IPPN

Published: 30 October 2020

Important information has come to light from the Department of Education who have announced changes to the approved list of products on the Education Sector PPE procurement agreement, and subsequent steps schools can take to procure new stock if necessary.

The Department is taking 43 biocidal and 9 other products off the approved list for schools because it has not been possible to satisfactorily confirm their registration status as part of the review. These products will not be included in our approved list for schools until their registration status has been confirmed. The Department has no evidence that these products are unsafe.

You can find the full list of products affected here

Any school that is using products listed on the list should now discontinue the use of these products and should store them securely pending contact from the supplier to arrange for their collection.

What to do next

If your school has stocks of the products on the “removed” list, whether purchased through the agreement or purchased locally, please discontinue using them and store them safely pending collection by the supplier.

Schools impacted will be provided with funding to source new supplies. The Department of Education has issued an updated excel file called Approved Product List 29 October 2020 which contains all the approved products on the agreement effective today with all relevant pricing information.

The Department has sourced additional products from approved suppliers to ensure sufficient supply.

Schools seeking new product to replace stock should contact any of the suppliers on the approved product list directly to process orders. The Department is putting in place supports in conjunction with the suppliers to provide stock to schools in time for Monday 2 November.

Department of Education Covid-19 Helpline: Schools that have engaged with suppliers but still have any difficulty sourcing an alternative supply can contact the Department’s Covid-19 helpline or email address. The Schools Covid-19 helpline on 057 9324461 will be open until 8.30pm on Thursday and from 8am on Friday until 8pm and from 10am to 5pm Saturday and Sunday. The email address is covid19_alert@education.gov.ie . Emails will be monitored and replied to over the weekend also.

Aide Funding: Any school that is impacted by this will be provided with funding for an Aide for two days to assist with dealing with these issues. The funding for the aide and additional funding for schools impacted will issue as soon as possible. The daily rate payable is €143.32. Schools can decide themselves who they wish to employ to help with this work.

Important Contact information:

DES Covid-19 Helpline: Schools that have engaged with suppliers but still have any difficulty sourcing an alternative supply can contact the Department’s Covid-19 helpline or email address. The Schools Covid-19 helpline on 057 9324461 will be open until 8.30pm on Thursday and from 8am on Friday until 8pm and from 10am to 5pm Saturday and Sunday. The email address is covid19_alert@education.gov.ie . Emails will be monitored and replied to over the weekend also

IPPN Leadership Support: IPPN’s Leadership Support Team are available today by contacting the IPPN Support Office on 021 482 40 70 or emailing advice@ippn.ie

Covid-19 Out of Hours service: Should your school community be affected by a Covid-19 case before the return to school IPPN’s Covid-19 helpline is available to you to provide support. This helpline is to support those who have already sought support from the HSE and have not been able to get through, and/or who still are unsure how to proceed having contacted the HSE. To contact the helpline please email covid@ippn,ie and a member of the Leadership Support Team will respond to your email as soon as possible.