Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 21 September 2022
97. Deputy Richard Bruton asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if he will take fresh initiatives to support the opening of new services in areas where there is a proven lack of adequate supply, confirmed by the local childcare committee. [46133/22]
View answerThe availability of high-quality early learning and childcare is a key Government priority.
Since 2015, significant increases in State investment in early learning and childcare has given rise to a substantial growth in the numbers of children participating in these services. Every year, more than 100,000 children participate on the universal pre-school programme (ECCE) and the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) subsidises up to 80,000 children.
Before the onset of Covid-19, national data indicated that, on the whole, supply of early learning and childcare places was meeting demand, with evidence of undersupply for certain age groups including children under 3, and in certain areas.
Data gathered throughout the Covid-19 pandemic revealed lower demand for early learning and childcare, and reduced occupancy among early learning and childcare services.
My Department has continued to monitor early learning and childcare capacity, with a particular focus on monitoring Covid-19 impacts as public health restrictions have been lifted and on responding to the unmet early learning and childcare needs of families. Data captured earlier this year parallels the pre-Covid-19 context, whereby the supply of early learning and childcare places is meeting demand though there is evidence of undersupply for certain age groups including children under 3, and in certain areas.
The network of 30 CCC across the country are in a position to match children and families to services operating with vacant places. In addition, CCC have been mobilised to engage proactively with services to identify vacant places and to explore possibilities for expansion among services, particularly where there is unmet need.
In addition to this, a range of steps are being taken to address issues of under supply.
Some €70m has been allocated to my Department through the revised National Development Plan (NDP) – with the majority of this funding earmarked for new places.
Under the National Action Plan for Childminding, I have committed to opening up access to the NCS to parents who use childminders following the extension of regulation to childminders, which is expected to happen within the first 2-3 years of the Plan.
My Department, in partnership with the Department of Housing Planning and Local Government, is in the process of updating the 2001 Planning Guidelines for Local Authorities on Early Learning and Childcare Settings.
Finally, the new Core Funding Scheme, introduced in September, provides funding for services aligned to costs of delivery. This means higher levels of funding is available to services that cater for younger children where costs of delivery are higher. There is already emerging evidence of improved capacity in the sector in response to Core Funding, as demonstrated by a 31% and 261% increase in ‘change in circumstances’ applications to Tusla from early learning and care and school-age childcare services respectively who are seeking to expand the scale and scope of their provision.
