Ireland plans for Phased re-opening

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The Taoiseach (Irish PM) has announced tonight a 4 phase period for re-opening the country but has said that schools will remain closed until September.
Must admit, I’m happy about the delay as I was worried about how I’d manage DS attending school with his dad cocooning as DH has a blood cancer.
Also, that small social gatherings of friends can begin on 18th May outdoors, providing still maintaining social distancing rules. That’s really lifted my spirits as I’m missing seeing my friends.
Any other Irish mumsnetters on here?
What are your thoughts about tonight’s announcement?

AhComeonnow. I'm a teacher in Ireland but also taught in the UK for many years.
As explained by another poster it depends on the school. I work in a Deis school, ie socially disadvantaged so we have a whole team in place for certain students.

@AldiAisleOfCrap

You do understand sensible people follow guidelines without there needing to be law?

In your attempt to condescend you have completely misconstrued the
implication inherent in my question.

@rayoflightboy yes I have heard from our Home school liason that they are a good little package which is great!! The parents at our school are thrilled with them! And yes we are currently identifying a few children our school who need internet access and a tablet (which will be sorted by the school)

Childminding in ireland is a more casual arrangement than the uk from what i can see. You only have to register if you mind more than 3 children i think it is, there are no set activities or anything like that, its very much a home from home form of childcare. There are no regulations at all once children are in school as far as i know. Most minders only take one or two children, usually from the same family. I would say that lots of them are working on the quiet at the moment, partly to help their mindees parents out, and partly so they are still earning.

If its the same for us and 18th May is the date we can meet outside with friends that will be perfect as its my DD birthday, so we can meet with her brothers and do something outside together.

My youngest is 16 so no childminding needed. One of my sister's has a 7 and 9 year old. Her husband is working from home. She herself is in the office one day a week and wfh the other days. Her oldest is just finishing her online exams for 2nd year medicine as all colleges are shut and she will give a hand with the other kids then. Another sister is working from home from 2 to 6pm everyday. In the morning and evenings she is homeschooling her 10 and 12 year olds while chasing her 18 month old round the house! Her husband works in the mornings and evenings as a carer in people's homes. He only got masks a few weeks ago! There are no schools open for key workers and no afterschools or creches open either. My boss is taking it in turns with her husband to stay at home with the kids, one in work one week, one at home and vice versa. Its very difficult for people.

I would be happy to follow similar here at least they are now working towards something and are not in the unknown .

@Jenasaurus yes as long as there is only 4 of you.

I miss my elderly parents so much. We live 5 hours away. Cried my eyes out tonight & can't sleep. I haven't been home since March & my DC miss them terribly.
We had hoped we would be able to go & stay with them during the summer as we always do but now it's not going to happen 😟 I know it's for the best & understand why we can't but the reality really hit me tonight. Hope all of this will have passed by Christmas & we can stay with elderly family again 😟

Phase one has been going on in my street these last few weeks! Several of my neighbours have family and friends calling every day, neighbours kids play together in the street and visit each other's houses!
Tbh I think we are the only ones who have stuck to the rules so phase one isn't going to mean anything to a lot of people.

I like the comprehensiveness of the plan. I'm in NI and hope we get something as detailed next week. The nitty gritty of the Irish plan would be tough for us - no childcare, and my parents won't be able to meet our new baby when it arrives - but I hate the uncertainty of not knowing. At least the plan gives you something to aim at.

There is an element of winging it, because there are so many variables, but I prefer this plan (even if it ends up being adapted as time goes on) rather than the previous "we'll wait and see".

I think this will reign some people back in again, things have relaxed a bit around my neighbourhood in the last 2 weeks.

People who aren't following the guidelines anyway, aren't necessarily going to start now, but those wavering might be content to hold on.

Personally, we are doing ok, but it is tough going now. Like a PP we are hours away from parents, and I have found the bank holidays hard because normally we'd be away home home.

No kids in our house, but all the parents I know are juggling wfh with kids in background. Employers, generally, are open to people working round the kids. Parents are doing opposite shifts/days. A lot of people are on Covid payment and not working anyway. As restrictions lift, childcare will have to be adapted. There will probably be more detail given.

You can already go out with your household, so if you have 4 kids, no problem 5 or 6 of you heading for a walk. Now you can meet up with someone else. The "4" is a bit vague, but when it comes down to it, I think people will be fairly sensible. Family of 6 meeting Auntie Mary for a walk, vs 4 families of 4 meeting up. Pushing the guidelines isn't going to result in being hauled back home and locked up, but I'd expect to still see Gardai on patrol asking larger groups to disperse etc.

The cocooning is really difficult. Again, it is a guideline, which I know some older family members are already breaking. One uncle goes to small local shop during the older people's shopping time. He reckons he sees 3 people. He sees nobody else at all, he cocoons at home. So if my mum can visit him in a few weeks, that will be nice for both.

Guidelines are fine for most of us to stick to, some will be more compliant than others. There will always be someone pushing it, and always someone having a wee moan about how they are sticking to the rules, while others flaunt them.

It is definitely difficult and upsetting at times, but I think the majority of people have brilliantly taken this on as a "let's get this done"

The nightly numbers make me so sad, I dread to think how much worse it could have been. That spurs me on another bit.

Yes, I think Leo & co. have done an excellent job overall compared to the U.K. govt. They’ve been decisive, closing schools earlier, no partial opening for children of key workers. I think that’s helped to reduce the spread.

Our population is about a tenth of the U.K. but our death rates are much lower.

I live in a rural touristy area. Apart from a few idiots from the UK and Dublin visiting their holiday homes for Easter/week-ends, everyone locally has been carefully sticking to the rules.

My DH is cocooning and has stayed home for the past 7 weeks. He’s really worried about the idea of going out and meeting up with friends. I’ve been doing the shopping for us and a few elderly neighbours and so I’m looking forward to seeing a couple of friends from the 18th onwards.

DH doesn’t really want to meet up with anyone socially and he’s worried what if I do (after 18th) and then catch the virus. He’s happy pottering in the garden and walking the dog but I really miss seeing my friends.

It is good to have a plan. I like Leo and Simon. I think they are doing a good job in these extraordinary circumstances. It is not perfect but Leo has said that and it is a changing document.
The UK is different to Ireland so it's not right to compare, I think countries are all trying to do their best and we should all work together to eradicate this virus.

Evanna Well said. This is a post about what ROI is doing so not sure why the UK is even mentioned by posters who clearly live in the ROI.

That’s an illogical approach, how can people go back to work as suggested with no school or child care? What happens to those people if they can’t work from home, has the government announced some form of rule that they can’t get laid off and they will pay for them, and that companies have to then take on temp workers to cover them?

Hair dressers can work with face masks and partitions. What about those people, are they getting continued financial support?

It seems Ill thought through in the logistics of actually working. Surely Ireland has a proportion of the population where both parents work and financially need to but do jobs that can’t be done from home?

The primary schools would have been closed in July and Aug anyway, with secondary schools closed from end of May. So by the time this all rolls out, kids would have been off anyway. A lot of parents would prefer to wait until Sept now.

I don't know how this will work in practice, but I reckon as companies reopen, many will have to look at the numbers of staff they can safely have on the premises.

Work arounds will have to be decided, and a lot of that will be trial and error. We don't know the details yet, there will be guides for businesses.

I would imagine individual companies will talk with their staff to see who will WFH still, who will come on site. Continuing to try to work out the best fit for people's home circumtances too.

Of course child care is a massive factor. If they don't reopen the facilities, parents can't work. I would expect that the Covid payment will have to allow for that. Likewise supports for business who have to allow a staff member to stay home.

It's shitty, but it has to be given a chance to work, before it can be amended. There is no "easy" option that I can see.

I know this is a parenting site, but seriously, not every worker has kids. Not every family has two working parents. Some households will combine childcare to facilitate working. Some households have two teenagers in school who do not need childcare. Some households have children in third level education, they don’t need childcare.

Why would a return to work be directly tied to schools reopening. That to me is illogical.

Where my partner works, office of about 15, he’s the only one with childcare issues. Where I work, more complex to calculate, but out of 10 immediate colleagues only 2 of us have childcare issues.

Sparkl so the non parents go back to work and the parents stay at home.

OK it may work and it may get the economy starting up again.

But then its very unlikely that they will need a full complement of staff for a very long time. So who loses their job? The one who's returned to work or the parent who's stayed at home? I would be passed off to be told I was losing my job for someone returning.

On the other hand, why should non parents or parents with childcare have to put themselves at risk whilst others get paid to stay at home (I don't know the financial support in the ROI).

All I can see is very many kids living in poverty after this. Its a shit situation all around but I think any govt does need to think about the kids and also not penalise one specific area of society, especially the kids.

Even if it was for every 10 workers 2 had childcare issues that's still 1/5 of you. If every company was the same that is a massive issue. So if all the childless people get forced to go back and parents stay home will they be paid till August?

Not every family has two working parents

No of course not, but enough do, as there is also enough of working single parents. How will these people survive financially? Will they continue to be paid for, increasing the financial cost to the Irish people hugely?

I can’t see that this plan will do anything but devastate the economy for Ireland for a long time, unless child care is available for those parents. Many families rely on their wages, many companies can’t operate on a reduced staff or work from home.

Unless there is something not said here, then I can’t see how this isn’t going to devastate Ireland for a long time to come. It must be the most cautious plan globally. Yes lives will be saved from Covid deaths, but the long term impacts can’t be under estimated. The population are going to be paying a very heavy price for this for a long time to come.

It's clear on the guidelines that creche fir key workers open in June and others in July.

Having lived in the U.K. and Ireland I have noticed several differences in terms of childcare

1. As a pp said a lot of Irish mums tend to stay home for a good few years
2. Of the ones who don't they have opposite shifts to their DH or work around them.
3. Family members/friends will offer to do childcare
4. And the the main difference is they just seem to get on with it and let it sort out, they don't look to the government to sort it for them (that is not a U.K. bash...it's just something I have noticed)

The Irish childcare system has a system that from the age of 2yr 8mths every child is entitled to free childcare hours from 9.00-12.00 5 days a week for 2yrs until they start school.

And remember the Irish school day is shorter. For the first two years they have one hour less. So 9.00-1.40 and then after that 9.00-2.40 (Irish schools also don't do lots of after school clubs etc) if you drive passed an Irish school at 4o clock they will more than likely be completely shut up and all gone home.

The Irish childcare system has a system that from the age of 2yr 8mths every child is entitled to free childcare hours from 9.00-12.00 5 days a week for 2yrs until they start school.

England does this from the age of 3 but only term time. If you earn under 100k you get 9-3.30 a day & people on low incomes can access some hours from the age of 2.

I think what is emerging from other countries will decide for us. Germany are pulling back on plans to fully reopen schools, after the R went up to 0.9 in Denmark, within 2 weeks of schools opening. That was with all the social distancing and everything else.