The move comes in light of the Government's decision to ask early years settings in England to remain open to all children during the third national lockdown, while ordering schools to close, except to key worker and vulnerable children.
Yesterday, 62,322 cases were recorded in the UK, which was the highest daily rise since mass testing began.
As part of the new joint #ProtectEarlyYears campaign, the three organisations, which collectively represent around 50,000 childcare providers, are calling on the Government to:
- prioritise those working in early years and childcare for Covid-19 vaccinations
- roll-out mass asymptomatic testing at all early years and childcare settings
- reinstate early entitlement funding support for settings who have been forced to close, or have seen a fall in the demand for funded places
- introduce targeted funding for providers reliant on private income who have suffered from falls in parental demand.
A petition calling for priority vaccinations for all early years workers and teachers has received more than 300,000 signatures to date and will be debated in Parliament on Monday.
While the Government has argued that early years settings are 'low-risk environments’, it has so far failed to provide any evidence about the rates of transmission of the new variant of Covid-19 in early years settings among both children and adults.
This is despite widespread acknowledgement from the scientific community and the Government that the variant is much more transmissible than the previous strain.
The early years organisations are therefore also calling on the Government to provide clear scientific evidence on the risk implications of staying open for early years and childcare practitioners, particularly in light of the increased transmissibility of the new variant of Covid-19, including data on current transmission rates in early years and childcare settings.
In addition, many nurseries, pre-schools and childminders have been struggling to survive, with a fall in demand for childcare places that has not recovered since the first lockdown last March.
Neil Leitch, chief executive of the Early Years Alliance, said, 'It is simply not acceptable that, at the height of a global pandemic, early years providers are being asked to work with no support, no protection and no clear evidence that is safe for them to do so.
'We know how vital access to early education and care is to many families, but it cannot be right to ask the early years workforce to put themselves at risk. That is why it is vital that the Government takes the urgent steps needed to safeguard those working in the sector, particularly mass testing and priority access to vaccinations.'
Mr Leitch added, 'With many providers seeing a huge fall in the demand for places, if nurseries and childminders are to have any hope of being able to remain open in the long term, it is also vital that the Government provides the necessary financial support, both for those reliant on "free entitlement" funding, and those reliant on private parental income, to enable settings to remain viable.
'Ministers cannot simultaneously ask providers to stay open but take no action to ensure they can do so safely and sustainably. It’s time for the Government to step up and give the early years sector the support it needs and deserves.'
Purnima Tanuku, chief executive of the NDNA, said, 'The Government is asking early years providers to go above and beyond in this lockdown and we know there is a great amount of determination among nurseries to support children and families at this challenging time.
'Time and again, whether it’s on PPE, cleaning costs, testing or staffing, early years providers have been overlooked by the Department for Education. Now, they are the only part of the education sector fully open to all children and must be given priority.
'What we want to see from Government is the practical and financial support that will allow providers to do what they do best - giving children the highest standards of care and early education through this lockdown period. The sector must be supported now and cannot be an afterthought for ministers.'
Liz Bayram, chief executive at PACEY, said, 'Early years and childcare providers have been a vital pillar of support for so many families throughout the pandemic but the latest restrictions have left them and their staff between a rock and a hard place. We need sight of the evidence that led government to decide it was low-risk to keep early years open but close schools. We need better financial support, not just for settings that have to close but for the many who decide to continue to provide services despite the risks and the significantly reduced numbers of children in attendance.
'Many PACEY members, most of whom are self-employed and on low incomes, cannot afford to temporarily close their business regardless of risk and have no choice but to carry on. If Government believes early years are so vital, childminders, pre-school and nurseries should be better supported financially to make the right choice for their service to remain open or not. They and their staff should be a priority for vaccination and have access to rapid testing too. Gavin Williamson says early years are key, his words need to be backed up with decisive actions too.'