Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 29 April 2025
136. Deputy Naoise Ó Cearúil asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the current capacity of childcare services in Kildare north; her plans to increase the number of childcare facilities in Kildare north; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20976/25]
View answerImproving access to quality and affordable Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare is a key priority of Government.
The most recent published capacity data for the 2023/24 programme year estimated that there were 11,634 children enrolled in early learning and childcare services in County Kildare. This data also indicated that 42% of service providers in County Kildare had at least one vacant place and 48% had a waiting list.
It is important to note that waiting list data should not be used as a measure of overall demand for early learning and childcare places. While waiting list data can be used to give an indication of demand for places for a given age group or service type not all services operate a waiting list. In addition, an individual child may be on multiple waiting lists in different services.
Overall, early learning and childcare capacity is increasing. Nationally, data from the Annual Early Years Sector Profile 2023/24 shows that the estimated number of enrolments increased by 10% from the 2022/23 programme year. The Tusla register of services demonstrates a net increase in the numbers of registered early learning and childcare services in 2024. However, it appears that demand for Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare remains higher than available supply in some instances, particularly for younger children and in certain parts of the country.
Demand for early learning and childcare beyond sessional pre-school provision is highly elastic and shaped very substantially by families' individual composition, circumstances, and preferences; employment patterns and income; and the price and availability of services.
Last year, a Supply Management Unit within the Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare Division was established, and the Programme for Government articulates an intention that the unit be resourced and transformed into a Forward Planning and Delivery Unit to identify areas of need, forecast demand, and deliver public supply within the childcare sector where required.
A forward planning model is in development which will be central to my Department's plans to achieve the policy goals set out in the Programme for Government to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early childhood education and care system, with State-led facilities adding capacity.
My Department continues to support the ongoing development and resourcing of Core Funding which has given rise to a significant expansion of places since the scheme was first introduced. Core Funding, which is in its third programme year, funds services based on the number of places available.
This provides stability to services, and reduces the risk associated with opening a new service or expanding an already existing service. For the current programme year, the allocation for Core Funding allows for a 6% increase in capacity. Additional funding was secured in Budget 2025 to facilitate a further 3.5% increase from September 2025, in the fourth programme year.
The Government is also supporting the expansion of capacity through capital funding. The Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme is designed to increase capacity in the 1–3-year-old, pre–Early Childhood Care and Education, age range for full day care.
Appraisal of applications considers the supply and demand in the area around the proposed projects. €25m is being made available this year to deliver additional capacity under the Scheme and I expect to announce the outcome of the application process shortly.
My Department also funds 30 City/County Childcare Committees, which provide support and assist families and early learning and childcare providers. The network of 30 City/County Childcare Committees across the country can assist in identifying vacant places in services for children and families who need them and engage proactively with services to explore possibilities for expansion among services, particularly where there is unmet need.
Parents experiencing difficulty in relation to their early learning and childcare needs should contact their local City/County Childcare Committee for assistance. Contact details for the Kildare County Childcare Committee may be found at www.kccc.ie.
