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PARENTS ARE PAYING on average nearly €800 per month per child for childcare, a new Government report has found.
The Annual Early Years Sector Profile Report for 2020/21 published today finds that the average weekly fee nationally per child for full day childcare is €186.84.
For part-time childcare it was €110.92 and for sessional is €74.20.
The reports state that fees for all types of provision remained almost the same with less than a 0.5% increase for all types of care compared to 2019/20.
The location and type of service continued to have a “substantial impact” on fees charged, the report states.
Average weekly fees charged by private providers in 2020/21 were 10% higher for full day care, 24% higher for part-time care and 16% higher for sessional care compared to community providers.
Higher fees in ‘affluent areas’
Average fees were higher in services located in urban areas – 10% higher for full day care, 9% higher for part-time provision and 6% higher for sessional care.
In addition, services located in more affluent areas charged higher fees.
The full day fees in affluent areas were 27% higher than those in the locations classified as disadvantaged, indicating that local socio-economic situations also influence the setting of fees.
As in previous years, the report states the most expensive fees were charged for babies up to one year (€192.06 for full day care and €117.97 for part-time care), while fees for children aged between five and six years were the lowest at €178.64 for full day care and €107.91 for part-time care.
The Journal reported last month that the Government is planning to focus on reducing the rocketing cost of childcare in the Budget in October.
This year’s budget will “be hopefully more about helping parents with the actual costs,” one person with knowledge of the situation told The Journal.
It follows attempts in last year’s budget to increase wages for staff in the sector.
The Government has already rolled out two package of measures to help ease the rising cost of living, but there are fears that tinkering around the edges could make inflationary matters worse.
One way of attempting to put more money in people’s pockets is through increasing State supports and reducing the cost of services.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said previously that increased subsidies should be used to reduce the cost of childcare “considerably” for parents.
Core funding
Children’s Minister Roderic O’Gorman, speaking about the publication of today’s report, said the announcement of a new core funding stream for services worth over €221 million will improve quality by supporting better pay and conditions for the workforce, improve affordability for parents by ensuring that fees do not increase.
Those in Government circles acknowledge that pay continues to be an issue for the sector, with the average hourly wage for early years assistants is €12.10 per hour, which 2% higher than in 2019/20.
A total of 104,612 children benefited from the Early Childhood Care and Education Programme (ECCE) programme in 2020/21, a scheme which provides universal two-year pre-school programme available to all children within the eligible age range.
Currently the National Childcare Scheme currently provides financial support to help parents to meet the costs of early learning and childcare.
Universal subsidies are available for all children under three years of age, giving up to €1,170 to parents towards the the cost of childcare, regardless of income.
Further targeted subsidies are available for children aged six months to 15 years old, but vary depending on your income, your child’s age, and whether you are working or studying.
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Where are these 800e fees? Sounds an absolute bargain.
@Nomad: too right, paying €2,200 for two kids
@Realist: Per month??!!!!!!
@David Corrigan: yes that’s pretty standard in Dublin and we wonder why the birth far rate is plummeting.
@The Guru: My God. Tag a mortgage, food costs, energy bills and car finance onto that makes for a hell of big number.
I honestly don’t know how people pay it every month.
@Realist: unreal….not rubbing it in at all but i payed 40€ for TWO per month here in sweden.incomprehensible contrast.
And the rest… I pay €1700 a month for my two kids..
@Louise Roche: €1,700 per month = €20,000 per annum. To get that amount of cash you’d have to earn €40,000-ish. I’d imagine that a lot of middle-income families are perplexed that one of their salaries is used to pay the child minders. What’s the point in going to work when all it’s doing is, effectively, paying someone else to do the work that they (the family) could do if only one of them were are work & the other at home? Feck sake; I’ve even confused myself with all this palaver. Am glad I ain’t it that situation anymore.
@Richard Ahern: LIES.
What I’d like to see addressed is how childcare facilities can charge parents for periods when they are closed completely. Or where you’ve paid in full for the month in advance and there happens to be a school mid term in that same month and you’ve to pay an additiinal fee for “mid term camp”, or be without childcare!! Outrageous!
@Emma Stanley: I understand your frustration but the reality is the Irish childcare sector is chronicly underfunding by government and regardless of whether the service is closed for midterm or Xmas staff still need to get paid for their holidays.
And now some employers are insisting on having people back into offices full time, so parents have to look for additional after school care for the days when they could have had the child at home after school.
@Declan B: change employer, show them that they need to consider their workers familial circumstances if they want to keep staff. Free country
It’s absolutely terrible. Let’s see what the Government will do about the cost..
@Derek Moean: Eff All sadly Derek, it’s been an issue for years and years, this report is just a report.
@Derek Moean: ah same as the journals “prices are dropping at the pumps”
@Derek Moean: the only way the government can effectively do anything is if (like in Nordic countries) taxes are raised. I don’t see a lot of appetite for that. And yes, I do have 2 kids and still paying for afterschool fees as I work full time.
I was quoted €637.50 a week just a few days ago. Found someone else and it’ll be €1350 a month instead.
€800 would be the dream.
@: That’s E2700 a month for 22 weekdays. Or E125 a day X Number of children per day.
My local community creche is absolutely amazing, it’s a not for profit and pays it’s employees above the going rate ( for it’s industry). The attrition rate before this year was low. That has all changed, they have lost 4 key members of staff . All ( highly qualified) staff are moving out of the industry as they can earn more , with a lot less stress and responsibility from Customer Service this problem is endemic across the industry. I firmly believe that this sector should be privatised and viewed as early education. The current system isn’t working for anyone except a select few employers.
@Laura Grimes: it’s is privatised
Parents who work are paying it. The standard of childcare is also falling as people accept anything if it means they can afford to go back to work.
The average age in Japan is 50 which is nuts, They have had childcare issues going way back before we did. zero hour contracts, sky high rent, expensive childcare, and unsuitable accommodation has led them there, and we are repeating the same mistake here now.
@Alan Biddulph: It’s ok, unlike Japan we are importing new people to make up for the low birth rate.
Free for children above 2 years old in France, and no more than €30/weeks for younger.
@Michael Legris: Clearly Irish childcare costs are unsustainable. Am I correct that France has higher income taxes than Ireland, along with local taxes and water charges?
Childcare is a joke. We pay €1000 pm for 3 full days and 2 after school collections for 2 hrs
And the rest
Move to Germany. Free childcare here. And no patients on trolleys
Not sure where they found such cheap fees.. not in Dublin at least where we are getting close to pay that money just for after school.
Mind them yourselves!
Such a simple fix as well
Raise the salary limit from which you can claim the rebate (currently you get €0 if you earn under €60k p/a net between both parents) and increase rebate itself
Sometimes I think I should have kids. But articles like this put me off completely. This country is a joke. Hoe can you pay a mortgage and this on top
@Nickwhick: don’t have any
This is a problem I have only sympathy
have your say