Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 790: To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the resources being allocated in 2012 to the implementation of the workforce development plan for the early child care sector; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [1013/12]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme was introduced in January 2010 and provides a free pre-school year to all eligible children in the year before commencing primary school. My objective is to incrementally develop the ECCE programme over the term of this Government as resources permit. A key element of this is the implementation of the Workforce Development Plan by the Early Education Policy Unit of the Department of Education and Skills, which is co-located in my Department.

The Workforce Development Plan identified different distinct groups including:

1. New entrants to the workforce who wish to become appropriately qualified for specific occupational roles and responsibilities. 2. Unqualified practitioners in the current workforce who want to achieve a Level 5 award.

For new entrants to the workforce the publication of Common Award Standards at NFQ Levels 4, 5 and 6 is a welcome development. Programmes of learning developed to meet these new award standards will incorporate national practice frameworks and will reflect national policy objectives, thereby ensuring that graduates of these programmes are fully prepared to enter the workforce. Training providers have begun to develop new programmes to meet these award standards and, subject to validation by FETAC, the first of these, the FETAC Level 5 Major Award in Early Childhood Care and Education, will come on stream shortly through the VECs.

For unqualified practitioners in the current workforce who want to achieve a Level 5 Award, my Department part subsidises an on-line course which was developed by one of the Voluntary Childcare Organisations (VCOs).