David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael)
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Question 201: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her view on whether the equal opportunities child care programme was successful in improving quality in the child care sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22213/06]

Brian Lenihan Jnr (Dublin West, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that there have been significant improvements in the provision of supports for the development of quality child care over the last number of years. These improvements are mainly as a result of the EU co-funded Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme 2000-2006 (EOCP) and the equal opportunities and social inclusion perspective which have characterised its delivery. The principal objective of the EOCP was to facilitate the development and expansion of quality child care facilities to address the needs of parents, in reconciling their child care needs with their participation in employment, education and training.

As a result of the EOCP, by the end of 2005 parents had access to over 29,600 new child care places and to a further 23,700 existing child care places where quality improvements were EOCP supported. It is expected that over 41,000 new quality child care places will be created by the Programme's end. Furthermore, almost €183 million has been allocated to date under the EOCP in staffing assistance to community based not for profit organisations with a focus on disadvantage. These staffing grants assist child care services to meet the costs associated with quality child care at an affordable rate for the parents concerned.

An integral part of the EOCP has been its specific provision for Quality Improvement projects, with over €67 million of programme funding to date being allocated to this area. This has included EOCP funding for the City and County Childcare Committees (CCCs) and for 7 National Voluntary Childcare Organisations (NVCOs) to ensure a co-ordinated approach to the promotion of quality child care. The CCCs offer a wide variety of services to childcare providers including training, information and networking. They provide information and advice to existing and prospective child care providers and are the first point of contact for applicants for capital grants under the new National Childcare Investment Programme 2006-2010 (NCIP). The CCCs arealso an important source of information and advice for parents in regard to local child care facilities.

In 2006 the CCCs received some €7.9 million funding under the EOCP and a further €4 million in funding to reflect their expanded role under the NCIP. In addition, they received €1 million funding for the National Childminding Initiative which is a quality measure which supports quality awareness in the Childminding sector. Since 2000, EOCP funding of almost €20 million, including over €2.7 million in 2006, has been provided to the NVCOs supported by the programme. This has been used to provide supports for the NVCO members, for EOCP beneficiaries and for the broader child care sector and includes a range of activities in regard to quality assurance and promotion, best practice, networking and information provision, and professional development and training.

The National Childminding Initiative, which is delivered by the CCCs, includes provision for small capital developmental grants to Childminders of up to €630, which can be used to buy safety equipment or toys, or make minor adjustments to the Childminder's home to enhance or establish a Childminding service. The grants are linked to the completion of a Quality Awareness Lecture Programme (QAP) and to training, information and networking actions. Funding totalling over €6.5 million has been made available for the initiative and, since January 2004, some 3,422 Childminders have participated in the QAP. A further quality initiative, the Partnerships for Quality Childcare, was launched in May 2005 and provided funding of €573,000 for 7 collaborative projects between the CCCs and NVCOs.

With the announcement in December 2005 of the new National Childcare Investment Programme 2006-2010 (NCIP) with an allocation of €575 million, it is my intention to continue to support and enhance the development of quality child care in Ireland. The new investment programme is designed to deliver 50,000 additional child care places in a way which meets the needs of parents and their children for a range of child care services centred on the needs of the child. The NCIP is part of a new broadly based Child care Strategy, the aim of which is to deliver a more comprehensive approach to early years care and education. I believe this will build on the existing successes under the EOCP in delivering quality child care services.