Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)
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1977. To ask the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will urgently review the adequacy of supports for community-based childcare services in light of the closure of a service (details supplied) in Midleton, County Cork; the actions she intends to take to prevent further closures of early years services nationally; if she accepts that's the current funding and policy measures are failing to sustain services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [46178/25]

Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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Investment in early learning and childcare is now at unprecedented levels with public funding exceeding €1.37 billion in 2025, clearly demonstrating Government commitment to this area.

Core Funding has seen consistent increased State investment to the sector year on year, and is set in year 4 to be worth over €390 million contingent on the establishment of new minimum rates of pay in the sector through updated Employment Regulation Orders. This is an increase of over 50% since the scheme began in September 2022 with an allocation of €259 million.

From September 2025, year 4 of Core Funding begins and over €390 million will be available through Core Funding. The increased Core Funding available from September facilitates:

Support for providers in meeting the costs of increases in minimum pay rates as a result of newly negotiated Employment Regulation Orders by the independent Joint Labour Committee;

Increased funding for early learning and care capacity offered to ensure Partner Services can keep pace with rising costs without needing to increase fees charged to parents;

An increase to the minimum amount of funding a centre-based service will receive, increasing to €14,400 per year from the current level of €14,000;

A reduction in the maximum allocation for a services capacity to €450,000 to best spread a limited budget across the entire sector; and

Funding to support capacity growth of 3.5% across the sector.

The Core Funding base rate factors in some key conditions, to ensure services viability, including, costs associated with staff pay, costs associated with administrative staff/time and non-pay costs such as utilities needed to run the service.

Services have flexibility in how they spend their grant, provided it aligns with the approved areas of expenditure outlined in the Core Funding Partner Service Funding Agreement (the Core Funding Contract).

Targeted supports for small and sessional services introduced in year 2, were enhanced in year 3 and continue in year 4.

In June, I announced the maximum fee cap thresholds for all Partner Services in Core Funding from September 2025. The fee freeze will remain in place for all Partner Services with fees below these caps. This is an important step towards the reduction of childcare fees to €200 per month over the lifetime of this Government.

Maximum fee caps were introduced for new services last year, and for year 4 they are applicable to existing services also. Under these year 4 fee cap thresholds, the fee for a full day place – of between 40-50 hours per week, the most common full day care operating hours – will be no more than €295 per week (before State subsidies under the National Childcare Scheme and the ECCE programme are deducted), the fee cap for 50+ hours of care is €354. All of the fee caps will reduce the highest fees at each fee band in the country. The majority of services are already charging far less than the new maximum fees. This is an important step towards the reduction of childcare fees to €200 per month over the lifetime of this Government.

This latest measure builds on a range of supports already in place. Work is also under way to develop an Action Plan to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early learning and childcare system, informed by stakeholder consultation. This will set out future steps to reduce the cost of early learning and childcare further to €200 per month over the lifetime of the Government.

In September 2024, the Department commenced the rollout of Equal Start, a major model of supports to ensure children experiencing disadvantage can access and meaningfully participate in early learning and childcare.

Equal Start is designed to be developed and rolled out in phases. Services with the highest level of need are targeted in the early phases. Since September 2024, Equal Start settings have been receiving funding for additional staffing hours that can be used to support engagement between the settings and families, as well as other child and family support services. An allocation of more than €11,700,000 was provided for Staffing Supports payments in Budget 2025.

Funding for additional measures will be requested in budgets during the lifetime of Equal Start. Equal Start supports will be fully rolled out in three phases over a five-year period, with full implementation within the lifetime of First 5 – by 2028.

I am confident that there is a sufficient level of investment and associated supports to make participation attractive.

In addition, my Department oversees a system of case management through which local City or County Childcare Committee (CCC) assist services with issues and difficulties that arise.

The sustainability fund for community service providers is a support mechanism introduced to ensure the stability of early learning and childcare services for those participating in the Core Funding model.

This funding is provided by the Department to services that have identified a particular issue that has serious consequences for their viability. The fund is accessed through a collaborative process involving the service, their local City/County Childcare Committee (CCC), and Pobal, who assess financial eligibility and need.

Once a service engages with their local CCC they will be able to avail of supports through the case management process.

Department officials have informed me of the following regarding the service, that Cork County CCC have only recently learnt about the service closure, and that the service notified the parents by letter, advising that they were closing temporarily due to lack of staff.

Subsequently, Cork CCC contacted the Respond administrator for the county, who confirmed that the closure is due to staffing.

Cork CCC advised that they have been supporting the service with various items such as fees, Tusla and Pobal requirements, and are currently supporting the service in relation to the temporary closure, as well as recruitment of new manager. Cork CCC will remain available to offer support to the service.

I do not want any Provider to be faced with financial sustainability issues in their delivery of Early Learning and Childcare services. To support services, there are wider financial supports available from my Department. Where a service is experiencing financial difficulty or has viability concerns, these can be accessed while remaining within Core Funding.

This support can take the form of assisting services with interpreting analysis of staff ratios and cash flow, financial support, as well as more specialised advice and support appropriate to individual circumstances.

These supports can be accessed by any Core Funding Partner Service by contacting their local County/City Childcare Committee.

I would encourage any service experiencing financial difficulty and who would like support to contact their CCC to access case management supports. Contact details for the CCCs can be found at City and County Childcare Committees .