Written Answers Nos. 841-862
841. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the status of the independent review of governance and funding of a group (details supplied); when will this be concluded; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71987/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra842. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she is aware that no AGM has been held by a group (details supplied); if she has concerns in relation to governance at the organisation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71988/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 841 and 842 together.
I can confirm that the group in question receives funding from this Department. In relation to the holding of its AGM, I understand that it is a company limited by guarantee and is subject, in this regard, to relevant provisions of the Companies Act 2014 and the terms of its own constitution.
The Department, along with other public funders of the group, commissioned an independent finance and governance review of the organisation in October 2025. There have been subsequent communications between the funders and the Board. Subject to the agreement of both parties, the intention is that work on the review shall be progressed with the aim of delivering the review findings in the coming weeks.
843. Deputy Roderic O'Gorman asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality when a call for proposals will be made as part of the European Social Fund Plus: Employment, Inclusion, Skills and Training (EIST) Programme 2021-2027 under the Gender Equality objective, to improve access to employment and activation measures for all jobseekers, which has been pending since 2022; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [71989/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Employment, Inclusion, Skills and Training Programme, (EIST) is Ireland’s ESF+ programme for the 2021 to 2027 period. It was formally approved by the European Commission in October 2022 and approved by the Government of Ireland in November 2022. The Programme involves a total investment of over €1.08 billion; €508 million from the EU and €573 million from the Government of Ireland.
Subject to administrative capacity, the Department hopes to make a call for proposals for project funding under the Gender Equality objective of the EIST Programme in 2026.
844. Deputy Eoghan Kenny asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the amount her Department has spent on translation services from a company (details supplied) for the years 2020 to 2025 to date, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72061/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy Department has no record of payments to the translation services provider in question.
845. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of childcare facilities in Cork that have given notification of closure in each of the past five years. [72154/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs the subject matter of the Deputy's question relates to an operational matter for Tusla, I have referred the matter to them for a direct reply.
846. Deputy Thomas Gould asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of childcare facilities that have removed themselves from the NCS scheme in each of the past five years. [72155/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe National Childcare Scheme (NCS) provides financial support to help parents reduce the cost of early learning and childcare.
Subsidies are available for children aged between 24 weeks and 15 years of age. The minimum rate available is €2.14 per hour, which is available for up to 45 weekly hours and is paid directly to the childcare provider.
The number of children using the Scheme has grown by over 70% since 2022 due to enhancements further improving the affordability of childcare for parents. These include the extension of the upper age eligibility for the Universal award from 3 years of age to 15 years of age in August 2022. There have also been two increases to the minimum hourly subsidy rate bringing it up to the current rate of €2.14. Since September 2024, all childminders are able to register for the NCS making the scheme more accessible to more parents.
This growth was further supported by Core Funding, which aims to ensure affordability for parents through fee management conditions and ensuring that providers offer NCS and ECCE to all eligible children.
For your information, the table below details the number of services which have left the NCS over the past five years.
|
|
|
Of which: |
Of which: |
|
Programme call |
Number of services who had a contract for the specified programme year but not for the next programme year (i.e. left NCS for at least one programme year) and are still open |
The number of services who re-contracted to NCS after a gap of at least one programme year and are still open |
The number of services that never re-contracted to NCS but are still open. |
|
NCS 2020 |
137 |
87 |
50 |
|
NCS 2021 |
63 |
34 |
29 |
|
NCS 2022 |
47 |
20 |
27 |
|
NCS 2023 |
79 |
15 |
64 |
|
NCS 2024 |
69 |
NA |
NA
|
847. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality if she will engage with a childcare provider (details supplied) to resolve the issues that threaten the closure of this service; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72159/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department is aware of the situation regarding the service in question.
While no details can be shared regarding the specifics of the fee review decision nor the details of the current issue, the Department can confirm that the relevant stakeholders have been contacted.
Department officials will endeavour to support and ensure that all stakeholders are aware of all the options and supports available.
The Department does not want any service to be faced with financial sustainability issues and officials in the Department are committed to working with any such service to support them in delivering early learning and childcare for the public good. As such, in addition to the increased level of Core Funding for year 4 of the scheme and fee management developments, there are wider financial supports available from the Department where a service is experiencing financial difficulty or has concerns about their viability, which can be accessed while remaining within Core Funding.
Services are encouraged to avail of these supports by engaging with their local City and County Childcare Committee (CCC) in the first instance.
Contact details for all CCCs can be found on www.gov.ie/en/department-of-children-disability-and-equality/publications/city-and-county-c.
848. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the vacant rate for Children's Disability Network Teams in CHO3 as of 30 November 2025. [72173/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
849. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of WTE clinical nurse specialist in intellectual disabilities within CHO3, in 2024 and to-date in 2025, in tabular form. [72174/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
850. Deputy Pádraig O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the progress made over the past 12 months on each of her Department’s Programme for Government commitments, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72194/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe Department is currently collating the information requested and a reply will issue directly to the Deputy on this matter as soon as possible.
851. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in relation to her recent announcement concerning the assessment of need process,to provide clarity on how children will be guaranteed access to interventions that depend on a full diagnostic assessment. [72206/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra852. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in relation to your recent announcement concerning the assessment of need process can you please provide full details and impact assessments of the proposed changes. [72207/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra853. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in relation to your recent announcement concerning the assessment of need process, can you engage in open consultation with stakeholders, including parents and advocacy groups; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72208/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra854. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in relation to your recent announcement concerning the assessment of need process, can you ensure that any revised model maintains children’s legal rights under the Disability Act 2005; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72209/25]
Amharc ar fhreagra855. Deputy Pat Buckley asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality in relation to your recent announcement concerning the assessment of need process, can you prioritise adequate staffing and funding, so the system can meet demand without lowering standards; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72210/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 851, 852, 853, 854 and 855 together.
Under the Disability Act, an Assessment of Need is an assessment process carried out by the HSE where a person is of the opinion that he/she may have a disability, for anyone born after 1st June 2002. It first establishes whether the person has a disability (as defined within the Act). It then identifies the health and education needs of the person with a disability and the services required to meet those needs.
On December 9th, Government announced a series of reforms to the Assessment of Need process which will make the process more effective and efficient for children and families. These reforms include changes to Part 2 of the Disability Act, 2005, which provides for Assessments of Need. The General Scheme of the Disability (Amendment) Bill 2025 was approved by Government on 9 December and will be published on the Department’s website shortly. As part of the development of the General Scheme, a Regulatory Impact Assessment was prepared, and this will also be published.
These changes will not remove any rights for parents to apply for an Assessment of Need for their child, nor will they alter the statutory six-month timeline set out in the Disability Act.
The Department is currently at an early stage of the legislative process. It is expected that the General Scheme will undergo pre-legislative scrutiny by the Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters early in the New Year. As the Deputy is aware, the Committee may invite stakeholders to participate and produce a report with recommendations to the Bill based on its scrutiny.
In tandem with this, officials in the Department will be conducting stakeholder engagement sessions with a range of groups, the first of which is scheduled to take place this week. This will build on previous engagement by the Department with the Department of Education and Youth, the National Council for Special Education, the HSE and the National Clinical Programme for People with Disability.
It is also important to note that the work on the proposed changes to Part 2 of the Disability Act was informed by inputs from stakeholders during the development of the National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People and by the review of the Interim Guidance for the HSE Assessment of Need Standard Operating Procedure, undertaken by the National Clinical Programme for People with Disability (NCPPD). The latter was supported by a multistakeholder Task Group who contributed to the evidence base for changes.
Ensuring that there are sufficient resources allocated to the delivery of the Assessment of Need process, both in terms of staffing and financial resources, continues to be focus for the Department and the HSE. This includes a number of measures:
• The Assessment of Need Targeted Waitlist Initiative was introduced in May 2024 to support the delivery of Assessments of Need to those families who have been waiting longest. Under this Initiative, the HSE provides for the procurement of clinical assessments from approved private providers. Recent HSE data shows that over 6,300 clinical assessments have been commissioned from private providers since the Initiative started in June 2024. Budget 2026 provides for the continuation of this Initiative next year with €20 million provided for the delivery of some 6,000 clinical assessments.
• In 2026, the HSE is also establishing eleven new teams, initially, to support HSE assessment processes, including Assessments of Need. Each team will include a psychologist, a speech and language therapist, an occupational therapist, and an administrator, to provide clinical guidance where required throughout the process.
• Work is ongoing to increase the staffing capacity of the HSE Assessment of Need Teams including assessment officers, liaison officers and administrative supports.
An Assessment of Need (AON) is not required to access health services, including Primary Care, Children’s Disability Network Teams, or Mental Health Services. When a person is receiving health services, the aim is to provide a diagnosis as soon as possible where this is required and/or possible. However, assessment and/or diagnosis are only one part of a continuum of support provided to the person. They should not delay the provision of therapeutic services which may meet a child’s needs. Once accessing health services, the offerings are designed flexibly to ensure they are responding to the needs as best possible.
The proposed legislative changes to the Disability Act 2005 are intended to support more effective delivery of Assessments of Need, and to provide clearer guidance and supports so that the process can be made more efficient, reduce delays and allow therapists to spend more time delivering services.
Key features of the bill are to include:
• An increased focus on the identification of a person’s needs and the services to meet those needs, rather than on the nature of their disability.
• The creation of statutory guidelines to support and enhance the decision-making capacity of HSE assessment officers, who are responsible for the production of assessment of need reports.
• A focus on the use of appropriate and proportionate clinical assessment(s) during the assessment of need process to ensure that they should only be used where required to establish the child’s needs.
In conjunction with these changes, operational measures are being introduced to not only improve access to assessments but also ensure that therapies are being delivered sooner:
• The HSE is putting in place a new autism assessment process from February 2026, which should provide faster access to an autism assessment for families than through the Assessment of Need process.
• The implementation of a Single Point of Access in 2026 by the HSE which will ensure that children are referred to the appropriate service that meets their needs as soon as possible.
The provision of an effective and efficient Assessment of Need system and the provision of services to children as early as possible continue to be priorities for the Government.
856. Deputy Rose Conway-Walsh asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of WTE social workers employed by TUSLA that are based in Mayo in 2024 and to-date in 2025, in tabular form. [72214/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI wish to inform the Deputy that my officials have asked Tusla to respond directly to you on this matter.
857. Deputy Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the persons undertaking the educational assessments as part of the update to the assessment of needs system; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72278/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraUnder the Disability Act, an Assessment of Need is an assessment process carried out by the HSE where a person is of the opinion that he/she may have a disability, for anyone born after 1st June 2002. It first establishes whether the person has a disability (as defined within the Act). It then identifies the health and education needs of the person with a disability and the services required to meet those needs.
On December 9th, Government announced a series of reforms to the Assessment of Need process which will make the process more effective and efficient for children and families. These reforms include changes to Part 2 of the Disability Act, 2005, which provides for Assessments of Need. The General Scheme of the Disability (Amendment) Bill 2025 was approved by Government on 9 December and will be published on the Department’s website shortly.
These changes will not remove any rights for parents to apply for an Assessment of Need for their child, nor will they alter the statutory six-month timeline set out in the Disability Act.
As part of the AON process, an education needs assessment can be requested for a person who has a disability. Section 8(3) of the Disability Act sets out that the National Council for Special Education must, at the request of the HSE, in writing nominate a person with appropriate expertise to assist in the carrying out of the assessment under this section. This process will remain unchanged under the proposed reforms to the AON system.
It is important to note that the provision of an education needs assessment as part of the Assessment of Need process is entirely separate from the processes in place within the education system for the provision of specialist supports to children with special education needs.
While a diagnosis is currently required to access a special class or a special school, this does not have to be in the form of an Assessment of Need report. The Department of Education and Youth is developing a process intended to remove the need for a diagnosis to access specialist supports in the school system. This will remove the last remaining requirement for a diagnosis in the education system.
The Department of Education and Youth will bring forward a proposal early in 2026 to agree a process which is intended to result in the removal of the requirement for professional reports, such as Assessment of Need reports, from entry requirements for special schools and special classes and the adoption of a needs-based approach, subject to the availability of necessary resources. There will be a comprehensive consultation process with the full range of education stakeholders and advocacy groups in respect of this proposed measure.
858. Deputy Barry Heneghan asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of WTE administrative staff, by grade posts filled at a service (details supplied) in 2024 and to-date in 2025, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72337/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
859. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the new services for children with special needs in Kildare for which funding was sought for delivery in 2025; the funding for each initiative or project and the funding allocated to each to date, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72397/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraAs this question refers to service matters, I have asked the Health Service Executive (HSE) to respond to the Deputy directly, as soon as possible.
860. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the key measures taken to improve childcare and early learning services during 2025; her priorities for same in 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72473/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraThis year 50 projects were approved for capital funding to deliver additional capacity under the Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme by supporting building projects by existing services.
The scheme is focused on supporting the creation of additional full-time places for children aged 1-3 through extensions to existing buildings or, in the case of not-for-profit community services, construction or purchase of buildings.
The approved services are now working closely with the Department in preparation for the delivery of up to 1,500 new quality and affordable places across the country, beginning to become available over the course of 2026.
The Forward Planning and Delivery Unit has been allocated additional resources and staff and is pursuing an ambitious programme of work to identify areas of need, forecast demand and prepare for the delivery of public supply within the early learning and childcare sector where required.
A forward planning model is in development which will be central to the Department's plans to build an affordable, high-quality, accessible early childhood education and care system, with State-led facilities adding capacity.
The forward planning model is now being used to produce analysis to inform the development of the capital programme.
Detailed policy development is underway to prepare proposals for the implementation of the Programme for Government commitment to provide capital investment to build or purchase state-owned early learning and childcare facilities, to create additional capacity in areas where unmet need exists.
As announced in this Department’s Sectoral Investment Plan, the NDP allocated €197m for early learning and childcare capital programmes for 2026-2030. This will include investment in new buildings through the State-led early learning and childcare programme, investment in expansion of existing early learning and childcare operators through the Building Blocks scheme and a number of quality initiatives including supports to childminders.
The Nurturing Skills Annual Implementation Report 2024 was published earlier this year, which provides an update on progress on the implementation of ‘Nurturing Skills: The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare, 2022-2028’.
Regarding 'The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare, 2022-2028’. 2025 saw The Nurturing Skills Learner Fund continuing to fund the initial intake of educators in 2025 and addition funding was provided for a further cohort of 350 staff to begin their studies in Autumn 2025.
The new Nurturing Skills website, nurturingskills.ie was launched in May 2025. This website delivers on a number of actions contained in the Nurturing Skills Implementation Plan, including the development of a hub for Continuing Professional Development and establishing a one-stop-shop on careers, qualifications and training opportunities in the Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare sector.
A pilot Employee Assistance Programme has been developed via the City and County Childcare Committees (CCCs). Five CCCs have engaged in the pilot and will provide an employee assistance and staff wellbeing programme for their own employees and for employees of the Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare services operating within their area. This pilot initiative aims to foster mental and emotional wellbeing by providing a range of supports for staff members during times of need (whether personal or professional). It is hoped to expand the programme nationwide in 2026. Minimum rates of pay for Early Years Educators and School-Age Childcare Practitioners
New Employment Regulation Orders for Early Years Educators and School-Age Practitioners commenced on 13 October 2025. They provide for an average of 10% increase to minimum hourly rates of pay. It is estimated that 67% of those working in the sector will see their wages increase as a result of the new minimum pay rates. The Government, through €45 million in ring-fenced Core Funding, is supporting early learning and care services in meeting the increased cost of minimum pay rates in the sector. This will bring total Core Funding for services to over €390 million in the 2025/26 programme year
The Government remains committed to ‘continue to implement Employment Regulation Orders to attract and retain early years educators’ and to making available a similar sum in 2026 to support a possible future round of pay improvements negotiations through the JLC process in 2026.
In 2026 Nurturing Skills will have its mid-point review of its actions and an examination of priorities to 2028.
The Department will continue to support the recruitment and retention challenge in the sector through the promotion of the profession and continuing to support those in the sector to upskill through a new intake on the Nurturing Skills Learner Fund.
Record number of services operating within the fee freeze as part of Core Funding, which means that parents continue to fully benefit from National Childcare Scheme subsidies;
The new maximum fee cap, introduced for all Core Funding Partner Services in September 2025, places a limit on the maximum fees that can be charged across all types of provision.
This has reduced costs for families facing the highest fees across the country, contributing toward the long-term scheme goals of promoting affordability and accessibility for parents. A parent availing of 45 hours of care for their child, and who is also in receipt of the universal NCS subsidy, will not pay any more than €198.70 in out-of-pocket costs, provided the service is a Core Funding Partner Service.
For next year, €20.6 million in brand new funding for a full programme year has been secured to support providers in adhering to the Scheme’s fee management conditions, including further reductions in the maximum fee caps. This will guarantee that Core Funding’s monetary protections will continue to be passed on to families while ensuring sustainability and stability for the sector.
For programme year 2025/2026, the Fee Tables of all applicants to the 2024/2025 Fee Increase Assessment process were required to be approved by local City/County Childcare Committees. This ensured appropriate implementation of fee increases where applicable; promotes standardisation of fee structures across the sector and improves transparency for parents.
For next year, the Fee Tables of all Partner Services undergo the same approval process. Core Funding is a supply-side grant to early learning and care (ELC) and/or school-age childcare (SAC) providers towards their operating costs. It is designed to improve:
Affordability for parents through ensuring no increases in fees, capping the maximum fees that can be charged, and offering the National Childhood Scheme (NCS) and the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme to all eligible children;
Quality in services, including through better terms and conditions for staff and supporting graduate leadership in services, to strengthen practice and delivery of high-quality experience for children; and
Sustainability for providers through substantially increased funding to the sector, paid on a consistent and equitable basis.
The introduction of Core Funding in 2022 brought a significant increase in investment for the sector, with €259 million of funding paid directly to services in year 1 of the scheme. This funding has increased year-on-year to over €390 million in the current fourth year of the scheme (September 2025 – August 2026). This represents an increase of over 50% in Core Funding in three years.
Significant increases came into effect for the fourth year of the scheme, which runs from September 2025 to August 2026. These changes include:
• Increases to all the early learning and care base rates, to ensure Partner Services can keep pace with rising costs without needing to increase fees charged to parents,
• Increases to the minimum amount of funding a centre-based service will receive, increasing from €14,400 per year from the previous level of €14,000, to support smaller services,
• A reduction to the maximum base rate allocation to best spread a limited budget across the entire sector,
• Increased funding to support capacity growth of 3.5% across the sector, and
• Includes an additional €45 million in ring-fenced State funding provided to support outcomes from the Joint Labour Committee process.
The Department has announced further investment in Core Funding in Budget 2026. The additional funding being made available in 2026 will see the allocation for Core Funding in the next programme year (September 2026 – August 2027) increase to nearly €482 million. That is an additional €89 million on the current full year allocation, or an 23% increase.
This increased investment will facilitate:
• Natural capacity growth of 4.2% across the sector.
• Additional capacity growth created by the new Building Blocks grants.
• Support for providers in adhering to the fee management conditions including the continued fee freeze and reductions to the maximum fee caps in the 2026/2027 programme year.
• Support for improved pay for early years educators and school-age childcare practitioners with implementation of new 2025 Employment Regulation Orders, with further increases in pay to be supported through enhancement in year 5 of the scheme.
Full details of Core Funding 2026/2027 will be made available to the sector in 2026, in advance of programme readiness for Year 5 of Core Funding.
In addition to this increased allocation, being in Core Funding unlocks additional supports for services to access, including 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. The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) was introduced in 2016 to ensure that children with a disability can access and participate in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme.
AIM provides both universal supports to pre-school settings and targeted supports tailored to individual children’s needs, without requiring a formal diagnosis.
Reflecting the Government’s strong commitment to affordable and accessible childcare, the AIM budget will reach €84.05 million in 2026 — an increase of 50% since 2024. This funding will support up to 9,000 children to access the ECCE programme in 2026 through targeted AIM supports, as well as a 10% increase in the capitation rate for AIM Level 7, which was introduced from October 2025.
The ‘First 5’ whole-of-government strategy commits to the phased extension of AIM, a commitment that was reaffirmed by the findings of an independent end-of-year-three evaluation conducted by the University of Derby and published in January 2024. Participants in the evaluation, including providers, educators, and parents, strongly supported the scaling up of AIM. They also expressed a desire to see AIM extended to hours outside of the ECCE entitlement.
Based on the evaluation’s findings, AIM is now being extended on a phased basis as funding becomes available. Since September 2024, targeted AIM supports have been available to ECCE-eligible children outside of ECCE hours—both during term time and in holiday periods. Children can now access up to three additional hours per day during the ECCE term and up to six hours per day outside of term, through the National Childcare Scheme (NCS).
The Programme for Government commits to ‘examine and expand the Access and Inclusion Model and make it available to younger children.’ Work is underway to develop a tailored model to extend AIM to children under three years of age, ensuring it meets the specific needs of this younger cohort. This development work will be completed during 2026. Consideration will also be given, at a later stage, to extending AIM to children attending school-age childcare. It is critical that any extension of AIM supports to these different age cohorts is evidence-based and reflective of their needs. Shaping the Future the Early Years Action Plan Phase 1 Report will be published on 17th December 2025. It sets out the next steps in delivery of the key commitments in the Programme for Government to improve affordability, quality, and access.
Shaping the Future sets out Phase 1 actions, which will be carried out in 2026 using existing policy tools. Phase 2 actions will be published later in 2026, following completion of the public consultation process.
Actions on accessible, affordable and high-quality Early Learning and Care (ELC) are also being considered in the context of the development of the new First 5 Implementation Plan for 2026-2028. Childminders are a hugely important part of early learning and care and school-age childcare provision, and they continue to be the option of choice for many families. All paid, non-relative childminders who work in their own homes can now register with Tusla and access the National Childcare Scheme. The National Action Plan for Childminding 2021-2028 set out a pathway for the extension of registration to childminders who work in their own homes. A key objective of the National Action Plan for Childminding is to enable parents who use childminders to benefit from State subsidies through the National Childcare Scheme.
The Child Care (Amendment) Act 2024 and the Childminding Services Regulations provide for a transition period of three years, before registration becomes mandatory. This phased approach aims to facilitate the largest possible number of childminders to enter the regulated sector, the sphere of quality assurance, and access to Government subsidies, while recognising the time and supports required for childminders to learn about and prepare for registration.
Supports are available for childminders at local level through the City and County Childcare Committees. Each City and County Childcare Committee employs a Childminding Development Officer, who provides a range of supports to local childminders, including a short pre-registration training course.
The Childminding Development Grant provides up to €1,000 to assist both registered and unregistered childminders who are providing a childminding service in their own homes. In 2025, the Department has paid €413,338 to childminders through the Childminding Development Grant. A further round of the Grant will open in early 2026.
While the Department has successfully completed Phase 1 of the National Action Plan, considerable work lies ahead during Phase 2 in supporting the large number of unregistered childminders to register with Tusla and take part in the National Childcare Scheme before the end of the transition period in 2027. A national communications strategy is a key element in Phase 2. Work on this communications strategy has begun, aiming to inform childminders and parents about the changes, supports available and what to expect. In addition, the Department has committed to undertake a review of the initial implementation of the Childminding-specific Regulations during the transition period. This review will commence in 2026.
Equal Start is a funding model and a set of associated universal and targeted measures to support access and meaningful participation in early learning and care (ELC) and school-age childcare (SAC) for children and their families who experience disadvantage. Launched in May 2024, it is delivering on a key commitment in the First 5 strategy (2019-2028).
Achievements to date in 2025 include:
• The provision of additional supports to a total of 804 settings (serving 35,000 children - 4,700 from priority cohorts) identified as operating in a context of concentrated disadvantage, that can be used to support engagement between the settings and families, as well as other child and family support services. Funding also provides ELC and SAC to children with higher levels of need.
• All services in receipt of Equal Start Staffing Supports have benefitted from a 10 percent capitation increase from 13 October 2025. This matches the average increase in the minimum rates of pay provided for in the new Employment Regulation Orders.
• Rollout of ‘Bia Blasta’, a pre-school Nutrition Programme, which commenced on 1 October 2025 for Equal Start designated services providing the ECCE Programme.
• Rollout of the Traveller Parenting Support Programme in 17 Tusla areas, with responsibilities on Family Link Workers to engage with Traveller parents of young children, supporting them to attend and participate in ELC and SAC.
• Appointment of Traveller and Roma Advisory Specialists to work in Better Start to promote inclusive ELC and SAC.
• Roll-out of Early Talk Boost – an intervention for language delay - to settings with a priority designation.
• Development of guidance and supports to support services to participate in inter-agency cooperation such as Meitheal.
Achievements expected in 2026 include:
• The review of the current Inclusion Co-ordinator role and updating of the Leadership for INClusion (LINC) programme. A tender has been awarded for this action and work is underway.
• The review and update of the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Guidelines and associated training. A tender has been awarded for this action and work is underway.
• The development of a new Family and Community Partnership Coordinator role with the associated training to be developed during 2026.
• The development of a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework for Equal Start is underway, with the Monitoring and Evaluation Framework report due to be published in Q2 of 2026, to help ensure the effective evaluation of the model in the coming years.
A 2026 budget allocation of €594 million will support approximately 27,000 additional children to benefit from their Statutory entitlement to National Childcare Scheme subsidies to offset the cost of early learning and childcare, which since September 2024 now also includes subsidies for families using childminders. This represents an 11% increase in the numbers of children benefitting and a 12% increase, or approximately €65 million, on the 2025 allocation. The 2026 budget allocation for the NCS will also allow the Department to reduce early learning and childcare fees for tens of thousands of lower-income families. The lower and upper-income assessed thresholds will be increased from the current €26,000 to €60,000 range, along with an increase to the multiple child deduction (MCD) for parents with 2 or more children availing of the scheme.
The Department are planning to commence the remaining parts of the Child Care (Amendment) Act 2024 shortly. This will significantly enhance the Tusla Early Years Inspectorate’s ability to deal with non-compliance and will also put the regulatory ladder of enforcement on a statutory basis.
The Department recently finished a consultation on the development of comprehensive school age regulations. It is expected that these regulations will come into effect in the first half of 2026. These regulations will also provide the first set of combined centre-based regulations for the sector (both pre-school and school age services).
861. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the key measures taken to improve employment conditions in the childcare and early learning services during 2025; her priorities for same in 2026; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72474/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraFirst 5, the whole-of-Government strategy for babies, young children and their families, recognises that the Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare Workforce is at the heart of high-quality early learning and care.
The role of the early years educator and school-age childcare practitioner are valuable ones and they play an important part in supporting children's development, learning and care. It is acknowledged that those working in the early learning and care and school-age childcare sector do not receive the recognition they deserve.
Pay is one of a number of issues impacting the early learning and care and school-age childcare workforce. The level of pay for early years educators and school-age childcare practitioners does not reflect the value of their work for children, families, society and the economy.
Although the Government is the primary funder of the sector, it is not the employer and cannot directly set wages or conditions.
Improvement in pay is certainly key to improving recruitment and retention rates, as is the full implementation of Nurturing Skills.
The Joint Labour Committee is the formal mechanism established by which employer and employee representatives can negotiate minimum pay rates, which are set down in Employment Regulation Orders.
Outcomes from the Joint Labour Committee process are supported by Government through Core Funding. In this programme year 2025/26 Core Funding has increased by 6% to €350 million with an additional €45 million in ring-fenced Core Funding provided to support early learning and care services in meeting the increased cost of minimum pay rates in the sector.
As recently announced, the Minister of State for Employment, Small Business and Retail Alan Dillon has signed new Employment Regulation Orders for Early Years Educators and School-Age Practitioners.
The Orders commenced on 13th October 2025. They provide for an average of 10% increase to minimum hourly rates of pay. It is estimated that 67% of those working in the sector will see their wages increase as a result of the new minimum pay rates.
The Government remains committed to ‘continue to implement Employment Regulation Orders to attract and retain early years educators’ and to making available a similar sum in 2026 to support a further future round of pay improvements negotiations through the JLC process.
Staff in this sector play a key role in supporting children’s development and well-being. Recognising their central importance for the quality of provision, the Department continues to deliver on the workforce plan for the sector, Nurturing Skills.
Nurturing Skills aims to support the professional development of the workforce and sets out plans to raise the profile of careers in the sector, establish role profiles, career pathways, qualification requirements, along with leadership development opportunities.
To support the development of career pathways, the role profiles of educator, lead educator and manager, which were set out in Nurturing Skills, were given legal meaning when used as the basis for the Employment Regulations Orders for the sector. These Orders now embed a career structure by setting different rates of pay for the different roles.
862. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the key measures taken to improve disability services during 2025; her priorities for same in 2026;; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [72475/25]
Amharc ar fhreagraI am committed to delivering on a step-change in supports and services for people with disabilities and their families, ensuring they are enabled to live full lives of their own choosing and on an equitable basis with all others in society.
To support the delivery of this ambition and to help improve disability services for all those who use them, my Department progressed the following in 2025:
• The National Human Rights Strategy for Disabled People 2025-2030 was published in September. This strategy is Ireland’s comprehensive plan to advance the realisation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. It sets out a whole of government approach to disability over the next five years.
• In March, agreement was reached at the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) for a 9.25% funding for pay increase between Government Departments and unions representing workers in community and voluntary health and social care organisations. My Department led this process and secured €30m in additional funding for the HSE and €8.5m in additional funding for Tusla, covering the estimated cost of the agreement for 2024 backdated and 2025. The agreement also includes an automatic link to future public sector pay agreements for these workers.
• The HSE Children’s Disability Network Team (CDNT) workforce data for April 2025 demonstrates the progress that has been made over the past 18 months, with a nationwide increase of 26% in CDNT staffing levels since October 2023. Since October 2024, the CDNT workforce has grown by 142 WTE. Most significantly, the CDNT vacancy rate has reduced from 29% in 2023 to 18% in 2025 - a reduction of 11% nationally.
• In early December, a series of reforms to the Assessment of Need (AON) process was announced. These reforms will make the process more effective and efficient for children and families and move towards more assessments being delivered within the statutory 6-month timeframe. My Department is also working with the HSE to identify further opportunities to enhance processes, improve training, and increase administrative supports for HSE Assessment Officers who are responsible for the production of assessment reports. The provision of an effective and efficient Assessment of Need system continues to be a priority for this Government.
• 1766 school leavers were identified as requiring day service supports or rehabilitative training (RT) for 2025. Of these, 438 chose to defer their placement by up to 5 years while they explore mainstream options such as further education, training and employment. Commencements began in September and are currently at 87% for the year.
• In respect of residential services, 172 Priority 1 places have been delivered as of September 2025. Twenty individuals have been transitioned out of congregated settings, with work continuing to progress further transitions to year end. Twelve people have transitioned out of nursing homes to more appropriate homes in the community, with a further 13 expected by the end of the year.
• My Department has also finalised a Working Paper on Respite which aims to assist in supporting and generating discussion on the future direction of respite.
To enable my Department to continue delivering on a step-change in supports and services for people with disabilities, a total of €3.8 billion has been allocated for Specialist Disability Services in Budget 2026. This represents a 20% increase on 2025 and an overall increase since 2020 of €1.8bn.
Priorities for my Department next year include:
• Delivering 199 residential placements, 58 de-congregation transitions, and 45 transitions from nursing homes for people under 65.
• Providing 1,400 new day service placements for school leavers and rehabilitative training graduates, plus 53 placements for adults who require a day service later in life.
• Enabling the procurement of around 6,500 private assessments of need for long waiting families.
• Enabling people to live independently in their own homes through the provision of over 150,000 home support and personal assistance hours.
• Providing in the region of an additional 10,000 overnight and 25,000 alternative/day respite sessions.
