Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I propose to take Questions Nos. 28 and 53 together.

I thank Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan for his question. There is a large demand for high-quality, accessible and affordable school-age childcare services. This demand is seen in all areas of the country, including in my constituency and I have no doubt in Cork city.

To help meet this demand, the programme for Government commits to increasing the range of after-school services in schools and community hubs.

My Department has provided support for the development of school-age childcare places through dedicated capital grant funding. Between 2017 and 2019, over €6 million was awarded in capital funding to assist the creation of new school-age childcare places nationally and to ensure that the quality of care was raised.

Key to supporting this will be the national childcare scheme, NCS, which since 2019 has been open to school-age childcare services.

School-age childcare services registered with Tusla can now encourage parents to apply for NCS subsidies of up to €3.75 per hour for each school-age child.

My Department published an action plan in 2017 which set out a range of actions to strengthen the provision of school-age childcare. The action plan recognised that some parents cannot care for their children outside school hours particularly where they are working.

The action plan included a commitment to maximise the use of schools and community facilities for school-age childcare, where the environments are suitable, and where there is an agreement with the school patron or trustees.

To this end, the Department of Education and Skills is engaging with schools and encouraging patrons to make their buildings available for this purpose.

The national development plan recognises childcare as a strategic priority for Ireland. I look forward to working further on this to ensure that funding is made available to expand capacity where demand exists.

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