Reopening of childcare facilities is scheduled for phase three of the government's roadmap to ease restrictions.
(Source: wallpaperflare.com)Parentline is warning that parents may have no choice but to give up their jobs if crèches don't reopen next month.
It's after a new survey revealed 60 per cent of childcare providers do not plan to reopen when restrictions are eased next month.
Aileen Hickie from Parentline says many parents have jobs that mean they will need to go back to a physical workspace, but even parents who can keep working from home need the childcare sector to reopen:
"We hear it at Parentline, they're already at the end of their tether being a full-time parent and a full-time worker and they need some level of childcare and some level of support around their working hours."
The research was carried out by the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, which is calling for detailed guidelines on how facilities can safely get back up and running.
Chairperson Elaine Dunne says clear instructions are needed:
"We're supposed to be opening on the 29th of June but we're coming into the 1st of June, so you've got three and a half weeks to get everything ready but we've no money to do it."
Practicalities of childcare
Meanwhile Laura, who manages a crèche in Kildare, says she does not think it will be practical to reopen until September:
"For us to handwash even six children for 20 seconds, it's going to take up a lot of time. From taking away toys in the classroom to telling children who haven't seen their pals in two months that they can't sit beside them - I personally just don't see how we're going to reopen."
