Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 March 2023
229. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth what measures he has taken to reduce the regulatory burden on providers as set out in the programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15403/23]
View answerThe safety and protection of children remains the first priority of Government in early learning and childcare. Central to achieving this is enforcement of the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016 ("the ELC Regulations") and the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) (Registration of School Age Services) Regulations 2018 ("the SAC Regulations"), which have children at the heart of their implementation.
Work on reviewing the primary and secondary legislation that set regulatory requirements for early learning and childcare services began in late 2019 but was formally paused during the Covid-19 pandemic. I recommenced the review of legislation governing early learning and childcare services at the end of 2021.
As part of that review, a comprehensive public consultation on the review of the ELC Regulations took place between March and October 2022. This review primarily focused on enforcement powers of the Tusla Early Years Inspectorate, the independent statutory regulator for the sector. However, the Department also took the opportunity to undertake a wider but limited examination of lessons learned from the implementation of the ELC Regulations since 2016.
Also in 2022 I made amendments to the ELC Regulations and the SAC Regulations to allow for the streamlining of the process of re-registration for ELC and SAC services, which resulted in a significant reduction in administration for services.
The new process permits services to re-register without having to re-submit all of the documentation provided at registration. Instead, providers are required to sign a declaration confirming the details of the service and are only required to submit supporting documentation in relation to proof of insurance and evidence of Garda Vetting.
These regulatory amendments benefited nearly 4,000 ELC and SAC services that were required to renew their registration in 2022. An additional 600 services will renew their registration through the streamlined process in 2023.
These are the first changes in what is intended to be a wider regulatory reform programme.
In relation to inspection of early years services, my Department is currently working on implementing the actions set out in First 5 and the recommendations of the OECD Country Policy Review (published in December 2021) in relation to the streamlining of inspection.
In the short term, the Department is working with the Tusla Early Years Inspectorate and the Department of Education Inspectorate to ensure that sectoral inspection activities are streamlined and coordinated to the greatest extent possible, and that the inspection system and its interlinking parts are communicated clearly and effectively to the sector. This is being done through the inter-agency Inspection Streamlining and Coordination Working Group, which was set up by my Department in January 2022 to enhance collaboration and support alignment between the two inspectorates. In addition, an inter-agency Quality Assurance and Improvement Working Group has recently been established to align inspection and quality support services, leading to the enhancement of the overall quality assurance and improvement system.
Officials in my Department are also working on the longer term recommendations of the OECD Country Policy Review. The OECD’s recommendations in relation to quality assurance fit well with commitments in First 5, in the Programme for Government and in the National Action Plan for Childminding. Some recommendations will require further consideration and consultation, and I look forward to working with stakeholders as we reflect on how best to bring them forward.
