Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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11. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if it is his priority to increase quality in earlier years settings and to build professional development time. [20489/15]

James Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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The Early Years Quality Agenda is a key priority for my Department. It brings together a range of measures designed to support providers in the challenge of continually improving the quality and standards of early years services throughout the country. One of the most important measures relates to the inspection of early years services.

I am preparing new Regulations to strengthen the current inspection regime, under which a new registration system will require that anyone who wants to establish an early years service must register with Tusla before they open. Services will be inspected by the Early Years Inspectorate before registration is granted, and there will be on-going inspections once the service is operating and children are attending. Importantly, these new Regulations will also be accompanied by new National Standards for Early Years Services, against which services will be inspected.

In addition to this work, the Inspectorate of the Department of Education and Skills is leading focussed inspections of the quality of educational provision in the free pre-school year provided under the Early Childhood Care and Education Programme.

New qualification requirements for staff working directly with children in early years setting are also planned. All staff will be required to have a minimum Level 5 qualification on the National Qualifications Framework in early years care and education, or an equivalent qualification. In addition, pre-school leaders delivering the free pre-school year, who are currently required to hold a Level 5 qualification, will be required to have a minimum Level 6 qualification, or equivalent to qualify for ECCE. To support staff to meet these new qualification requirements, my Department established the Learner Fund which allocated €3 million to almost 2,500 staff for the purpose of up-skilling

The recent establishment of Better Start further demonstrates my commitment to ensuring excellence in early years services. The aim of Better Start is to provide a nationally coherent continuum of support to providers to help them to improve quality, incorporating the work of the City and County Childcare Committees and the National Voluntary Childcare Organisations. Every year, we provide some €13 million to City and County Childcare Committees and National Voluntary Childcare Organisations under the programme. This funding supports the valuable work of these bodies in supporting early years’ services around the country, through training, continuing professional development programmes, networking and cluster-type support groups.

Better Start also incorporates the work of a new nationally coordinated Early Years Specialist Service. This Service has recruited and trained 30 graduates in early childhood care and education to work directly with services in a mentoring capacity to improve quality, including assisting services in the implementation of the Síolta Framework and the Aistear Curriculum.

While significant progress has been made, my Department will continue to progress the Early Years Quality Agenda. Indeed, this is one of a number of issues that will be considered by the Inter-Department Group on Future Investment in Early Years and School-Age Care and Education.