Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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198. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality for an update on the proposed move of a crèche to a new building (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39794/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme was launched on 4th November 2024. The closing date for applications was 30th January. There were four strands to the scheme: Community Construction, Community Extension, Community Purchasing and Private Extension.

A total of 78 applications were received with 50 successful applicants progressing to the next stage of the grant process.

The service that you referred to applied under the Community Construction strand of the scheme.

However, upon review of their application they were deemed ineligible due to the absence of the mandatory Project Execution Plan.

As set out in the Applicant Guidelines, the Project Execution Plan was required in order for the project to be fully appraised. The Project Execution Plan was required to outline, in detail, all elements and stages of the project along with timelines, budgets and the appointed project team. Without the Project Execution Plan there was insufficient detail available on the proposed project so it was not possible to undertake a full appraisal.

Officials from my Department communicated with the service on Monday 19 May, outlining the reason for their ineligibility.

My office has also received a request for a meeting with the service in question and I can confirm that I intend to meet with the service in September.

The approach to capital investment in future years is currently being developed in the context of the Programme for Government commitments and the revision to the National Development Plan which is ongoing.

Consideration in this regard is being given to the possibility for future capital programmes, including potentially operating a further scheme to support the expansion of provision by existing operators as well as implementing the commitment to capital investment in State-owned facilities. My Department is considering all aspects of a future programme, including prioritising investment in areas with the greatest need for provision.

Discussions on updates to the National Development Plan between my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform are ongoing. My officials continue to regularly engage with colleagues across Government on the review, the outcome of which will determine the timing and scale of future capital investment initiatives.

Rory Hearne (Dublin North-West, Social Democrats)
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199. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality to provide an update on any additional childcare facilities planned in the Ballymun and Finglas area; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [39795/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Improving access to quality and affordable Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare is a key priority of Government.

Decisions about whether to open new early learning and childcare facilities or expand existing services in Ballymun and Finglas, as elsewhere, are the prerogative of independent operators. My Department therefore does not have details of future planned facilities by independent operators.

The Programme for Government commits for the first time to provide capital investment to build or purchase state-owned early learning and childcare facilities, to create additional capacity in areas where unmet need exists. State ownership of facilities is a very substantial and significant development and offers the potential for much greater scope to influence the nature and volume of provision available and to ensure better alignment with estimated demand.

Some early scoping work has been carried out to explore options to introduce a segment of public provision. More detailed and extensive policy development and design is ongoing in order progress to implementation stage, having regard to the wider emerging policy context as set out in the Programme for Government.

This work has informed my Department’s contribution to the review of the National Development Plan which will set out the capital allocation to underpin public delivery in the coming years. There has been a range of engagements at official and political level to inform the updated National Development Plan between my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform and I expect the review to be finalised shortly.

It is important to note that early learning and childcare capacity is increasing. Data from the Annual Early Years Sector Profile 2023/24 shows that the estimated number of enrolments increased by approximately 19% from the 2021/22 programme year. Core Funding application data shows that between Year 1 and Year 3 of the scheme, annual place hours increased by over 15%. The Tusla register of services demonstrates a net increase in the numbers of registered early learning and childcare services in 2024. However, it appears that demand for early learning and childcare remains higher than available supply in certain parts of the country, particularly for younger children.

My Department continues to support the ongoing development and resourcing of Core Funding which has given rise to a significant expansion of places since the scheme was first introduced. Core Funding, which is in its third programme year, funds services based on the number of places available.

This provides stability to services, and reduces the risk associated with opening a new service or expanding an already existing service. For the current programme year, the allocation for Core Funding allows for a 6% increase in capacity. Additional funding was secured in Budget 2025 to facilitate a further 3.5% increase from September 2025, in the fourth programme year.

The Government is also supporting the expansion of capacity through capital funding. The Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme is designed to increase capacity in the 1–3-year-old, pre–Early Childhood Care and Education, age range for full day care. Core Funding Partner services could apply for capital funding to physically extend their premises or to construct or purchase new premises.

50 applications will be progressing to the next stage of the Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme. These 50 applications come from a mix of Community Extension (24), Private Extension (7), Community Purchasing (4) and Community Construction (15) projects, which, when completed, will deliver 1,500 additional full time childcare places for 1–3-year-olds. I look forward to seeing how these projects progress over the coming months.

A Forward Planning and Delivery Unit in my Department has been additional staff and is pursuing an ambitious programme of work. This includes developing a forward planning model which will be central to my Department's plans to achieve the policy goals set out in the Programme for Government to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early childhood education and care system, with State-led facilities adding capacity.

My Department also funds 30 City/County Childcare Committees, which support and assist families and early learning and childcare providers. The network of 30 City/County Childcare Committees across the country can assist in identifying vacant places in services for children and families who need them and engage proactively with services to explore possibilities for expansion among services, particularly where there is unmet need.

Parents experiencing difficulty in relation to their early learning and childcare needs should contact their local City/County Childcare Committee for assistance. Contact details for the Dublin City Childcare Committee may be found at