Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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The National Action Plan for Childminding 2021-2028 commits to extending regulation and supports to paid, non-relative childminders who work in their own homes over the coming years. The National Action Plan sets out a phased approach with a preparatory phase followed by an extended transition phase, to allow childminders a lead-in time for any requirements. This supportive, phased transition process aims to facilitate the largest possible number of childminders to enter the regulated sector, the sphere of quality assurance, and access to Government subsidies, while recognising the time and supports required for this reform.

The National Action Plan for Childminding 2021-2028 commits to opening the National Childcare Scheme to childminders at the earliest possible opportunity, though it will be necessary first to develop and introduce childminder-specific regulations, and to give childminders adequate time and support to meet regulatory requirements.??

Phase 1 of the National Action Plan, which began in 2021, is expected to take 3 years to complete. Phase 1 includes: development of new, childminder-specific regulations that are proportionate and appropriate to the home environment in which childminders work; development and roll-out of new, bespoke training for childminders; amendment of primary legislation to enable childminders to register with Tusla; and re-examining the funding and financial supports available for childminders.

Phase 1 will be completed when the exemption to registration has been removed from the Child Care Act 1991 and the childminder-specific regulations have been commenced. All childminders will then be able to register their services and access the National Childcare Scheme.

A General Scheme was published earlier this year that set out plans for amendments to the Child Care Act 1991, including removal of the legal exemption of childminders from regulation. The General Scheme has completed Pre-Legislative Scrutiny.

To ensure that childminders are involved in the process of drafting regulations, I have ensured there are childminders on the Steering Group for the National Action Plan as well as on all four Advisory Groups, including the Advisory Group on Regulation and Inspection of Childminding. And that is also why engagement and consultation with childminders has been key to the process of bringing childminders into the scope of regulation ever since work on this began in 2016, when the Government established a working group on reform and asked Childminding Ireland to chair it.

As part of its work, the Working Group carried out a consultation with childminders through a survey of Childminding Ireland members and a discussion day that allowed more in-depth discussions with childminders from around the country. The Working Group’s report was published in March 2018, and a Draft Childminding Action Plan was published in 2019, for the purpose of public consultation.

The consultation on the Draft Childminding Action Plan took place in the second half of 2019. The consultation process included: an online survey, of which the majority of respondents were childminders; focus groups with childminders, in which a total of 205 childminders took part; and an open policy debate hosted by my Department to which key stakeholders, including childminders and groups representing childminders, were invited. The findings of the consultation process (which are published on my Department's website) informed the development of the National Action Plan for Childminding.

Consultation with childminders and parents will continue over the coming months when public consultation on the draft regulations is carried out.