Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 30 March 2023
50. Deputy Brendan Smith asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the level of capital funding available to his Department this year for the upgrading of existing childcare facilities and the provision of new childcare accommodation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15754/23]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department successfully secured €70 million under the revised National Development Plan (NDP) allocation for the Building Blocks Capital Programme, designed to meet current and long-term Early Learning and Childcare infrastructure needs.
The Building Blocks Capital Programme includes three Pillars:
- An Improvement Grant to improve energy efficiency standards, while also supporting the continuous improvement of the physical environment of services.
- A Capacity Grant to address capacity gaps, to fund an expansion in existing services and investing in the development of new services where most needed
- An Innovation Grant to pilot a range of innovative initiatives such as outdoor early learning and childcare services.
My Department has allocated €9m for The Building Blocks - Improvement Grant for Early Learning and School-age childcare facilities. Grants will range from €35,000 to €75,000 across two separate strands: Green Energy and Retrofit. The Green Energy Strand will support the Climate Action Agenda and the Programme for Government, which aim to transition to a carbon neutral economy by the end of 2050 and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 51% by 2030.
There was a very significant number of applications received and it is my intention that applicants will be advised of the outcome of the appraisal process shortly.
Work is underway in the design and delivery of the Capacity and Innovation Grant schemes and I hope to announce details of these schemes later this year.
