Childcare fees to be capped in money boost for Irish parents
The Minister for Children has announced that childcare fees are soon to be capped at €200 a week for thousands of parents.
Norma Foley, Minister for Children, Disability, and Equality, announced earlier this week that a new maximum fee cap for early learning and childcare services participating in Core Funding will be coming into effect this year. An initial maximum fee cap was put in place for new entrants to the scheme last year.
A new maximum fee cap will now be introduced for all new and existing services receiving this State funding this September, which will further lower the maximum fees that can be charged depending on the number of hours provided. Under these new maximum fee caps, the highest possible fees will be no more than €295 per week for a full day place of between 40-50 hours per week.
This will bring these fees closer to the average weekly fee of €197 for full day care. These fees for parents are then reduced by State subsidies under the National Childcare Scheme and the free, universal two-year Early Childhood Care and Education preschool programme.
A parent being charged the maximum permissible fee of €295 per week for a full day place would be entitled to receive the universal National Childcare Scheme subsidy of €96.30. This means a parents co-payment would be no more than €198.70 each week.
In addition to this a new maximum fee cap, the unprecedented funding available through Core Funding will ensure the existing fee freeze, which was introduced in 2022, will remain in place for participating services. This will continue to assist parents with children in the majority of services whose fees fall below the new fee caps.
Announcing the changes, Minister Foley said: "One of the areas where parents and families are most looking for help is with the cost of early learning and childcare. Since 2020, the amount of State funding in this area has increased from around €600 million to €1.37 billion this year. That has led to a 50% reduction in the cost faced by parents on average and a record number of children – approximately 190,000 – have benefitted from the National Childcare Scheme this year. So there has been progress. But I know that the cost of early learning and childcare is still far too high for many parents.
"The extension of maximum fee caps to all services participating in Core Funding will reduce costs for families facing the highest fees in the country. It will address some of the extreme fee disparities across the sector in a meaningful way, so that there are more consistent rates in place for families in their local areas.
"It is another step along the way to achieving the commitment in the Programme for Government to a maximum payment by parents of €200 per child per month for early learning and childcare during the lifetime of this government. Core Funding has enjoyed high participation rates to date, with 92 per cent of services taking part. There is going to be a further €60 million increase in State funding for this Scheme in 2025/2026, bringing the total to a record €390 million. I am confident that the increased funding available from September will allow for the continued partnership with for early learning and childcare services."
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