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AN INVESTMENT PACKAGE worth €1.1 billion for early learning and childcare was announced yesterday as part of Budget 2024.
Speaking in the Dáil yesterday afternoon, Public Expenditure Minister Paschal Donohoe said that those receiving the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) will see a further 25% reduction in childcare costs.
“This is further evidence of this government’s commitment to making childcare affordable and will be implemented from September 2024,” he said.
The announcement was welcomed by the Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman.
However, the Department of Children has said that changes to the NCS will see costs reduced by 25% “on average”.
From September next year, families accessing registered early learning and childcare will receive a minimum hourly universal NCS subsidy of €2.14 off their out-of-pocket costs, rising 74c from a current hourly rate of €1.40.
This is compared to an increase of 90c per hour to the NCS from 50c to €1.40 which began in January this year.
But while the subsidy is a flat rate, parents will see the specific percentage they pay reduced by different amounts depending on where they live. That’s because childcare costs are higher in urban areas and lower in rural counties.
According to the 2022 Annual Early Years Sector Profile report, administered on behalf of the Department of Children, the average cost of childcare fees in Dublin in 2020 and 2021 were the highest in the country.
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown had the highest average weekly fees for full day, part time and sessional childcare, followed by Fingal, South Dublin and Dublin City.
The average weekly full day fees in Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown (€244.08) were 60% higher than the average fees recorded for Carlow (€152.08).
Speaking to The Journal, Labour Party Senator Marie Sherlock said: “For many families out there, the cut will not be 25%.
“It all depends on what families are paying already. That will determine the cost,” she said.
“If we look back to last January, when Minister O’Gorman’s first major reduction was introduced, we had families where, when they sat down and did the figures, the reduction was anywhere from 6% plus.”
“Here in Dublin, the hourly rates tend to be higher than in other parts of the country. If you have a higher rate of payment, percentage-wise, you’re going to get less of a benefit.”
Sherlock called on the Government to implement a monthly cap of €200 on childcare fees and to establish more childcare facilities.
Social Democrats spokesperson on children Jennifer Whitmore told The Journal that the subsidy should be reflective of what parents are paying for childcare.
“It needs to take into account the different rates, but in a way that makes it fair. We can’t see this money being used to prop up large profits by big childcare companies,” she said.
“It’s really important that this money makes a tangible difference to parents, that it’s reflective of the cost that parents pay across the country and that it is that it is all passed on to parents.”
She also called on the introduction of the cut to be brought forward, adding that next September is “just too late for parents”.
“Parents are under huge pressure now and they need support now.”
Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman defended the increase in subsidies not kicking in until September on Tuesday afternoon.
“In summer 2022, I set out an ambition to half the cost of childcare for parents in this country recognising it is a major cost for so many families,” he said.
“I was able to take 25% off the cost in the budget in Budget 2023, and in Budget 2024 we have been able to announce that we will take a further 25% off the cost.
“It is going to apply from September of next year and it applies through increasing the subsidy we give to parents through the national childcare scheme.”
He added that it is noteworthy that the National Childcare Scheme will be extended to childminders for the first time in 2024, making subsidies available to thousands of more families.
In a statement to The Journal, a spokesperson for the Department of Children said: “Families receiving the universal or minimum subsidy will see their average co-payment reduce by 25%.
“As fees can vary from service to service and depending on parents usage, impact estimates must be made as an average of the overall parental financial contribution to fees for their early learning and childcare,” the spokesperson said.
“The Department would also note that a fee freeze remains in place as a condition of core funding which ensures that the increased investment in the NCS translate fully into reductions in early learning and childcare costs, thereby removing any inflationary effect on costs to parents.”
The Journal.Ie
Why, why, why are comments allowed on this subject but comments about the situation in Gaza, Palestine and Israel are being censored by the Journal. Is free speech now censored by the journal????
@Robert Boyd: unfortunately Robert, I, probably like a lot of parents at the moment are more concerned about putting food on the table, doing the best to pay bills and keeping a roof over our heads. The only thing I know about the Gaza, Palestine and Israel is what I hear on the news or read in news articles. Where I have sympathy for what is happening I don’t apologise for looking after my family first.. And if you are a regular reader of The Journal you know what crap people would be writing about this issue in Israel.
@Robert Boyd: This article is about IRISH childcare costs. Maybe both sides in the conflict in that kip will do the world a favour and wipe each other out.
The ecs scheme is a joke. Depending on your childs date of birth you can barely get them In for a year. Then the creche consume most of this ‘reduction’ by setting limits that parents can’t meet. It’s like the help to buy scheme. Eaten up by developers
@Sean Parker: only way it can work is by a tax break to you personal tax credit that you can take back at the end of there year, and for people dependent on SW free, I can eat that. Other wise it’s a pay out to creches and builders with no real benifet to people
Mine are thankfully past primary now but living in the country and working full time this would have been little use to me as there was only 2 creches and neither did school drop off/collection when they started school. We worked full time and not in the town and had no family to help out like many working families these days . We ended up having to get a childminder who was like a granny to them.It was like the wild west with people trying to poach her. She was on the state pension so it was cash in hand as were alm of them so subsidies would have been no good to me.Nor would I have had the patience/wherewithall to be doing prsi/wages/tax etc returns had she been an official employee! Subsiding chreche/preschool is fine but to really help working parents there should be subsidised before and after school care in th e schools and any subsidies should be by way of tax relief. I’m not sure why we are subsiding childcare for people who don’t work. I often think I should have left work and claimed I was a single mother until they went to school as the stress of trying to balance everything nearly killed me
NCS is a pain for parents and creche management to deal with, crazy burocracy. They should really have one scheme only and extend it to all ages until children start school and beyond for after school services.
Also do a big overhaul of private childminder registration system where basically there are no childminders officially registered and anyone using them then cannot avail of NCS or other schemes, good luck especially find after school services in a creche.. even harder than pre school years. For after school services all schools should really provide them with state subsidies it should cost a lot less since you already have a building and facilities.
That’s absolutely scandalous
With all of this talk about creche places, au pairs, home nannies, and the cost of living, and the State should do more. Does anyone stop to consider the effects it has on the child/baby? People handing over their 1-year-old, to people they know little about, and probably wouldn’t even say Hello to in the street, under any circumstances. Kids on minimum wage, looking after your most prized possession, and who probably spend most of that time on their phones. How crazy is that? And all for the sake of a small economic gain. It is a well-known fact, that the first 7 years of a child’s life are the most important in their development and yet the majority of people only get to see their child sleeping for most of those years but at least they have a nicer car in the driveway and a lovely two week holiday with them, each year.
Irish government, this government, FG, FF & THE GREENS are jokers…
This increase means nothing!
The cost is so high my wife and I agreed that someone has to give up work.
Even with the porported last increase, we ended up paying more.
The NSC scheme is a joke, not fit for purpose.
This government needs to go.
Well, I need to start exploring my options getting myself primed for better countries, in case Irish bring this good for nothing government back.
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