Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 18 December 2025
45. Deputy Louis O'Hara asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the supports her Department can provide to a group (details supplied) in County Galway in its efforts to establish a new community creche in Caltra; if funding is available from her Department for construction and initial operational costs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71915/25]
View answerThe Department has been allocated €197 million for investment in early learning and childcare as part of the revised National Development Plan over the next five years.
This funding will be used in part to provide additional early learning and childcare places through future capital programmes, which will primarily focus on implementing the commitment to capital investment in State-owned facilities alongside continued investment in existing providers through the Building Blocks scheme. A further round of Building Blocks funding will be made available to Core Funding partner services to expand their provision will also be enabled by this increased allocation.
The Department is currently finalising options for future Building Blocks schemes, and I expect to announce details in early 2026.
The focus in the State-led services will be on services to meet demand for affordable, accessible, high quality early learning and childcare that is not otherwise being delivered, including on full day provision particularly for younger children.
Preparatory work for this programme of capital investment well advanced, with the multi-year programme planned to commence from 2026 onwards. A detailed plan will go to Government in the new year.
A number of models of ownership and delivery are intended to be trialled in the early part of the capital programme. A number of specific sites are under active consideration by officials although no definitive decisions have yet been made.
