Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 255: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if additional funding will be provided for child care facilities to assist in the provision of the early childhood care and education scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34838/09]

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 256: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the reason her Department chose to make additional funding to assist child care providers in the provision of the early childhood care and education scheme available under the top up funding that is being provided as a transitional agreement during the introduction of the ECCE scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34839/09]

Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)
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Question 257: To ask the Minister for Health and Children her views on whether cognisance should be given to additional costs including rent or mortgages by private child care providers in the rollout of the early childhood care and education scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [34840/09]

Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 255 to 257, inclusive, together.

As the Deputy will be aware, I have responsibility for the implementation of the new Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme which provides a free Pre-School year to eligible children. In addition, my Office is also responsible for implementing the Community Childcare Subvention Scheme (CCSS) which supports community not- for- profit childcare services to enable them to provide childcare at reduced rates to disadvantaged and low income families.

Under the ECCE scheme, participating services will be paid a standard annual capitation fee of €2,450 in return for the provision of the free pre-school year. The payment will be made, in advance, at the beginning of each term. Services participating in the scheme should be satisfied that they will be in a position to meet all of their costs from the capitation provided and additional funding will not be provided where this is not the case. Participating services may charge parents for additional services, provided these are clearly optional and children not availing of such services continue to receive appropriate programme based provision.

A higher capitation rate of €75 per week (€2,850 p.a.) was announced in July of this year and will be available to sessional playschool services in which all childcare workers have qualification levels above the minimum requirements for the scheme. To qualify for the higher capitation rate all Pre-School leaders in the service must hold a level 7 or 8 qualification relating to childcare and have 3 years experience working in the sector, and all assistants must hold a relevant level 5 qualification.

It is considered that the capitation rates are reasonable and will accommodate the great majority of services. The scheme represents an investment of almost €170 million annually in pre-school services and in light of the current economic situation there are no proposals to increase this provision.

Community services participating in the CCSS may also choose to participate and receive funding under the ECCE scheme. Many services in the CCSS are eligible for a transitional funding rate in 2010 under which they will receive not less than 75% of the funding they received in 2007 under a previous support scheme. In most cases, the level of funding paid to community services in the CCSS has increased and, in the absence of the ECCE scheme in 2010, not more than 25% of services would have been expected to qualify for the transitional rate.

With the introduction of the additional funding programme, it is considered appropriate to take account of the total grant funding which this Office will pay to services when calculating any additional payments due under the transitional rate. The following is an example of how this will apply. A service which received €80,000 funding in 2007 and which qualifies in 2010 for subvention amounting to €50,000 would, in the absence of ECCE funding, receive €10,000 in transitional funding, bringing its total funding to €60,000. If the service qualifies for €19,600 in ECCE funding, it will receive €69,600 in total funding in 2010 rather than €60,000.