Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 1 October 2024
396. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth the status of the supply management unit in his Department, and if this unit provides resourcing and funding in respect of the delivery and fit out of premises that are used for early learning childcare and afterschool care. [38779/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraThis year, my Department established a Supply Management Unit within its Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare division. A key part of the Supply Management Unit’s remit is to develop a better understanding of the nature of supply and how it relates to demand and to develop policy to support the delivery of more early learning and childcare places in the parts of the country where they are most needed.
This unit is currently developing a forward planning model which will identify the quantum and volume of different types of early learning and childcare places across the country, whether or not those places are occupied and how that aligns with the numbers of children in the corresponding age cohorts at local area level.
There are a number of levers available to my Department to seek to align supply with anticipated demand, having regard to the fact that demand can vary significantly in line with families’ individual composition, circumstances and preferences; employment patterns and income; and the price and availability of services.
The unit is also designing and delivering capital investment under the revised National Development Plan, through the Building Blocks Capacity Grant. My Department has a capital allocation of €89 million between 2023 and 2026 under the National Development Plan. The Building Blocks Capacity Grant schemes will operate over 2024 and 2025. The Building Blocks Capacity Grant has two strands, an Expansion scheme (now closed) and an Extension scheme to support existing services to increase capacity.Under the Building Blocks Expansion Grant scheme, which is operating in 2024, grants of between €25,000 and €100,000 were awarded to projects to undertake renovation or upgrades to existing space to cater for more children. Funding has been paid to twenty two services and will deliver 290 new places, primarily in the 1-3 year old cohort.Under the Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme, some €25 million will be available in 2025 to deliver additional capacity. Under the scheme, community and private providers may apply for funding between to physically extend their premises. In addition, community providers may apply for funding to purchase or to construct new premises. The Extension Scheme will have minimum requirements of numbers of places for 1-3 year olds to be delivered but will not preclude places for other age groups also being delivered.
Both build and fit out costs are eligible expenditure in the capital schemes.
I hope to announce details of the Extension scheme in the coming weeks.
