Anne Rabbitte (Galway East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Although approximately 19,000 childminders currently operate in Ireland, only 81 of them are registered. One child in ten aged between zero and 12 years of age is cared for by a childminder. When one looks at the preschool children where non-parental care is used, almost one third of these children are cared for by childminders. If we want childcare to be affordable and accessible, childminding must be part of the solution.

At present, a parent can only available of the affordable childcare scheme by using a registered childcare facility. A big part of the reason that fewer than 100 childminders in Ireland are registered is that the current regulations are written with centre-based setting in mind. Taking into consideration everything the Minister has said, there is a fear within the childminding sector that we will see a cutting and pasting of whatever has been done already for centre-based settings with standards and regulations to be forced upon childminders. That is why they are looking for an extension of the consultation. They do not feel that they were represented because they were not registered.

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