Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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I sincerely regret to hear of the difficulties faced by the applicant during this period. Officials in my Department have liaised with the Scheme Administrator, Pobal, on the applicant’s behalf and I understand that the applicant has since created an active claim which was confirmed on the 9th of April.

The rules of the NCS stipulate that subsidies can only be paid once an application is successfully completed, a Childcare Identifier Code Key (CHICK) has been registered with a childcare provider and the parent has confirmed on the system that all details of the registration are correct. It is a key aspect of the Scheme that all claims are paid in arrears based on the attendance of a child. As such, the child must be registered with a childcare provider specifically for the NCS, and the provider must confirm that attendance on the NCS portal. Subsidies cannot be paid for a time before this point.

As outlined by the applicant, a renewal application was completed in November 2023 which was valid from the 4th of December 2023 onwards. As the applicant states, the new award was not presented to their chosen childcare provider at the time. The applicant received a notification from Pobal on the 22nd of November which advised that this step must be completed in order to use the award.

In terms of backdating, it is not possible to submit registrations for a date in the past. The subsidy can only be paid from the point of registration of the new award with the childcare provider. These measures ensure that public funding is safeguarded and that the investment is following the child.

Should the parent require any further assistance, or advice, the local City/County Childcare Committee (CCC) remains available. Contact details for CCCs may be found on www.myccc.ie.