Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 July 2026
657. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the estimated full-year cost of providing free school meals for all pre-school children in the ECCE scheme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51336/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraAll ELC services in Ireland are required by legislation to provide meals, with the type and frequency of meals dependent on the hours per day a child attends. Children in full day care (over 5 hours) must for example, receive 2 meals and 2 snacks each day by regulation whereas children in the 3-hour free pre-school programme typically bring lunch boxes from home.
Bia Blasta is the current pre-school nutrition programme, and provides for 11,686 children at 451 services. Services within the programme are provided €1.50 per day per ECCE child, along with a capitation of €27.23 per week. Services also have access to a grant of up to €1,000 to acquire equipment. Equally important is the learning and participation aspects of the programme, services are encouraged to involve children in the preparation of food, and to introduce children to healthy foods and healthy eating. Advice and support on the provision of the programme and supporting healthy eating in children is provided by a National Lead Dietitian at Better Start. This National Lead Dietitian is available to contact for all services and is a universal support, and universal resources are provided through the Bia Blasta pack and information available on the nurturing skills website.
The initial invitation of services to Bia Blasta was offered only to services designated as Tier 1 & Tier 2 services within Equal Start. These are services that have been identified under the Equal Start Identification model as being in areas of concentrated disadvantage, and providing for the highest number of children experiencing disadvantage. Current uptake with the programme from invited services is 61%.
Since the launch of the pre-school nutrition programme in October 2025, this invitation has expanded to 150 services outside Tier 1 & 2, that have been identified using the Equal Start model as being in the next highest tier of disadvantage. The continued progression of Bia Blasta is an important goal for me, and possible expansion avenues are being regularly profiled and discussed. However, an expansion of the programme to all pre-school children is not yet under consideration, and the current focus of the Bia Blasta pre-school nutrition programme is on those children experiencing pronounced disadvantage.
The estimated full-year cost of providing a free school meals scheme to all pre-school children in ECCE would be €35m. This is based on estimated costings conducted by the Department of Children, Disability & Equality in 2025 at the beginning of the Bia Blasta pre-school nutrition programme.
