While the majority of children will be learning at home in the coming months, the Scottish Government has promised that the children of key workers will have access to childcare to allow them to participate in the national response to Covid-19. 

Fife Council are currently planning for the provision of key workers and also vulnerable groups at "Children's Activities Centres" across Fife. 

They say they are working hard to have these established by the end of this week. 

Exact dates and opening times will be confirmed as soon as possible. 

So far the following locations have been selected: 

  • Dunfermline - Duloch Primary School and Nursery
  • Inverkeithing - Inverkeithing Primary School and Treetop Family Nurture Centre 
  • West Fife - Inzievar/ Holy Name Primary School and Inzievar Nursery School 
  • Children in Special Schools and attending pupil support services - Calaiswood and Rosslyn Special School

To ensure senior pupils complete coursework for their qualifications, headteachers are working with staff to plan the completion of any outstanding units and will discuss with young people how this will be done directly. 

Free School Meals 

In response to a further update on the social distancing advice, a decision has been taken to cancel the provision of meals in school buildings next week. Fife Council will provide direct payments to families with the first payment being made this week. 

Who are key workers?

• Category 1 - Health and Care workers directly supporting COVID response, and associated staff; Health and Care workers supporting life-threatening emergency work, as well as critical primary and community care provision; Energy suppliers (small numbers identified as top priority already); staff providing childcare/learning for other category 1 staff.

• Category 2 - All other Health and Care workers, and wider public sector workers providing emergency/critical welfare services (e.g. Fire, Police, Prisons, Social Workers, etc), as well as those supporting our Critical National Infrastructure, without whom serious damage to the welfare of the people of Scotland could be caused.

• Category 3 - All workers without whom there could be a significant impact on Scotland (but where the response to Covid19, or the ability to perform essential tasks to keep the country running, would not be severely compromised).

The Scottish Government has asked each council to identify their own list and they have also indicated “there should be a presumption that, if parents can make their own childcare arrangements within the community, they should do so. If one parent is a key worker and the other is not, the non-key worker should normally be expected to provide childcare.”