Advice to early learning and care and school-age childcare services regarding Storm Barra - 7 December 2021

Update: Storm Barra closure advice now includes Dublin

Further to the update issued to the sector this evening, Dublin has now been upgraded to Status Orange. As referenced in the earlier update, all early learning and care and school age childcare services in Status Orange and Status Red areas will remain closed tomorrow, Wednesday 8 December. This update now applies to early learning and childcare services in Dublin.

The Department of Children Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth is advising that all early learning and care and school age childcare services that are currently or forecast to be in a Red or Orange alert area should remain closed tomorrow, 8 December. This will allow for assessment of the impact of Storm Barra to take place.

This includes counties Donegal, Sligo, Leitrim, Cork, Kerry, Waterford, Limerick, Clare, Galway, Mayo and Wexford.

Early learning and care and school age childcare services who are no longer in a Red or Orange Alert area can reopen provided, if there are concerns, managers have had an opportunity to check for fallen wires and other serious damage in the vicinity of their service. If an individual service (in a yellow area) is still experiencing a particular local issue relating to the storm and cannot open, they can apply for Force Majeure funding.

All services should keep up-to-date with the current weather warnings which are carried on all national and local news bulletins and in particular any change in the status warning for their area.

For further information on Storm Barra, see gov.ie/stormbarra