Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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429. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth what the funding pathway and opportunities are for an existing community childcare limited company by guarantee that wishes to expand to a green field site to cater for increased demand (currently 500 on the waiting list); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [49538/23]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Some €69 million has been allocated over the period 2023-2025 to the early learning and childcare sector under the revised National Development Plan (NDP). This will enable significant capital investment in early learning and childcare across three pillars:

1.Building Blocks - Improvement Grant;

2.Building Blocks - Capacity Grant; and

3.Building Blocks - Innovation Grant.

Under the Building Blocks - Improvement Grant, €9 million was allocated this year in grants ranging from €35,000 to €75,000 for green energy upgrades and retrofit projects, for services in need of upgrading. In total, 151 services were awarded funding under this scheme.

Work is currently underway on the design and delivery of Pillars 2 and 3, which have a combined allocation of €20 million in 2024 and €40 million in 2025.

My Department is currently developing Pillar 2, the Building Blocks – Capacity Grant, which is aimed at funding an expansion of existing services in areas of under-supply. My Department is undertaking a detailed needs analysis, which will ensure that the funding is targeted towards communities with identified under-supply, which by design will include areas of socioeconomic disadvantage.

The Building Blocks – Innovation Grant will pilot a range of innovative initiatives such as outdoor early learning and childcare services.

While my Department is developing options around the expansion of services, there is no funding available at present to individual services to purchase greenfield sites. Should such an initiative be introduced, it would be subject to a competitive process and open to all providers, in areas of identified under-supply, to apply.

I hope to announce details of the Building Blocks – Capacity Grant later this month and will announce the Innovation Grant next year.