Norma Foley (Kerry, Fianna Fail)
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The Department is aware that a small number of service providers have regrettably chosen to withdraw from Core Funding, and pleased to note that Tots & Co have remained in the scheme.

The Department, through County/City Childcare Committees, engages directly with services, to highlight the benefits of staying in Core Funding, not only for their service but also for the families who avail of them. The Minister is hopeful that this provider may reconsider their decision as others have.

As of 3 November 2025, there were 5,035 services listed as being open on the Early Years Platform, of which 177 (4%) had left Core Funding at one point over the lifetime of the scheme to this date and continue to operate outside of this scheme. A further 415 services (8%) had left Core Funding at one point over the lifetime of the scheme to this date but later rejoined and were signed up to the fourth year of the scheme on this date. The overwhelming majority of services, 4,157 or 83%, have continued to participate in Core Funding from the date on which they first signed up for the scheme.

The State is providing Core Funding to promote the interests of children and their families and workers in a privately operated sector.

Tots & Co Playgroup is currently receiving Core Funding for their service. The table below shows that the Core Funding provided to Tots & Co Playgroup has increased from €59,673.44 in year 1 of the scheme to €66,496 in year 4.

Name of provider	2022/2023 Core Funding received	2023/2024 Core Funding received	2024/2025 Core Funding Contract Value (May 2025)	2025/2026 Core Funding Contract Value (5 Nov 2025)	% change in grant value between 2022/2023 and 2025/2026
Tots and Co Playgroup	€59,673.44	€60,086.52	€60,623.68	€66,496.00	11%

While the State cannot mandate providers to participate in the scheme, Core Funding has been designed with maximum participation of providers in mind as reflected in the year-on-year growth of investment in the Scheme (rising from €259 million in 2022 to over €405 million in 2026). This represents an increase of over 56% in Core Funding in four years.

In addition to this increased allocation, participation in Core Funding unlocks additional supports for services to access, including:

• access to wider financial supports where a service is experiencing financial difficulty or has concerns about their viability;
• access to enhanced support for services caring for concentrated numbers of children facing disadvantage through Equal Start; and
• opportunities to apply for capital grants through the Department.

Participation in Core Funding is optional, but it remains open to all registered providers subject to their agreement to the terms and conditions of the Core Funding Agreement.

In addition to the year on year increases in the Core Funding allocation, the Department has introduced a range of other enhancements to the Scheme in recent years to improve protection for families through, for example, new deposit rules and maximum fee caps.

The Department has also made changes to improve the sustainability of providers through, for example, targeted measures for small and sessional services, a fee increase assessment and approval process for services with fees frozen at unsustainably low rates. There are also wider financial supports from the Department for services experiencing financial difficulty.

All services have been encouraged to avail of these supports as an alternative to withdrawing from Core Funding and removing the benefit of Core Funding to children and their families.

For the current programme year, services have the autonomy and business freedom, to withdraw from Core Funding, even though this will result in the loss of the significant financial support it offers them and the substantial benefits and certainty it brings to families.

For this programme year, services remain eligible to provide the National Childcare Scheme, the Early Childhood Care and Education programme and the Community Childcare Subvention Plus Saver programme.

Service providers are required to provide 3 months written notice to families before withdrawing from Core Funding mid-year.

Core Funding remains open to services and uptake remains strong. The fourth year of Core Funding began on 1 September and as of 26 November there were 4,568 services signed up to Year 4 of Core Funding, a near 5 per cent increase on this time last year. This is the highest number of Partner Services in Core Funding at any point since the scheme was launched in 2022 and the number continues to grow.

If parents are experiencing difficulty in relation to their early learning and childcare needs, they should contact their local County/City Childcare Committee for assistance.

The Department has a list of all Core Funding Partner Services which is updated regularly on the Departments website under www.gov.ie/en/department-of-children-disability-and-equality/publications/how-to-find-a-partner-service/