Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 November 2013
20. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the additional steps she will take to address the availability and affordability of regulated child care services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [47700/13]
View answerThe Programme for Government commits to developing early childhood care and education as resources allow, and the Government has made a very significant commitment to maintaining the childcare support programmes implemented by my Department - the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) programme, the Childcare Education and Training Support (CETS) programme and the new After-school Childcare programme.
It is recognised that intensive and targeted early childhood services have the potential to significantly enhance the life chances of many children. In the region of €260 million is provided annually by my Department to provide for a number of childcare support programmes which assist parents in accessing quality and affordable childcare. More than 100,000 children benefit from these programmes each year.
For example the Community Childcare Subvention programme provides funding to community-based childcare services to enable them to provide childcare at reduced rates to parents in receipt of social welfare payments or on low or relatively modest incomes. For the purpose of the CCS programme, disadvantage and qualifying income are determined by reference to a range of means-tested allowances and payments including receipt of a social welfare payment, Family Income Supplement (FIS) and qualification for a medical or GP visit card. Eligibility for a GP visit card is based on net income and takes account of outgoings such as rent and mortgage repayments and other expenses including childcare costs and travelling expenses. As a result, parents with middle incomes may also benefit from subvention.
The Childcare Education and Training Support programme provides €145 towards the weekly cost of full time childcare places to participating childcare services in both the community and commercial sectors for qualifying Solas and Education and Training Boards (ETB) trainees and students. Students on part-time courses are funded on a pro rata basis. In 2013, a new strand of this programme was introduced to provide after-school childcare to certain social welfare recipients entering employment. It is proposed to further augment the programme with a new strand for certain community employment participants in 2014.
The Early Childhood Care and Education programme provides a free pre-school year to all eligible children in the year before commencing primary school. Children qualify for the free pre-school year where they are aged more than 3 years 2 months and less than 4 years 7 months at 1 September in the relevant year. Almost every pre-school service in the State (more than 4,300) is participating with over 68,000 children, or 94% of the eligible age cohort, availing of free pre-school programme in the 2012/2013 school year.
In line with the Programme for Government, I succeeded in maintaining the universality of the free pre-school year, including securing an additional funding requirement of €9.8m in 2012 to address increased demand due to an increase in births since 2009.
The programme includes a number of additional provisions which take account of children with special needs. These include an exemption from the upper age limit for qualification under the programme where a child is developmentally delayed and would benefit from starting primary school at a later age. In addition, children with special needs can apply to have the pre-school year split over two years on a pro-rata basis, for example availing of the programme for 2 days a week in the first year and for 3 days a week in the second year. In addition, to improve the services available to children with special needs, my Department is working with the Office of Disability and Mental Health in the Department of Health, to examine how supports to facilitate the inclusion of children with special needs in mainstream pre-school settings can be improved.
My Department and I, along with key stakeholders including the HSE, are currently progressing an 8-point Pre-School Quality Agenda. The actions being implemented are designed to ensure the highest standards of care for children in pre-school and to ensure that parents and practitioners can have confidence in the regulation of the sector. I further believe that this Agenda must be implemented and higher standard of quality ensured, in order to provide the key building blocks for any further extension of universal childcare provision, including any proposal to introduce a second free pre-school year, which as I have indicated on numerous occasions is my ultimate objective.
There is an increasing body of Irish and International evidence which quantify the benefits of early year’s interventions in terms of improving children’s outcomes and in delivering significant economic and societal return to the state. In this context I believe the introduction of a second year would benefit children’s educational and developmental outcomes as well as proving significantly beneficial to children with special needs. In addition a second pre-school year would represent €2,500 to €3,000 worth of free childcare to parents and likely generate 4,000-5,000 new positions, albeit mostly part-time. The benefits of introducing a second year were further referred to in the recent OECD reports on Ireland.
However, the introduction of a second pre-school year would require considerable additional funding, with the additional cost broadly in line with the cost of the current one year provision, which is €175 million. This funding is not currently available due to the financial constraints under which the Government is currently operating. However I would hope that this proposal is one which Government could continue to work towards as our public finances recover.
Finally, I have recently received the Report and recommendations of the Expert Advisory Group which I established to advise my Department and myself on the preparation of Ireland first-ever Early Years Strategy. Longer term objectives for early years care and education, including extension of universal early years provision, supports for children with specific needs and ongoing improvements in quality will be further addressed in this Strategy.
