Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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571. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the Covid-19 protection guidelines that are in place for all childcare facilities; if there has been an update to these guidelines in recent weeks; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [4406/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Public health experts have confirmed that Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School Age Childcare (SAC) services may continue to operate during the current Level 5 restrictions. While no environment is without risk in relation to Covid-19, and this has been the case throughout the pandemic, services can significantly reduce their risk level by closely following the expert guidance provided by the HSE. This expert guidance was prepared specifically for ELC and SAC services by the Health Protection Surveillance Centre (HPSC) last May and was updated at the end of July following the initial weeks of operation. The guidance is available at .

It is important to remember that the incidence of Covid-19 positive cases in children under 13 remains significantly lower than the population at large.

The advice from the HSE is that no change is required to the Infection Prevention and Control guidance for settings providing ELC/SAC during the pandemic. Services have been following this guidance effectively since reopening last June and it has helped to minimise risk of spread of infection within settings. My Department, in conjunction with the HSE, will keep this under review and will update as appropriate.