Vol. 471 No. 4
81 Miss Coughlan asked the Minister for Health when regulations will be introduced regarding child-minding; whether a child-minding register will be introduced as a matter of urgency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20996/96]
Part VII of the Child Care Act, 1991, provides for the supervision and inspection by health boards of pre-school services. New regulations, which will give effect to the provisions of part VII, will come into operation before the end of this year. The regulations will apply to pre-schools, playgroups, day nurseries, créches and other similar services which cater for children under six years of age. The regulations will also apply to childminders who are not covered by the exemptions from the provisions of part VII of the Act.
The purpose of the regulations is to secure the health, safety and welfare of pre-school children and to promote the development of children attending pre-school services. When the new regulations come into force, a person carrying on, or proposing to carry on, a pre-school service will be required to notify their local health board of their service. A draft of the proposed regulations was recently made available to the public to enable individuals or organisations to furnish written submissions in relation to the proposed regulations. The closing date for receipt of submissions by my Department is 29 November 1996.
