Nurseries in the UK have been told to follow the guidance to close their doors after the Government announced it will be closing schools to tackle the Covid-19 outbreak.
The stricter measures were brought in as the death toll reached 144 in the UK on Thursday and the number of those infected was predicted to be in the tens of thousands.
Funding for the early years entitlements will continue during any periods of nursery, preschool or childminder closures, or where children cannot attend due to coronavirus, the Government has said.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said on Tuesday the Government would continue to pay funding to local authorities for the free entitlements for two, three and four-year-olds.
Here, we take a more detailed look at what this means for parents with younger children:
How have nurseries reacted to the news?
The continuation in funding is hoped to provide reassurance for early years settings in light of coronavirus closures.
However, the chief executive of National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA) Purnima Tanuku said nurseries being closed in response to the Covid-19 pandemic is “absolutely devastating news” that will see early years providers forced to shut down.
"I have just expressed my total shock and disappointment to the minister, who had previously assured us they would keep nurseries open as long as possible," Ms Tanuku said.
“How can the private nursery sector remain sustainable in the face of mass closures and expensive overheads?
“We must have reassurance from the Government that as well as continuing to pay the early years entitlement funding, they will support the sector in the same way they have promised for other sectors badly affected by this catastrophe."
She added: “Nurseries will lose income from parents but will still have staff to pay and rental or mortgage costs.”
Ms Tanuku said that it was “vital” parents can access high quality care once they return to work, and that nursery businesses and their staff are in a position to deliver this.
She added: “We also need to know how some nurseries, who care for children of key workers and for vulnerable children, can continue to remain open with few children.
“I will be pressing the Government on all these issues at the early years sector Covid-19 response meeting tomorrow.”
What other support will nurseries get?
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said on Twitter that nurseries will be eligible for a business rates holiday from April 1, which was welcomed by the NDNA.
Will childminders have to close?
According to the Professional Association for Childcare and Early Years, the closure of early years educational settings in England includes childminders.
Chief executive Liz Bayram said more information on the closures is due to be published on Thursday, while acknowledging that childcare providers will be “extremely worried” about surviving temporary closures.
In a statement, she said: “The decision to close schools in England and Wales and, in England only, childcare settings too will not have been made lightly and is part of the UK’s on-going effort to defeat this terrible virus.
“We know our members and other childcare providers will be extremely worried about how they can survive if they are temporarily closed due to Covid-19 or forced to close down for all but vulnerable children or children of key workers.
“The support already announced by government will help but far more is needed to ensure childcare providers can survive this period of closure and rebuild the service so many families rely on to balance work and home, once we have beaten Covid-19.”
She added that registered childcare and play settings in Wales are due to remain open at this time.
Elaine Pitteway, executive director of Childminding UK, told the PA news agency that childminders were already asking the charity questions about payment.
She said: “Some insurance companies do cover childminders for a loss of earnings, but in this case, some are saying that although you would normally be covered for a notifiable disease, this particular virus isn’t yet on the list of insurer’s notifiable diseases.
“So therefore they won’t be paying them for a loss of earnings.
“At the moment, there doesn’t seem to be any insurance cover, and there’s certainly no government support or directive about loss of earnings.”
She also raised concerns about children’s care when schools are closed, as childminders work to a ratio – with most unable to take any more than six children at a time.
Ms Pitteway added: “Where would those children go? And I think this is going to be a real problem, because it means parents will just have to take time off, and then what will their employer do?
“Will they have to take all their leave, leaving families with no leeway or holiday to take later in the year? There’s huge repercussions.”
Funding
The Department for Education has asked that local authorities continue to pass on the Government funding it receives for these entitlements to providers.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: "Millions of parents rely on childcare and the vital service provided by nurseries, childminders and preschools. Making sure that young children can be cared for safely so that their parents are able to work where required is of the utmost importance now more than ever.
"In recognition of this, we will continue to pay for all free early years entitlements places, even in the event that settings are closed on the advice of Public Health England, or children are not able to attend due to coronavirus, and we will not be asking for funding back from local authorities."
Parents
Parents are waiting to find out more information on whether they will be entitled to get a refund on fees should their nursery close in the coming weeks.
Union leaders have called on the Government to ensure that working parents get paid parental leave when their child’s school or nursery closes because of the coronavirus outbreak.
The TUC said many parents are already having to take time off work to care for children, or could feel forced to ask grandparents to help out with childcare, potentially risking the health of vulnerable older people.
The union body warned that working women will be hard hit because they bear a disproportionate share of caring responsibilities, and that single-parent families are especially vulnerable.
