Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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1028. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his views on matters raised by a person (details supplied) in respect of their concerns on the future viability of private childminding services in Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32074/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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My Department developed a National Action Plan for Childminding which was published in April 2021. The Action Plan aims to improve access, through childminding, to high quality and affordable childcare. The Action Plan sets out a pathway over the next 8 years towards regulation, support and subsidies for all paid, non-relative childminders. The Action Plan will involve change and will bring significant benefits for childminders, and for the children and the families using their services.

The Steering Group for the National Action Plan will be established shortly, to drive, oversee and monitor implementation of the National Action Plan. The Steering Group will be supported by four Advisory Groups in relation to: regulation and inspection; training and support; funding and financial supports; and consultation and communications.

In relation to the viability of childminding services, the National Action Plan has a specific objective of supporting the retention and recruitment of childminders. A key feature of the Action Plan is that, through extending registration and regulation to childminders, it will enable childminders to take part in the National Childcare Scheme and also to avail of a range of funding and other supports. Importantly, the National Action Plan commits to developing childminder-specific regulations that are proportionate and appropriate to the home and family setting in which childminders work.

In terms of the involvement of childminders in decision-making on issues that affect them, the National Action Plan commits to representation of childminders, parents and other key stakeholders on the Steering Group, which will be chaired by my Department. Additionally the National Action Plan commits to representation of childminders on all four Advisory Groups.

The National Action Plan itself was based on extensive consultation and engagement with childminders, and the blueprint for the National Action Plan was the 2018 report of the Working Group on Reforms and Supports for the Childminding Sector, which was coordinated and chaired by Childminding Ireland. The National Action Plan commits to further consultation with childminders, especially during Phase 1 of the Plan when developing regulations specific to childminders.

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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1029. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the extent to which community-based crèches exist by county and with particular reference to north County Kildare; the future proposals in this regard; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32097/21]

Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)
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1030. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the degree to which community-based crèches operate throughout the country; the extent of the need to provide for further services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32098/21]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 1029 and 1030 together.

Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare service data is captured and reported annually by Pobal on behalf of my Department.

Data from the 2019/20 Early Years Sector Profile Report indicates that majority of ELC and SAC services are operated by private (for profit) enterprises. In 2019/20 private services accounted for 74% (3,476) of all services contracted to provide at least one of the funding programmes, with community programmes accounting for the remaining 26% (1,214). Over recent years, there has been a slight increase in the number of private services while the number of community services has remained relatively constant, as demonstrated in Table 1 below. A breakdown of service provision by Local Authority is also available. As demonstrated in Table 2 below, Dublin had the highest number of community services at 158, followed by Cork County at 94 and Galway at 82. Kildare had the lowest number of community services, with 11 services recorded. Officials in my Department, in partnership with Pobal and the City and County Childcare Committees continue to monitor supply and demand for ELC and SAC closely in order to inform policy development in this area.

A key policy objective of my Department is to improve affordability, accessibility and quality of Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School-Age Childcare (SAC). A 141% increase in investment over the last number of years has led to a doubling in the number of children receiving free or subsidised ELC and SAC.

In previous years the creation of new places and new services were prioritised in the Department's capital programmes. Many community facilities, and some private facilities, were built using public investment through the major capital investment programmes, Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme (2000-2006) and the National Childcare Investment Programme (2006-2011). Since then, annual capital programmes have provided investment for establishment of new provision, expansion of services, quality improvements and maintenance and upgrades to existing facilities in both the private and community sector. My Department’s capital programmes have increased capacity in the sector by 27,433 places nationally since 2015.

In addition, First 5, the ten-year strategy for babies, young children and their families commits to maintain and extend the supply of high-quality publicly subsidised early learning and childcare to best serve the developmental needs of babies and young children, ensuring that it also reflects the needs and preferences of parents and families. To deliver on this strategic action, a range of actions are under way, including the development of a strategic capital investment plan to deliver large-scale capital investment under Project 2040, and the development of a new funding model for ELC and SAC.

An Expert Group has been convened to examine the current model of funding and its effectiveness in delivering quality, affordable, sustainable and inclusive services. The Expert Group will recommend how additional resourcing can be delivered for the sector to achieve these objectives, drawing on international practice in this area. It is expected that a report on the Expert Group’s recommendations on the new Funding Model will be submitted to me in November.

Table 1: Community/Private Settings Breakdown

Table 2: Breakdown by Local Authority