Jimmy Deenihan (Kerry North, Fine Gael)
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Question 144: To ask the Minister for Health and Children if the preschool allowance eligibility will be extended to September which is the beginning of the school year in view of the greater number of children born between 30 June and September who will not qualify for this scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17522/10]

Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)
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I have responsibility for implementing the free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme, which was introduced in January this year. Children will qualify for the scheme where they are aged more than 3 years and 2 months and less than 4 years and 7 months at 1 September each year. The upper age limit does not apply where children are developmentally delayed and would benefit from participating in the pre-school year at a later age or where a child cannot start primary school until a later date due to the enrolment policy of the local primary schools.

The objective of the scheme is to make early learning in a formal setting available to all children in the key developmental year before they commence primary school, with appropriate age related activities and programmes being provided within a particular age cohort. Targeting the pre-school year at a particular age cohort is, therefore, fundamental to the scheme and for this reason minimum and maximum limits to the age range within which children participate in the scheme, have been set. While the majority of children commence school between the age of 4 years 6 months and 5 years 6 months, an age range of almost 17 months has been set for the scheme to maximise flexibility.

It is necessary to the objectives of the ECCE scheme that appropriate age-related early learning activities are provided to children in their pre-school year. The scheme must remain sufficiently targeted to ensure the best delivery of pre-school education and, therefore, it is not proposed to extend the eligibility age range beyond that currently provided for.