Catherine Murphy (Kildare North, Social Democrats)
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441. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth his plans to increase the funding per child in the early learning years sector. [44656/23]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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This Budget continues to improve investment for early learning and childcare with funding increasing by 8% or €83 million in 2024, to €1.108 billion.

Through this funding, there will be improved affordability for parents, improved availability of early learning and childcare places and additional supports for children with a disability and for children experiencing disadvantage. There will also be significant enhancements to the Core Funding Scheme.

The overall strategy to support and develop the Early Learning and Childcare Sector is expressed through “Together for Better”. The Together for Better funding model is about getting the most out of the three Early Learning and Childcare programmes: ECCE including AIM, NCS and Core Funding. These funding streams work together to support stability and sustainability in the sector.

Given the multi-pronged nature of the funding, it cannot be meaningfully distilled to an overall increase per individual child. The measures described hereunder seek to express closest equivalents where applicable.

Core Funding operates in addition to the ECCE Programme and the NCS. Between ECCE capitation and Core Funding, there is currently a minimum of €79.20 per child per week, before additional graduate premium of €4.44 per hour and the flat rate of €4,075 per year for sessional services are added, as applicable. The developments in 2024 will see this minimum income increase further.

From September 2024, all families accessing registered early learning and childcare will receive a minimum hourly universal NCS subsidy of €2.14 off their out of pocket costs, rising by 74c from a current hourly rate of €1.40.

For families on the minimum or universal subsidy, this will mean up to €5,007 off their annual bill per child. This represents up to an additional €1,731 off the annual cost of early learning and childcare per child.

Anyone not already on the maximum subsidy will also receive an increase, but the amount of increase will depend on their current circumstances. Families on the maximum subsidies under the NCS, based on an income assessment and the age of the child, can already receive up to €11,934 off their annual fee.

The totality of funding in 2024 will provide for:

• The continuation of the ECCE programme that will benefit more than 103,000 children in 2024.
• The continuation of the Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) to ensure children with a disability can access and meaningfully participate in the ECCE Programme. Funding will provide for an increasing cohort of children with a disability availing of targeted AIM supports – approximately 7,000 - as well as the expansion of these supports beyond time spent in the ECCE programme, in term and out of term.
• The continuation of the NCS, and the introduction of enhancements to the Scheme with more than 150,000 unique children to benefit from changes to the minimum subsidy rate and the sponsorship rate.
• The continuation of Core Funding, with enhancements to the Scheme in year 3.
• The introduction of the Equal Participation Model (EPM), whereby services will be provided with a proportionate mix of universal and targeted supports to support children and families accessing their services who are experiencing disadvantage.
• The delivery of a range of regulatory and quality supports for the implementation of the National Action Plan for Childminding; Nurturing Skills, the Workforce Plan, and the ongoing development of the registration and inspection system as well as policy development commitments set out in First 5 and the Programme for Government.