Thousands of parents across Galway, and the State, will miss out on the Single Affordable Childcare scheme because their childcare providers are not signed up to it, according to a County Galway based TD.
Fianna Fáil Spokesperson on Children & Youth Affairs and Galway East TD Anne Rabbitte said the fact that some crèches are not enrolled in the Single Affordable Childcare scheme is causing "frustration and disappointment" for parents. "If their provider hasn’t signed up to the affordable childcare scheme, they will miss out on the subsidies that they are entitled to," she said.
The scheme was announced as part of Budget 2017 to help families with payments for crèche and nursery fees and after school care. The new scheme was due to start in September but the full rollout now looks like it will be delayed for at least a few months. In the meantime, there will still be financial changes to existing childcare subsidies from next month.
The Government said that eventually the existing childcare subsidy schemes will be amalgamated and become the Affordable Childcare Scheme, and a new IT system will be launched. Eventually, under the SAC scheme, children between six and 36 months in Tusla-registered childcare services will be eligible for some level of childcare support.
Dep Rabbitte criticised the delays in the implementation of the scheme, and also how it has been progressed to date. “Since this scheme was first announced, childcare providers have spoken about being left out in the cold over the design and implementation of the programme," she said. "The Government’s failure to create a suitable ICT system is adding to the problem as there will be a huge amount of paperwork and admin involved for crèches. Parents should not be penalised because of the Government’s failure."
