Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 27 May 2026
179. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 974 of 12 May 2026, the engagement there has been with the management of a childcare centre (details supplied) in relation to their planned withdrawal from core funding; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40435/26]
View answer181. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the position regarding flexibility within the core funding model for a childcare centre (details supplied) to increase their pricing in the context of significant running cost increases; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40437/26]
View answer182. Deputy Barry Ward asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 974 of 12 May 2026, the engagement there has been with the management of a childcare centre (details supplied) in relation to increased prices for parents to accommodate their own increase in running costs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [40438/26]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 179, 181 and 182 together.
I am aware that Sharavogue School has regrettably signalled to families that they do not intend to rejoin Core Funding in the 2026/2027 programme year, commencing in September.
The Department, through the local Childcare Committee (CCC), has engaged directly with this service to highlight the benefits of staying in Core Funding, not only for their service but also for the families who avail of them. Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown CCC has confirmed that the service does not intend to enter contract for the 2026/2027 programme year. However, I remain hopeful that the provider may reconsider their decision, particularly when details of the Year 5 Core Funding allocations are made available to providers in the coming weeks.
A key condition of receiving the significant State funding available through the Core Funding Scheme requires that Partner Services adhere to the Core Funding fee management system, including a freeze on fees at 2021 levels and fee caps. These measures support the Department’s ongoing policy developments in relation to achieving standardisation of fees charged to parents and of income received by Partner Services.
Under the Core Funding Partner Service Funding Agreement, Partner Services must comply with the rules of the Core Funding scheme, such as the associated fee management measures and minimum notice periods. In line with the Core Funding Partner Service Agreement, services considering withdrawing from the scheme during a programme year must give 3 months’ notice of their intention to withdraw to the scheme administrator, and 3 months’ written notice to parents/guardians.
However, if an existing Partner Service decides not to enter a contract for the new programme year starting on 1 September, they, as private businesses, would no longer be subject to the provisions of the Core Funding Agreement and, by extension, the required minimum notice period to the scheme administrator and parents/guardians. They are also not required to provide a reason for choosing not to reapply for Core Funding to the scheme administrator.
Balancing affordability for parents with viability for businesses remains a key priority for the Department.
The introduction of Core Funding in 2022 brought a significant increase in investment for the sector. €259 million of funding was made available for services in year 1 of the scheme, of which €210.8 million was entirely new funding to the sector.
That annual allocation has increased each year since and has exceeded €390 million for year 4 of the Scheme, which started in September. This represents an increase of over 50% in Core Funding in three years.
Further investment in Core Funding was announced in Budget 2026. The additional funding being made available in 2026 will see the allocation for Core Funding in the next programme year which begins in September 2026 increase to over €480 million. That is an additional €90 million on the current full year allocation, or a 23% increase.
In addition to the year-on-year increases, the Department has made changes to improve the sustainability of providers through, for example, targeted measures for small and sessional services and a fee increase assessment and approval process for services with fees frozen at unsustainably low rates.
The Fee Increase Assessment process required applicant services to demonstrate an objective case for a fee increase through submission of financial and operational data, which was then subject to a standard unit-cost analysis by the Department. This process opened on 31 July 2024 and closed on 29 November 2024.
Sharavogue School's application for a fee increase was approved in 2024. As part of that approval, the full-time fee increased from €285 to €307.73 per week, an increase of over 7%.
The Core Funding Partner Service Funding Agreement allows for the recommencement of a further Fee Increase Assessment-type exercise, subject to Ministerial discretion. The details of this undertaking are being developed by the Department and will be made available to the sector once finalised.
There are also wider financial supports available where a service is experiencing financial difficulty or has concerns about their viability. These supports can be accessed through the Department’s case management process, which can be accessed while remaining in Core Funding.
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.
It should be noted that where a provider intends to withdraw or not contract into Core Funding, they currently remain eligible to provide the National Childcare Scheme and the Early Childhood Care and Education programme.
These schemes have made a significant impact on improving affordability of early learning and childcare for families and work more favourably for parents when they are offered as part of Together for Better, where parents are protected though the Core Funding fee management framework.
It should be noted that uptake of Core Funding remains strong. As of 25 May, 93% of all eligible providers have signed up to the fourth year of Core Funding, which equates to 4,639 services. These are the highest numbers of Partner Services in Core Funding at any point since the scheme was launched in 2022.
I am encouraged by this rate of participation: it shows that the vast majority of families will continue to benefit from the scheme’s fee management conditions.
The Department will continue to engage with the sector and continue to develop the scheme so that it can continue to see the high uptake levels it has seen this year, and indeed since it was launched in 2022.
