Kieran O'Donnell (Limerick City, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Currie for raising this matter. I want to give a bit of context because she is going in on a planning issue. The national planning framework 2018 recognises the importance of the provision of childcare facilities, specifying that:

the continued provision and enhancement of facilities and amenities for children and young people, such as childcare, schools, playgrounds, parks and sportsgrounds, remains necessary and will need to be maintained at similar levels for the foreseeable future thereafter.

We are doing a review of the national planning framework at the moment. That is the current plan. We are doing a revision of the existing one as we speak and hope to have that finalised by next May.

Furthermore, the national planning framework includes a specific national strategic outcome entitled access to quality childcare, education and health services, while national policy objective 31 identifies the requirement to invest in "A childcare/ECCE planning function, for monitoring, analysis and forecasting of investment needs, including identification of regional priorities" and "The provision of childcare facilities and new and refurbished schools on well-located sites within or close to existing built-up areas, that meet the diverse needs of local populations". The childcare committees should be feeding into that and the Senator has highlighted that.

The national planning framework policy approach sets out that the provision of childcare facilities should be planned to meet needs. In this regard, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth monitors early learning and childcare capacity on an ongoing basis, with a particular focus on responding to the unmet early learning and childcare needs of families. The Department also liaises with the city and county childcare committees to match children and families with vacant places and national development plan funding has been allocated to that Department to provide new places.Officials from the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage are also currently engaging with officials from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth with regard to the need to update the current section 28, Childcare Facilities: Guidelines for Planning Authorities to support this policy. My Department is taking this very seriously.

The 2001 guidelines for planning authorities relating to childcare facilities were issued in 2001 by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage under section 28 of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, to provide a framework to guide both local authorities and developers in the consideration of planning applications with specific regard to the consideration of childcare facilities. Planning authorities and An Bord Pleanála are required to have regard to the guidelines in carrying out their functions. The guidelines are intended to ensure a consistency of approach to the treatment of applications in respect of the land use planning aspects of childcare provision for relevant planning applications, developers and childcare providers in formulating and considering development proposals.

Subsequently, the then Department of Environment, Community and Local Government issued Circular PL 03/2016 in March 2016 which, having regard to the extension of the ECCE scheme the Senator referenced and associated increased demands on childcare facilities with effect from September 2016, requested that planning authorities expedite all preplanning application consultation requests from childcare facility providers with regard to proposals to extend opening hours to increase capacity or to provide new facilities and expedite, insofar as is possible, consideration of all planning applications or section 5 declaration submissions in respect of childcare facilities to facilitate the expansion of required capacity as appropriate.

This circular also requested that planning authorities exclude matters relating to childcare facility standards outlined in appendix 1 of the Childcare Facilities Planning Guidelines 2001, including the minimum floor area requirements per child, from their consideration of planning applications relating to childcare facilities, and to solely focus on planning related considerations that fall within the remit of the Planning and Development Act 2000, as amended, in the determination of such planning applications.

In light of the policy approach set out within the NPF and more recent policy developments with regard to the provision of childcare, an interdepartmental meeting was held in 2022 to discuss the review of the 2001 guidelines and further engagement has taken place more recently. It is a matter on which I will follow up. It has been agreed between the Departments that, in the first instance, feedback will be required from planning authorities as part of this review, and steps are currently being taken to engage with these key stakeholders.

On foot of this ongoing engagement, the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth has been included in the updated list of prescribed bodies that need to be notified on certain planning matters, including the formulation of county and city development plans and local area plans. I will undertake to keep the review that is under way with the local authorities and the interdepartmental group as a priority. I will take a personal interest in this as it falls within my remit as Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage with responsibility for planning.