Richard Bruton (Dublin Bay North, Fine Gael)
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32. To ask the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth if the level of shortage in childcare being experienced at present has been identified; if proposals are being developed to accelerate the process of filling the gaps; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43486/24]

Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Improving access to quality and affordable early learning and childcare is a key priority of Government.

My Department employs a range of approaches to identify and address shortages of early learning and childcare places, bearing in mind the wide range of types of early learning and childcare provision offered by services and required by families.

This year, I established a Supply Management Unit within the Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare Division of my Department. A key part of the Supply Management Unit’s remit is to develop capacity for monitoring, analysing and forecasting the supply and demand of childcare.

The development of a forward planning model is currently underway utilising the skills of statisticians on secondment from the Central Statistics Office, those experienced in the field of early learning and childcare and the expertise of a GIS mapper working with the Department. The model will seek to identify the nature and volume of different types of early learning and childcare places across the country, whether or not those places are occupied and how that aligns with the numbers of children in the corresponding age cohorts at local area level.

It is important to note that demand for early learning and childcare beyond sessional pre-school provision is highly elastic and shaped very substantially by families' individual composition, circumstances and preferences; employment patterns and income; and the price and availability of services.

My Department collects extensive data on supply through both survey and administrative data. A range of data sources show that the level of capacity in the sector has risen substantially year-on-year between 2022 and 2023. However, there is also evidence that demand for places is increasing and, for certain cohorts and in certain areas, outstripping supply. This is partly driven by the significant improvements in affordability that have been achieved in recent years. Published data on capacity broken down at county level is available at: www.pobal.ie/childcare/capacity/

Capital funding has been allocated to the early learning and childcare sector under the revised National Development Plan (NDP). This will enable significant investment in early learning and childcare. Some €89 million has been allocated to my Department between 2023 and 2026. The primary focus of the Building Blocks Capacity Grant Schemes is to increase capacity in the 1-3 year old, pre-ECCE, age range for full day care.

Under the Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme, some €25 million will be available in 2025 to deliver additional capacity. Under the scheme, community and private providers may apply for funding to physically extend their premises. In addition, community providers may apply for funding to purchase or to construct new premises.

Appraisal of applications for this scheme considers the supply and demand in the area around the proposed projects and seeks to prioritise funding for areas with the biggest supply/demand mismatch. I hope to announce further details of the Building Blocks Extension Grant Scheme in the coming weeks.