Grace Boland (Dublin Fingal West, Fine Gael)
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2388. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the progress being made to ensure the Review of Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare operating system in Ireland will be ready for publication in 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42168/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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On 29th March 2022 Government accepted the findings of the independent Review of the Early Learning and Childcare Operating Model in Ireland that a dedicated state agency is the optimal operating model for the early learning and childcare sector for the years ahead. It is envisaged that this state agency will undertake the functions currently carried out by Pobal Early Years (including Better Start), the City/County Childcare Committees, as well as operational functions currently undertaken by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality (DCDE).

A dedicated state agency will assist in the development of a more streamlined structure to better support the delivery of early learning and childcare, and will facilitate DCDE in implementing and progressing the significant reform agenda envisaged under First 5, the Whole of Government Strategy for Babies, Young Children and their Families.

Significant progress has already been made in advancing this ambitious and transformative reform programme. DCDE is currently engaging with independent consultants Indecon who have been contracted to undertake the initial phase of research, analysis and stakeholder engagement to inform the design of the agency. DCDE is committed to ongoing and extensive engagement with sectoral stakeholders throughout the programme of reform. This phase will comprise a detailed design of a new agency, which will include determining the appropriate national, local and regional structures, the legal requirements, transition and continuity planning, and an evidence-based cost projection for the establishment and annual operational costs of a new agency.

Initial consultation events regarding the vision, mission and values of the agency with a wide range of stakeholders have taken place. A report has been compiled from these initial consultations and the report has been circulated to the participating stakeholders and published to the dedicated agency web page. Consultation events also took place throughout 2024 with the focus on function mapping and mapping of the workforce across the current operating model.

It is anticipated that this phase will be concluded in late 2025 with the production of a consolidated report on the design of the agency. A detailed costing exercise is also underway and is scheduled to conclude in late 2025 also. The work will culminate in a costed agency design, including the remit, organisational structure and service delivery model, which will be presented to Government for approval.