Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)
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24. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs her plans to upskill staff working in child care services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [38711/13]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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It is my intention to introduce new qualification requirements for the pre-school childcare sector starting in September 2014. This will be an important new development as, at present, staff working in childcare services other than under the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme, are not subject to any requirement in respect of qualifications.

The ECCE programme introduced the first-ever requirement for minimum qualifications for staff working in the childcare sector. The current requirement under the programme is that the pre-school leader delivering the pre-school provision must hold a qualification in childcare/early education at a minimum of Level 5 on the National Framework of Qualifications of Ireland (NFQ), or an equivalent nationally-recognised qualification or a higher award in the childcare/early education field.

The minimum requirement of Level 5 for pre-school leaders delivering the pre-school year will be increased to Level 6. In addition, all pre-school assistants, and all other staff caring for children in a pre-school service, will be subject to a minimum requirement of Level 5. This requirement will be effective from September 2014 for new services, and from September 2015 for existing services.

There is considerable international evidence that increasing the qualifications of staff working with children increases the quality of services. It is essential, therefore, that all staff have qualifications on a formal recognised basis. My Department is currently examining measures to support training for childcare staff in line with the increased qualification requirements.