Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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969. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the amount of funding that was allocated to the childcare services reopening grants; and the amount of this allocation was drawn down to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 in tabular form. [31351/21]

Kathleen Funchion (Carlow-Kilkenny, Sinn Fein)
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996. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the funding allocated in 2020 on the once-off reopening support payment for providers funded by his Department opening between 29 June and early September 2020; and the amount of this allocation that was spent in 2020. [31646/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 969 and 996 together.

My Department operates a number of early learning and school-age childcare funding schemes. these schemes are administered by Pobal on behalf of my Department.

The reopening support payment consisted of a once-off grant for providers opening from 29 June through to late August / early September 2020. This grant was intended to help providers with operational costs, including:

- Additional staffing costs, such as to help with drop off and pick up times, or cleaning staff to ensure that hygiene standards are met;

- To provide training to staff on guidelines for reopening;

- To provide additional learning resources, books and toys so that each play-pod has their own; and

- To buy hygiene and cleaning consumables, such as sanitiser, soap, and paper towels.

The payment amount for each individual provider was based on the number of children on DCEDIY funded schemes in the service pre-COVID-19.

Services which opened on 29 June 2020 (or within a week of that date) and remained open for 6 of the 8 weeks until 23 August were eligible to receive a higher grant than services which reopened in late August or September. This was in recognition of the fact that a reduced number of children were likely to attend Early Learning and Childcare services in the initial weeks of reopening.

The table below shows the amount allocated and the amount drawn down under this scheme.