Michael Cahill (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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548. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the number of children under the age of three are on childcare waiting lists in Kerry for the years 2021-2025, inclusive; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4532/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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My Department is currently collating the information requested and a reply will issue directly to the Deputy in due course.

Tom Brabazon (Dublin Bay North, Fianna Fail)
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549. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the measures being taken to increase the number of childcare facilitates in Dublin Bay north; the number of current childcare facilities in Dublin Bay north and the number of childcare facilities in Dublin Bay north in 2015. [4557/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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In 2014/15 programme year there were 85 early learning and childcare services registered for at least one DCYA funded programme or scheme the Dublin Bay North constituency (as determined by the electoral (amendment) Act 2023). There are currently, as of 01 February 2025, 158 services registered for at least one DCEDIY funded programme or scheme.

My Department employs a range of approaches to identify and address shortages of early learning and childcare places, bearing in mind the wide range of types of early learning and childcare provision offered by services and required by families.

Last year, a Supply Management Unit within the Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare Division was established, and the Programme for Government articulates an intention that the unit be resourced and transformed into a Forward Planning and Delivery Unit to identify areas of need, forecast demand and deliver public supply within the childcare sector where required.

The development of a forward planning model is currently underway utilising the skills of statisticians on secondment from the Central Statistics Office, those experienced in the field of early learning and childcare and the expertise of a GIS mapper working with the Department. The model will seek to identify the nature and volume of different types of early learning and childcare places across the country, whether or not those places are occupied and how that aligns with the numbers of children in the corresponding age cohorts at local area level.

Some €25m in capital funding has been made available this year under the Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme. The primary focus of the scheme is to increase capacity in the 1–3-year-old, pre-ECCE, age range for full day care.

Appraisal of applications for this scheme will consider the supply and demand in the area around the proposed projects and seeks to prioritise funding for areas with the biggest supply/demand mismatch. Applications for this scheme have now closed and an appraisal process has begun. I expect to announce the outcome of the application process in March.