Speaking during this week’s virtual Welsh Parliament Plenary Session, North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood called for clarity over provision for critical workers to access educational or childcare settings for their children, after being contacted by NHS staff living in Flintshire who have been told they do not qualify.
Mr Isherwood is concerned that some NHS staff in Flintshire have been unable to access the provision as they have been told that both parents have to be critical workers in order to qualify.
UK Government guidelines clearly states that both parents do not need to be key workers in order to send their children to school if required.
It was confirmed to Mr Isherwood last week that the Welsh Government is operating to the same guidelines when he raised the matter with the Welsh Education Minister and received a response from her Office which stated: “Essentially, it is not our view that both parents must be defined as critical workers to access provision at an education or childcare setting. We are aware, however, that interpretation of the guidance differs in some local authority areas. We are working closely with local authorities and the WLGA to achieve greater consistency across Wales, and to ensure all parents who need to access provision to enable us to respond effectively to COVID-19 are able to do so”.
During this week’s virtual Plenary, he raised the issue with the First Minister.
Speaking via ‘Zoom’ from his North Wales home, he said:
“What policy or guidance has the Welsh Government issued regarding provision for critical workers to access educational or childcare settings for their children?
“A number of contacts have been made with me, by or on behalf of critical NHS staff living in Flintshire, who have been told that both parents have to be critical workers to qualify - one of whom has had to stay at home rather than join a clinical team, another is living apart from her children and husband in accommodation provided by Glyndŵr University in order to access her shifts at Wrexham Maelor.”
Replying, the First Minister said:
“On 6 April the Deputy Minister for Health & Social Services, Julie Morgan AM, issued a statement explaining how we are changing the childcare offer here in Wales. We’re closing it to new applicants in the current circumstances and we are allowing the money that would have been needed for those previous applicants to be diverted to make sure that childcare can be available at no cost to children of critical workers from the age of nought to five. The detail is set out in the statement. If there are questions beyond the statement that Members have, then I know that Julie will be very pleased to try and respond to them.”
Mr Isherwood added: “The Statement by the Deputy Minister for Health & Social Services clearly says ‘It is of paramount importance that those people who are critical to Wales’ response to coronavirus, including frontline health and social care staff, do not face any barriers in going to work if they are fit and well’. This is adding provision of free childcare for pre-school aged children to the provision that is already supposed to exist in education settings when it is impossible or unsafe for children of at least one critical worker to be cared for at home.”
“It is absolutely crucial that we do all we can to support those working on the frontline during these extremely challenging times. The fact that some have been unable to go to work because they have been unable to access the childcare provision available is appalling”.
