Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 30 May 2017
654. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if the single affordable child care scheme will be ready in September 2017 as promised; if not, the way in which parents will manage child care placements for the school year if they do not know the cost of their child care; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25849/17]
View answerOn 11 April, I made an announcement that the Affordable Childcare Scheme would not commence this September but that a range of measures will be introduced by my Department to make childcare more affordable for thousands of families throughout Ireland. This honours a key commitment in the Programme for Government. I can confirm that these measures, which will benefit the families of tens of thousands of children, will commence this September.
A new universal subsidy will be available for all children aged between 6 months and 3 years of age (or until they are eligible for ECCE e.g 3 years 3 months) in registered childcare. This will amount to as much as €80 a month or €1,000 per year for children in full time childcare.
In addition, subsidies provided under existing childcare schemes, specifically the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and Training and Employment Childcare (TEC) Schemes have been increased significantly, in some cases by as much as 50%. To illustrate the effect of this increase, the highest subsidy provided under the CCS scheme for full time childcare in 2016 was €95 per week. This will increase to €145 per week from September. This should decrease the co-payment required by families who qualify and therefore make childcare more accessible and affordable to these families; assisting them in their return to training and employment and lifting them out of poverty.
These subsidies, both universal and targeted, will be available through childcare services who contract with my Department to deliver the schemes. The schemes are open to 4,500 community (not-for-profit) and private providers across the country.
In order to ensure that parents and childcare providers are aware of the changes to the schemes this September, a comprehensive information campaign is underway. Information packs have been sent to over 4,000 registered childcare providers and an information road show for providers will commence in the coming weeks in eight locations throughout the country.
A dedicated website has been launched (affordablechildcare.ie) and information for parents went live on this website on Monday 29th May to inform them of the various enhanced childcare supports they may qualify for this September. A campaign via various media, including digital and radio, will also raise awareness among parents.
I remain strongly committed to introducing the Affordable Childcare Scheme at the earliest possible opportunity. My Department has made good progress in this regard. The Government has approved the Heads of Bill for the Scheme, and officials are working intensively to plan for successful introduction of the Scheme. However, I am conscious that this is a complex project which we must get right from the beginning. We need to have the legislation, business processes and a new robust IT system in place. We will need to test the scheme rigorously to ensure that it works properly so that families can quickly see their entitlements.
My officials are working as fast as possible, but I believe that it is prudent to take time to ensure we get the new systems right, so that they operate smoothly for everyone. I want to build a system that will underpin childcare supports for children and investment in the childcare sector for years to come. We are well on our way to introducing the Affordable Childcare Scheme. When fully operational it will be a state of the art system which will be capable of delivering, not just for this generation of children, but also for generations to come.
