Critical or Vulnerable Definitions

As of January 8 2021

Key Worker Jobs 

Health and Social Care 

This includes, but is not limited to, doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social  workers, care workers, and other frontline health and social care staff including  volunteers; the support and specialist staff required to maintain the UK’s health and  social care sector; those working as part of the health and social care supply chain,  including producers and distributors of medicines and medical and personal  protective equipment. 

Education and childcare 

This includes: 

  • childcare 
  • support and teaching staff 
  • social workers 
  • specialist education professionals who must remain active during the coronavirus  (COVID-19) response to deliver this approach 

Key public services 

This includes: 

  • those essential to the running of the justice system 
  • religious staff 
  • charities and workers delivering key frontline services 
  • those responsible for the management of the deceased 
  • journalists and broadcasters who are providing public service broadcasting

Local and national government 

This only includes those administrative occupations essential to the effective delivery  of: 

  • the coronavirus (COVID-19) response, and the delivery of and response to EU  transition 
  • essential public services, such as the payment of benefits and the certification or  checking of goods for import and export (including animal products, animals,  plants and food), including in government agencies and arm’s length bodies 

Food and other necessary goods 

This includes those involved in food: 

  • production 
  • processing
  • distribution 
  • sale and delivery 
  • as well as those essential to the provision of other key goods (for example hygienic and veterinary medicines) 

Public safety and national security 

This includes: 

  • police and support staff 
  • Ministry of Defence civilians 
  • contractor and armed forces personnel (those critical to the delivery of key  defence and national security outputs and essential to the response to the  coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and EU transition) 
  • fire and rescue service employees (including support staff) 
  • National Crime Agency staff 
  • those maintaining border security, prison and probation staff and other national security roles, including those overseas 

Transport and border 

This includes those who will keep the air, water, road and rail passenger and freight  transport modes operating during the coronavirus (COVID-19) response and EU  transition, including those working on transport systems through which supply chains  pass and those constructing or supporting the operation of critical transport and  border infrastructure through which supply chains pass. 

Utilities, communication and financial services 

This includes: 

  • staff needed for essential financial services provision (including but not limited to  workers in banks, building societies and financial market infrastructure)
  • the oil, gas, electricity and water sectors (including sewerage)
  • information technology and data infrastructure sector and primary industry  supplies to continue during the coronavirus (COVID-19) response
  • key staff working in the civil nuclear, chemicals, telecommunications (including but  not limited to network operations, field engineering, call centre staff, IT and data  infrastructure, 999 and 111 critical services) 
  • postal services and delivery 
  • payments providers 
  • waste disposal sectors

Vulnerable children and young people 

Vulnerable children and young people include those who: 

  • are assessed as being in need under section 17 of the Children Act 1989,  including children and young people who have a child in need plan, a child  protection plan or who are a looked-after child 
  • have an education, health and care (EHC) plan 
  • have been identified as otherwise vulnerable by educational providers or local  authorities (including children’s social care services), and who could therefore  benefit from continued full-time attendance, this might include: 
    • children and young people on the edge of receiving support from children’s  social care services or in the process of being referred to children’s services
    • adopted children or children on a special guardianship order
    • those at risk of becoming NEET (‘not in employment, education or training’)
    • those living in temporary accommodation 
    • those who are young carers 
    • those who may have difficulty engaging with remote education at home (for  example due to a lack of devices or quiet space to study) 
    • care leavers 
    • others at the provider and local authority’s discretion including pupils and  students who need to attend to receive support or manage risks to their  mental health