As outlined in question No. 2335 of 24 July 2018, section 58D (1) and (2) of the Childcare Act 1991 (as amended by Part XII of the Child and Family Agency Act 2013), require that all persons wishing to operate an early years service must be placed on a register of early years services, maintained by Tusla - the Child and Family Agency. Continued operation of a service is contingent on registration, and the service is monitored by Tusla, through the Early Years Inspectorate by inspection for compliance with the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016. Where a service meets the requirements for registration (as outlined by Part XII of the Child and Family Agency Act) but refuses to cooperate with this process, then the Early Years Inspectorate may escalate this matter to the District Court.
The Early Years Inspectorate has been aware of the service in question for some time, and has continued to engage with them in order to regularise their registration status. Since July this has escalated to enforcement proceedings. It is anticipated that these proceedings will conclude shortly. In the interim, the service has registered with the Early Years Inspectorate as and from 1 March 2019, and it is intended that the Inspectorate will continue to monitor this service closely to ensure on-going compliance with the 2016 regulations.
