Terence Flanagan (Dublin North East, Fine Gael)
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330. To ask the Minister for Social Protection the measures that will be put in place to assist lone parents that do not get one of the 6,000 childcare places made available; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20338/13]

Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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In December, 2012, I announced, along with the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, a new pilot after-school child care scheme that will be funded from the transfer of savings from my Department as part of Budget 2013. The new pilot scheme will provide 6,000 after-school child care places and will cost €14 million.

The first pilot phase of the scheme commenced on 29 April, 2013 with 500 subsidised after-school child care places becoming available in seven designated Intreo and social welfare offices. The pilot will enable my Department to review the effectiveness of the scheme for its continued roll-out to the full 6,000 places by September, 2013.

The availability of these new child care places is a positive measure for lone parents and builds on my pledge to work to address the child care needs of lone parents as part of the reforms of the OFP scheme. It represents a further step in the Government’s long-term commitment to building a first-rate child care system for all families.

In addition to the 6,000 places available in this new initiative, lone parents are eligible to apply for the existing D/CYA childcare schemes. The D/CYA currently administer the Community Childcare Subvention (CCS) and the Childcare Education and Training Support (CETS) schemes, through which child care is provided to some 40,000 children of low-income parents at reduced rates, as well as the free Pre-School Year in Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, which is availed of by some 65,000 children every year.