being restricted on hours so I could probably get them full time. I just feel sorry for all the creches/after-schools that are going to close over this.

Shybride2016

pwurple wrote: »

From my perspective, these two statements are a chicken and egg situation

Many of us working with children are working in either healthcare, or in the supporting industries, like pharmaceuticals, where we are under pressure to either develop new tests, read test slides, work on new treatments, and get prepped for creating billions of vaccine doses. Ireland is a huge bank of pharmaceutical experience and knowledge. If / when a vaccine is created, you can be sure Irish people will be working on it somewhere in the chain.


It's very difficult to reconcile these two for some families... on one hand, you want to help get everyone by working on the virus response, and on the other hand, you have people saying you should stop working and mind your kids.

Hi pwurple,

I absolutely hear you that there are many many parents who work on the frontline in many different capacities, including testing etc and it’s so important that they can continue to do their jobs without having the extra stress of trying to find childcare.

The DCYA have made an absolute mess of sorting childcare for those that need it most. They have a very long history of coming up with at best hair-brained plans to help parents, yet they consistently refuse to acknowledge the providers’ and consult with them in any meaningful way before announcing these wonderful schemes.

From day 1 of the closures, there was a Facebook group set up by childcare workers who wanted to match frontline workers looking for childcare with childcare workers available to do it, in the child’s home. Why weren’t they consulted with by the DCYA to see how they are managing the situation? They are the ones on the coal face since 13th March and have a huge amount of knowledge and experience in the last 9 weeks of how they are managing.

The cancellation of the scheme due to one reason being the WRC recommendation that they had to get their breaks was just the straw that broke the camel’s back. Yes, they’re entitled to breaks but working in childcare, unless there are a massive number of “floating” staff available to cover breaks, your breaks can often be while the younger ones are napping - only for one of them to wake up needing a nappy change, feeling sick or just not being tired anymore. If another child happens to vomit or need an urgent nappy change for example, whoever was scheduled on break is now needed in the room to mind the others while the sick child is tended to.
Not to mention, how many healthcare workers are entitled to breaks but don’t get them due to a multitude of reasons?

I am increasingly concerned that this latest mess-up by the DCYA is part of a wider conversation which started last week apparently considering disbanding the DCYA which would be disastrous for many children and their advocate agencies.

Anyway I sincerely hope that your family get some sort of concrete answer soon to your childcare needs. Thank you for all that you are doing in this emergency and you and your family do not deserve to be left hanging.

JDD

From day 1 of the closures, there was a Facebook group set up by childcare workers who wanted to match frontline workers looking for childcare with childcare workers available to do it, in the child’s home. Why weren’t they consulted with by the DCYA to see how they are managing the situation? They are the ones on the coal face since 13th March and have a huge amount of knowledge and experience in the last 9 weeks of how they are managing.

Did that actually go ahead? There were hundreds of childcare workers and teachers who signed up to that if I remember rightly.

The simple truth is that childminders in a house don't get breaks. They might if they're minding a baby, but not older children. And older children get left on their own all the time. It's their own house, you can't tell them they can't leave the room because then they're unsupervised. It's nonsense to try and apply creche rules to an in-home situation. There's a good reason why 99% of childminders in the state are unregistered with Tulsa, with the majority of them being paid cash in hand.

Shybride2016

JDD wrote: »

Did that actually go ahead? There were hundreds of childcare workers and teachers who signed up to that if I remember rightly.

The simple truth is that childminders in a house don't get breaks. They might if they're minding a baby, but not older children. And older children get left on their own all the time. It's their own house, you can't tell them they can't leave the room because then they're unsupervised. It's nonsense to try and apply creche rules to an in-home situation. There's a good reason why 99% of childminders in the state are unregistered with Tulsa, with the majority of them being paid cash in hand.

I was a childminder years ago when my own kids were small and worked 14-hour days with no breaks. The difference is I was self-employed so the WRC recommendations for breaks etc don’t apply.

If you’re working in someone else’s home you’re an employee so this is why the WRC waded in.

The majority of childminders are not registered with Tusla as to be registered with them you must be minding 4 or more preschool-age children at any one time, bearing in mind that you cannot mind more than 5 total including your own. Giving my own situation as an example, I had two preschool-age children of my own so could only mind a total of three others maximum, so I couldn’t register with Tusla even if I had wanted to.
Childminders are self-employed and look after their own taxes and PRSI so being paid in cash is perfectly legal as long as it’s declared in their annual tax return, same as any self-employed person. Not every childminder is working on the black market.

Minier81

JDD wrote: »

Social distancing measures won't work in a creche, simple as that. And childcare workers won't be able to wear PPE, it would terrify the children. I'd take them out of creche simply for that. It's not that I don't want childcare workers to be safe, it's just my children are my first priority, simple as that.

Absolutely agree about masks in creche. My little one is nearly 2 and I would not send her back if staff are wearing masks.

deisedevil

Minier81 wrote: »

Absolutely agree about masks in creche. My little one is nearly 2 and I would not send her back if staff are wearing masks.

She'll have to get used to it. Wear one yourself around the house for a while beforehand. Give her one for herself. She'll be grand. There's far more to be worried about than a child crying over a mask. Will employers be understanding if employees say they can't come to work because their child is scared of the masks at creche?

Shybride2016

Minier81 wrote: »

Absolutely agree about masks in creche. My little one is nearly 2 and I would not send her back if staff are wearing masks.

Hi minier,

I am a preschool teacher and it’s quite possible that the guidance on reopening will be for us to wear face coverings. Please be assured that even though crèches and preschools are closed, many staff are engaging in CPD around infection control and specialised training around working in a Covid19 landscape.

Your daughter’s care workers if they have to wear face coverings will be preparing the children for their return by making contact with you and her likely with photos/videos explaining why they are wearing face masks etc so the first day your creche reopens will not be your daughter’s first time seeing her carer wearing a face mask.

There will no doubt be many many tears on the first day back, out of fear at seeing face coverings, separation anxiety of leaving their parents after nearly 6 months at home away from the creche etc.

Creche and preschool teachers know that social distancing is impossible in these important interactions with young children and will do their absolute very best to balance the health and safety requirements with the human caring side of their jobs.

As yet (as usual) there has been no official advice to services from the DCYA around what will need to be in place in June for reopening but we’ve had 9 weeks of lockdown already and look how much change has happened so quickly.

Don’t forget that with support of parents and carers, children are very resilient and respond for the most part very well to change and if your little one is frightened by the face masks hopefully it won’t be for long and she’ll likely get used to them very quickly.

faceman

Ivan Yates had a rant at Holohan yesterday for ignoring the reports and research in to transmission rates in children. Might be up on the Newstalk website. Also worth listening to his interview with Alan Kelly from Labour. I’m not a fan of him but he is asking the government hard questions

Also this GP gave her view to the Examiner

https://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland/gp-claims-it-doesnt-make-sense-anymore-to-close-schools-until-september-999781.html

Minier81

Shybride2016 wrote: »

Hi minier,

I am a preschool teacher and it’s quite possible that the guidance on reopening will be for us to wear face coverings. Please be assured that even though crèches and preschools are closed, many staff are engaging in CPD around infection control and specialised training around working in a Covid19 landscape.

Your daughter’s care workers if they have to wear face coverings will be preparing the children for their return by making contact with you and her likely with photos/videos explaining why they are wearing face masks etc so the first day your creche reopens will not be your daughter’s first time seeing her carer wearing a face mask.

There will no doubt be many many tears on the first day back, out of fear at seeing face coverings, separation anxiety of leaving their parents after nearly 6 months at home away from the creche etc.

Creche and preschool teachers know that social distancing is impossible in these important interactions with young children and will do their absolute very best to balance the health and safety requirements with the human caring side of their jobs.

As yet (as usual) there has been no official advice to services from the DCYA around what will need to be in place in June for reopening but we’ve had 9 weeks of lockdown already and look how much change has happened so quickly.

Don’t forget that with support of parents and carers, children are very resilient and respond for the most part very well to change and if your little one is frightened by the face masks hopefully it won’t be for long and she’ll likely get used to them very quickly.

It's not just the scary factor, I am wondering what impact it will have on social and speech development for such a young child.

je551e

Sorry don’t see a thread on crèches reopening but sending my daughter back to crèche when it reopens on the 29th June.

Don’t have a choice as need to work but also don’t know if I feel a 100% happy!

How does everyone feel about their children back ? Haven’t received any guidelines yet.

Beasty

Threads merged

je551e

Beasty wrote: »

Threads merged

Thanks

heebusjeebus

My daughter is going back on the 29th too.
I don't see the risks honestly. Not one report of covid from any of the kids families pre lockdown which should be a miracle considering how they pick up everything else in creches.

je551e

heebusjeebus wrote: »

My daughter is going back on the 29th too.
I don't see the risks honestly. Not one report of covid from any of the kids families pre lockdown which should be a miracle considering how they pick up everything else in creches.

Good to hear that, thanks .

chris85

Also plan for kid to return to creche on 29th. I know its lower risk now with community transmission very low but also limited on info about how they are controlling the risk that is still there. Expecting some more info later in the week from the creche.

Any feedback from other people on measures their creches are putting in place?

salmocab

chris85 wrote: »

Also plan for kid to return to creche on 29th. I know its lower risk now with community transmission very low but also limited on info about how they are controlling the risk that is still there. Expecting some more info later in the week from the creche.

Any feedback from other people on measures their creches are putting in place?

They’ve been given some guidance, basically the child will stay with the same group all day which is basically whoever they are in a class with, the staff will only be with them with no crossover on any day. They’ll be kept separate from other groups at all times. There’s obviously extra cleaning and disinfection going on too.

chris85

salmocab wrote: »

They’ve been given some guidance, basically the child will stay with the same group all day which is basically whoever they are in a class with, the staff will only be with them with no crossover on any day. They’ll be kept separate from other groups at all times. There’s obviously extra cleaning and disinfection going on too.

Yep well yeah these are the basics we know but the finer details of how this will happen will be important. Some creches see a lot of overlap between different groups (staff floating at times to ensure correct coverage at times, covering breaks, sleeping areas, shared outdoors areas and how this is managed, commons areas where parents/kids go in). There is probably a lot of work going on to get these details in place but wondering how others are doing it.