Helpline Reminder for the Weekend for ELC&SAC services
A reminder of the Covid-19 Support Helpline for ELC and SAC – 1800 940341 available from 10am – 1pm & 1.30pm – 4pm at the weekend.
Tusla Early Years Inspectorate Contact details
While there has been an interruption to Tusla IT services, Tusla have advised that phone lines are currently operational.
A list of contact details for the Early Years Inspectorate is below:
DCEDIY Publication : Let’s Play Summer 2021
Let’s Play this Summer
Here is some of what’s on offer around Ireland for families this summer
Gov.ie Publication: Lets Play Summer 2021
Heritage Ireland
Admission charges to all open, fee-paying OPW heritage sites are waived from 14 May until the end of 2021. Check out heritageireland.ie/
National Museums
Ireland’s National Museums are open and are free of charge. Check out museum.ie/
Libraries Ireland
Libraries Ireland have an extensive collection of free items to loan and resources to share. Check out what’s happening at your local library this summer at librariesireland.ie/
START campaign from Safefood
START is a public health campaign from Safefood with loads of active play ideas for families. Check this out at safefood.net
Greenways Ireland
Green Ways: A Greenway is a predominantly traffic free path, designated for use by pedestrians, cyclists and other non-motorised users such as wheelchair users, families with buggies etc. To find one near you check out sportireland.ie/
ELC and SAC Provider Covid-19 Support Helpline at the weekend 1800 940341
A reminder of the Covid-19 Support Helpline for ELC and SAC – 1800 940341 available from 10am – 1pm & 1.30pm – 4pm at the weekend.
Cyber-attack on the HSE’s IT system-Tusla Portal affected
As you may be aware, there has been a cyber-attack on the HSE’s IT system. This has resulted in the Tusla Portal, through which Child Protection Reports are generally made, being unavailable. In the absence of the Portal, those with Child Protection and Welfare Concerns should continue to follow their organisational procedures and seek informal consultation or make reports or through the Dedicated Contact Points, which can be found at this link https://www.tusla.ie/get-in-touch/duty-social-work-teams/
All practitioners should continue to ensure that the safety and welfare of the child remains of paramount importance and that all concerns are reported to Tusla and An Garda Síochána, where appropriate.
Please see http://childsafeguardingelc.ie/ and https://www.tusla.ie/services/child-protection-welfare/ for further information
Press release Minister O’Gorman and Minister Foley announce information and resources for children preparing for pre-school and junior infants-Published on 14 May 2021
Minister for Children Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, Roderic O’Gorman, T.D., and Minister for Education, Norma Foley, T.D., today launched an initiative for children and families – Let’s Get Ready – a gov.ie resource to support young children and their parents/guardians plan for the transition to pre-school or primary school later this year.
The Let’s Get Ready website focuses on children preparing to attend pre-school or primary school for the first time from this September. Let’s Get Ready includes guidance for parents on practical steps they can take to support their children over the coming months and tips on what children and parents can expect on their transition to pre-school and primary school.
A transitions pack for children starting pre-school and primary school is soon to be distributed through a range of channels, including through City and County Childcare Committees (CCCS), early learning and care settings, Home School Liaison Officers and is also available on gov.ie/letsgetready. This pack includes a tip sheet for parents, a transitions card for children and a ‘Mo Scéal’ transitions template developed by the National Council of Curriculum and Assessment for completion by parents. This templates enables parents to share key information with their child’s pre-school practitioner or teacher.
Speaking today, Minister O’Gorman said:
“Across the country, up to 120,000 children are making preparations to attend pre-school or primary school for the first time later this year.
“Transitions can be an emotional time for children and families under normal circumstances, let alone during Covid-19, and so need to be supported.
“Let’s Get Ready is a government-led initiative that provides parents and guardians with useful tips and suggests fun play-based activities parents can do to support their children with these important transitions over the summer months.”
Minister Foley said:
“Starting in primary school is a hugely exciting milestone for children and their families.
“We are working closely with our schools to support children as they begin their time in primary school.
“Let’s Get Ready provides useful information, ideas and resources to help families as they prepare for these changes over the coming months.”
The website gov.ie/letsgetready will be updated regularly over the coming months with new material added as it becomes available.
The Let’s Get Ready pack is available on gov.ie/letsgetready.
AIM application process for September 2021 pre-school year
AIM application process for September 2021 pre-school year
The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) is a model of supports designed to ensure that children with disabilities can access the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme. Its goal is to empower pre-school providers to deliver an inclusive pre-school experience, ensuring that every eligible child can meaningfully participate in the ECCE Programme and reap the benefits of quality early years care and education. Further information on the programme and the range of supports available can be found here.
AIM Level 5
The application process for AIM Level 5 for the 2021/22 pre-school year will remain on PIP and will open for applications on Friday 14th May at 10am. Applicant guidelines can be found here.
AIM Level 4 and 7
The application process for AIM Level 4 (expert early years educational advice and support) for the 2021/22 pre-school year will open on the Hive on Friday 14th May at 10am. Where required, Level 7 (additional assistance in the pre-school room) can be requested as part of the Level 4 application. Further guidance on the application process can be found here.
As this is a new process on HIVE, training sessions have been organised via Webinar to provide service providers with an overview of the application process. Please see below for further details and relevant webinar links.
Monday 17th May 6.30pm to8.15pm https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/regi…/8919315705241253134
Tuesday 18th May 6.30pm to 8.15pm https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/regi…/4742968121692320014
Wednesday 19th May 6.30pm to 8.15pm https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/regi…/6727376603107150862
Thursday 20th May 6.30pn to 8.15pm https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/regi…/7841630482788417806
Please note that the maximum number of participants per session is 500.
Help and support
Should you have any queries in relation to the AIM, please contact the Early Years Provider Centre by raising a Request on Hive using the following categories:.
– Request Type: Application
– Request Type Detail: General
– Request Programme: (select the AIM Level)
Let’s Get Ready 2021- Resources for Parents
The transition to school remains especially difficult again this year because of Covid conditions. Attached are some transitions resources that have been developed for parents.
Transition to school Resources
This year the NCCA have also developed an additional parents template for children starting in ECCE. You can print them off to help support children with the transition to starting school.
The Mó Scéal templates linked below have been developed for parents to fill in to share information for their child’s new pre-school or primary school.
Links to Mó Scéal templates in English:
Moving to Pre-School: http://bit.ly/MoScealPreSchool
Moving to Primary School: http://bit.ly/MoScealPrimarySchool
Links to Mó Scéal templates in Irish:
Ag aistriú ar an réamhscoil: http://bit.ly/MoScealReamhscoil
Ag aistriú go dtí an bhunscoil: http://bit.ly/MoScealBhunscoil
See below attached is a postcard for the children to draw themselves or anything else for their new teacher and leaflets for parents on learning new skills and developing independence skills for starting pre-school and school.
