Michael McGrath (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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Question 65: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on the involvement of Montessori schools in the early childhood care and education scheme (details supplied). [19457/09]

Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the new scheme to provide a free Pre-School year of Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) which was announced recently by the Minister for Finance.

The scheme, which is being introduced from January 2010, will be open to almost 5,000 private and voluntary pre-school services, including montessori schools. The scheme will allow children to avail of a free play-school place in their pre-school year, which will be provided for three hours per day, five days per week for 38 weeks. It will also allow children in their pre-school year who are attending full day or part-time day care services to avail of a free session of two hours and 15 minutes per day, five days per week for 50 weeks.

Participating services will receive capitation of €64.50 per week where children attend for 38 weeks, and €48.50 where they attend for 50 weeks of the year. Services will receive payments at the start of each term. Where the child is attending full-day or part-time child care, the service will be required to reduce the child care fees by the amount of the capitation. A participating service may also operate a pre-school service which is not within the scheme.

Services which choose to participate in the scheme must do so on the basis that the pre-school provision is available without charge. It is, however, open to services to charge parents for additional services which they provide, including additional hours and additional activities or services, provided these are offered on an optional basis to parents and provided appropriate programme based activities are provided to children not participating in an additional activity.

To ensure that a satisfactory standard of pre-school provision is delivered, a minimum enrolment of eight children is envisaged. Exceptions will be considered where, for good reason and subject to compliance with all other contractual requirements governing the scheme, a service has an enrolment of at least five children in their pre-school year or there is a minimum enrolment of eight children of which at least three are in their pre-school year and the remainder would be eligible in the following year.