Coronavirus: Protective bubbles at nurseries can be removed from 20 July

Nurseries, pre-schools and all other early years settings will no longer be required to keep children in protective 'bubbles' from 20 July, the Department for Education (DfE) has announced.

Credit: Shutterstock

From mid-July, restrictions on group sizes for nurseries, childminders and other early years providers will be lifted in England, increasing capacity for more children to return, according to DfE guidance published today.

Multiple 'protective bubbles' of eight to 16 individuals, have been previously advised by the government, as a safety measure in early years settings to help reduce potential transmission by keeping the same children and employees together at all time.

The guidance states that from 20 July 'early years settings will no longer be required to keep children in small, consistent groups within settings.

'Settings should still consider how they can minimise mixing within settings, for example where they use different rooms for different age groups, keeping those groups apart as much as possible.'

The DfE says that although the bubbles are being removed, 'all other protective measures must remain in place'.

'I want to reassure parents'

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: "Nothing can replace being in the classroom, so ever since schools, colleges and nurseries closed to most children, we have been working hard to ensure they can reopen as soon as possible. We have already seen more than 1.5 million children and young people return, but we must make sure all pupils can go back to school in September.

"I want to reassure parents and families that we are doing everything we can to make sure schools, nurseries, colleges and other providers are as safe as possible for children and staff, and will continue to work closely with the country’s best scientific and medical experts to ensure that is the case."

The DfE states in the guidance: 'There cannot be a ‘one size fits all’ approach where the system of controls describes every scenario. Setting leaders will be best placed to understand the needs of their settings and communities, and to make informed judgments about how to balance delivering high quality care and education with the measures needed to manage risk'.

The DfE also makes clear it is not mandatory for all registered early years settings to open because 'some settings may be unable to open, especially if they are experiencing staff shortages due to self-isolation and sickness, or particularly low levels of demand'.

Some in the early years sector have welcomed the removal of bubbles as a move towards greater flexibility for early years settings but are seeking clarity on the scientific basis of the government's decision and what steps nurseries pre-schools and childminders can take to minimise risk of infection without 'bubbles'.

'Good news'

Liz Bayram, chief executive at the Professional Association from Childcare and Early years (PACEY) called it "good news" that settings in England will no longer need to maintain small bubble as part of their control measures to reduce the risk of COVID-19 infection.

She said: "This is a step in the right direction and will make providing families with support easier. The need to continue to avoid mixing of children where possible will still present challenges but this guidance should give settings more flexibility in how they do this.”

Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Alliance, welcomed the "flexibility" for providers, saying: “We know that in the early years, one size doesn’t fit all and so the way a large nursery operates on a day-to-day basis is likely to be very different to, say, a small pre-school operating from a church hall or a childminder working out of their own home.

"As such, it is positive that today’s guidance change will allow providers the flexibility to operate safely in a way that is most appropriate for their own provision.

"There is no doubt, however, that keeping children, parents, practitioners and other early years staff safe has to be a priority and so it is important that there is clarity on the scientific basis for this decision, and what steps providers can and should take to ensure that they are still able to minimise the risk of infection transmission without the use of ‘bubbles’.

The new guidance was also seen as positive by Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of NDNA (National Day Nurseries Association, who said: “How to manage consistent groups across a week while attendance at nurseries varies so much has been a key challenge for our members.

"We have been raising this issue in our regular discussions with the Government and it is good to see that providers, who have the knowledge and experience of their settings and families, will be allowed to use their professional judgement in keeping staff and children safe.

“Keeping to eight or 16 in a group would have pushed many settings into unsustainable positions."

Like what you read? For more news click here