Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent)
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610. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to commit to a clear set of guidelines which will allow the childcare sector to return to work safely and as soon as possible. [10047/20]

Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent)
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On Friday 1 May, the Government released its Roadmap for Reopening Society and Business, which sets out Ireland's plan for lifting COVID-19 restrictions. The re-opening of Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare (ELC and SAC) services will be guided by this framework and will be underpinned by the Government's Return to Work Safely Protocol, expert advice, available evidence and consultation with ELC and SAC stakeholder representatives and providers themselves.

In line with the Roadmap, ELC and SAC services are currently scheduled to reopen from 29 June.

Expert guidance on the safe reopening of childcare services during the COVID-19 pandemic was published by the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) on Friday, 29 May. The guidance recommends use of a “play pod” model which restricts interactions between closed groups of children and adults as an alternative to social distancing, on the basis that social distancing is not possible between young children.

On Friday 5thJune, I launched a range of online resources and guidance to support service providers, practitioners and parents to prepare for the reopening of Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare settings, including childminders. The Guidance for Reopening webpage is available on the First 5 website. This webpage will be updated over the coming weeks with more resources and practice examples.