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MINISTER FOR CHILDREN, Roderic O’Gorman has unveiled a new funding model aimed at bringing “transformative change” to the childcare sector.
O’Gorman said that Together for Better will provide a “sound framework” to improve the quality and affordability of childcare, and pay and conditions for workers.
It will incorporate the Government’s €221 million core funding scheme, as well as the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme and the National Childcare Scheme (NCS).
O’Gorman said the model will bring about “transformative change to this vital sector”.
“Together for Better supports improved affordability for parents; better pay and conditions for staff; improved availability for families through increased capacity; and greater financial stability for service providers,” he said.
The Green Party TD added that it is the “first step towards significant further developments in the sector which will be introduced in the coming years”.
The Government plans to invest at least €1 billion in the new funding model by 2028.
O’Gorman launched Together for Better today as the core funding scheme came into operation.
He said almost 4,000 childcare operators have signed up to the core funding model.
It means nine out of 10 Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School Age Childcare (SAC) providers have agreed to take part in the programme.
“I am delighted that 90% of services have chosen to come into partnership with the State by signing up,” he said.
It means childcare fees at those services will be frozen at 2021 rates.
Senator Pauline O’Reilly, Green Party Spokesperson for Education said that the new model would address the fact that the majority of early years educators have been earning below the living wage and the sector sees an annual staff turnover of 19%.
“This changes today. More than two in three childcare workers will receive a pay increase this month and parents will be protected against further increases in childcare costs, with reductions in fees expected to be introduced in the budget.”
O’Gorman added: “This gives significant certainty to parents, and ensures that parents can enjoy the full benefit of future investments in the National Childcare Scheme, including the extension of the universal subsidy to children of all ages which came into effect in August, without the risk of increased State subsidies being absorbed by increased parental fees.”
The core funding model, which was first announced in the Budget last year, came into operation on Thursday in tandem with the start of Employment Regulation Orders (EROs) for the sector.
The EROs will mean improved pay for over 70% of workers in the sector, with specific recognition for different roles and qualifications, establishing a wage structure for staff.
“This historic achievement has been enabled by the investment in core funding,” O’Gorman added.
The minister said there was “significant evidence” of capacity increasing within the sector.
“Record numbers of services have requested a change in circumstance on the Tusla register, primarily to increase the operating hours or number of child places being offered,” he said.
“Up to mid-August, there has been a 31% increase in change in circumstance applications from Early Learning and Care services and a 261% increase in change in circumstances for School-Age Childcare services compared to 2021.”
“Already all the indications are that it is achieving significant and welcome change in the sector in relation to affordability, quality and accessibility,” O’Gorman added.
With reporting from Jamie McCarron
Split the €5.4m and give them 9k each. That would get them through a decent college course instead of whatever poxy fas type scheme they’re proposing
train them for what?? where are the jobs?? will end sending most money back same happened when Dell culled their workforce most money unused.
Am I missing something?
Retrain for what?
how to speak a different language when they have to immigrate
Damn you evil Europe. How dare you fund the retraining of our unemployed?!? Patently a scheme related in some way to bond holders
As for Sinn Fein welcoming it….there should be an An Phoblacht version of the Collins dictionary produced. Their definition of irony would be interesting.
Speaking of call centres I see there are 3 people on the Sinn Fein Journal monitoring post tonight…
Go to bed and stop worrying about SF.
The journal is covered in Sinners and lefties.
Going on these pricey gimmicky training courses is a waste of time right now…i have to go on them all the time with work…courses for motivation..teamleader..problem solving..lean..technical report writing…i have a folder full of lovely certs…all a heap of crap…divide the cash up and hand out to the ex employees…it puts much needed cash into the local economy…job done.
Now we know why you’re only worth two cents
Pathetic Paul…The term ‘My Two Cents’ refers to the analogy of I have an idea that I’ll throw in for discussion…
Ahhhhh, that’s what it means. You know, I would have never figured that one out. Thanks for clearing it up.
Your ‘no sense’ approach to developing yourself still makes you only worth two cents. Surprise you still have a job with that attitude.
invest the money in job creation, no point in being highly trained and being bone idle.
I love them words invest in ‘Job Creation’ no point lads…no one is spending!!
Basically it works like this.
A talk talk workers gets on some over priced course.
Waste of money.
I think ‘retrain’ are for those with no degrees or decent education. I think a lot of people were working there for years and that’s all they know and were trained for in life.
Shame in them. No excuse for laziness and lack of ambition.
Why I does every comment on here have to be so negative? I’d love to hear from some of the people affected and what they think.
There has hardly been a job announcement in this city since it closed over a year ago and that’s not an exaggeration. Where are these jobs going to come from.
I do see that cork is to get a new European head quarters for some US company and 30 more jobs being created in Galway.
What are they going to do train them to leave Waterford. No point in training people if there are no jobs for them. We were promised all the help we needed when talk talk closed but as seen from this article we most certainly are not getting it with an unemployment rate 4% higher then the national average.
Also the generalisation. Of the talk talk workers not being educated is disgraceful I happen to know plenty of people who worked there who had third level education unfortunately there was no work in the areas they had studied.
Whether someone goes to college or not shouldn’t matter. Some jobs do not require you to have a degree and a lot of companies offer great training programmes to their employees.
As one of the ex-TalkTalk workers, its incredible to see how many negative and pessimistic comments there are on here from the Irish public.
it’s good to talk talk
Great to see that the Irish public are as pessimistic as ever. This funding scheme has already been of great help to myself and many of my former colleagues at TalkTalk. It provides funding for both education and enterprise, in an area of the country which has suffered more from job losses and unemployment than anywhere else in the country. Some people that have commented here (Paul Lanigan in particular) would want to grow up.
That should pay for a few Safe Pass courses…
As an ex-Talk Talk worker, I’m making good use of the funding and so are a lot of other people I know. And no, it’s not on useless overpriced courses. Most of us have the cop on to use this opportunity for valuable and relevant training. It is OUR own lives after all so why wouldn’t we make the most we can of it?
I got my degree while working at Talk Talk by the way so I wouldn’t say I’m lazy or unambitious – I am so surprised at people’s reaction to this news.
As another former Talk Talk employee, I agree that some of the comments here beyond stupid, seriously people.
There should be more money spent in Waterford, helping to create jobs, get people back to work, bringing new businesses, retraining local workers and help people set up there own businesses. Education and Innovation are proven to be two of the biggest factors in getting an economy back on track and there has been very little investment in Waterford aimed at job creation in comparison to the rest of the country, its an absolute disgrace. Waterford is becoming a black hole for unemployment and if the Government don’t sort something out now will become a very costly exercise into the future.
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