The Minister for Children Norma Foley has announced new maximum fee caps for early learning and childcare services participating in the State's core funding scheme.
The new caps will lower the maximum fees that can be charged by new and existing early learning and childcare services receiving core funding.
Core funding is a grant for early learning and childcare and school-age childcare providers towards their operating costs and is paid directly to providers. It is designed to improve affordability for families, quality in services and sustainability for providers.
Under the new announcement, the highest possible upfront cost for a typical full day place of 45 hours per week will drop from around €198 per week to €183.70 per week.
Higher subsidies are available for many parents, depending on their level of income and the age and number of children in their family, the Department of Children has said.
The new measure represents a "significant advance in standardising fees across the sector, which has historically seen different rates charged by providers for the same level of provision", the department said.
The move will come into effect in September and will be accompanied by record State funding of €480 million this year for over 4,600 providers in the State's core funding scheme.
'Strictly for parents paying the highest fees', says Norma Foley
Speaking on RTÉ's Drivetime, the minister said this is "strictly for the parents who are paying the highest fees", adding that they also have a "duty of care to the providers who are maintaining fee freezes".
"The State funding that is being given to them too for their operational costs including the fee freezes, that’s €480 million that I’ve confirmed today."
She said this was €90 million greater than what was received last year.
Ms Foley added that staff needed to be in place to care for the students and so the State was "putting €45 million on the table ringfenced to support the workers to ensure that they get an increase in pay".
She said this would be worked on by the Joint Labour Committee.
The number of children who are availing of different early years services is increasing year on year, she said. "We have 277,000 children that are now availing of it," she said.
The minister said eight providers will benefit from State-led provisions where "the State will either buy a building or build a building".
Asked about the number of applications for the scheme, she said it was a "rolling application" with over 80 submitted to date.
While funding is in place for eight this year to begin the process, there will be more provided in the coming years, Minister Foley added.
Approximately 12% of services will be required to reduce at least one fee.
However, the majority of parents are already paying below the new maximum fees and will continue to benefit from the fee freeze introduced in 2022, the department said.
