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Early Years Sector

Dáil Éireann Debate, Friday - 6 September 2019

Friday, 6 September 2019

Ceisteanna (1708)

Anne Rabbitte

Ceist:

1708. Deputy Anne Rabbitte asked the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the average frequency of inspections of early years services by county, in tabular form. [36379/19]

Amharc ar fhreagra

Freagraí scríofa

It is not possible to give a simple measure of the frequency of inspections of early years services carried out by the statutory regulator, Tusla, as there are a number of different categories of inspection, including "fit-for-purpose" inspections carried out when a new service is being registered, unannounced inspections, and unannounced follow-on inspections.

Furthermore, the frequency of inspections is dependent on several factors including the level of compliance found on the last inspection, unsolicited information received, whether or not conditions have been attached to services' registration, the length of time since the last inspection and/or where there is a change in circumstances or a notification of instances which requires review.

"Fit-for-purpose" inspections are carried out in relation to all new early learning and care services, with the timing dependent on the timing of the application to register.

Every single registered early learning and care provider, of which there are 4,435, has been inspected by Tusla’s Early Years’ Inspectorate. A total of 2,513 inspections were conducted in 2018, an increase of 90% since 2014 (1,326).

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