2026-06-23

13. Deputy Mark Wall asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality the number of early learning and school-age childcare facilities that have been found to be non-complainant on staffing ratios, staffing qualifications, Garda vetting, and basic needs, broken down by private or community service, service size, full day care, part-time, sessional, school-age childcare and county, in 2025 and 2026. [46906/26]

In line with the requirements of the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Years Services) Regulations 2016 and the Child Care Act 1991 (Early Year Services) (Registration of School Age Services) Regulations 2018, those wishing to operate an early years service or a school-age service are required to register with Tusla for the purposes of regulation. As of the end of quarter 1 2026, there were 3,941 early years services and 3,032 school-age services registered with Tusla in line with these statutory provisions. The Department is in the process of drafting revised regulations for school-age childcare services, building on the initial 2018 registration regulations. There is no regulatory requirement in relation to qualifications and health welfare and development of the child in the Child Care Act 1991 and the regulations 2018. Tusla currently only inspect school-age services where risks are highlighted or concerns raised. In relation to early years services, there are important caveats regarding the data requested by the Deputy. In that context, the regulatory requirements for Garda vetting, staff qualifications and ensuring the basic needs of children in early years settings are set out in regulation 9, management and recruitment, and regulation 19, health, welfare and development of the child, of the 2016 early years services regulations. In the context of regulation 19, the health, welfare and development of the child relate to a range of practices, including basic and individual care needs, relationships between adults and children and providing an effective programme and an environment that supports learning and development. Due to the nature of the statutory instrument in which the 2016 regulations are set out, these requirements are outlined only as specific individual components of regulations 9 and 19, both of which comprise a number of additional components and regulatory elements, the number of which Tusla is aware. On this basis, the information I will outline relates to compliance non-attainment with regulation 9(2)(c), Garda vetting, and regulation 9(4), staff qualifications, and the entirety of regulation 19, health, welfare and development of child. Separately, as the regulatory requirements for staffing ratios comprise all components of regulation 11, staffing levels, I will outline compliance non-attainment in respect of that regulation, which addresses this element of the Deputy’s query. I will get to the specifics in my next contribution.

I will yield to the Minister in order to allow her to conclude.

Gorgeous. For ease of reference, a full copy of the 2016 regulations is available to download from Tusla's website. The data provided by Tusla is in respect of inspections as opposed to services. This is because some services may have been inspected more than once. That is an important consideration. The figures I am about to provide relate to inspections, not services. Over 3,500 inspections of early years services took place over the period. The level of non-compliance by regulation at the end of the inspection process, post submission of corrective action and preventive action response from the provider, was as follows. Out of the 3,500 inspections, there were five non-compliant inspections relating to Garda vetting, 60 relating to qualifications, ten relating to staffing levels and 14 relating to the health, welfare and development of the child. That refers to care needs, relationships or effective programme and environment. On Garda vetting, immediate action notices were issued in relation to all five services, and the registered provider committed to removing them from having access to children until vetting is in place. The inspectorate records all non-adherence to Garda vetting and follows up with the relevant service. In relation to qualifications, there are a number of factors relating to non-compliance. I will explain those in my next contribution.

I tabled this question in order to find out what is going on with all of our childcare facilities and to ensure that best practice obtains right across the country. I am very happy to hear that after 3,500 inspections and in the context of the figures the Minister provided, we have a very low level of non-compliance. I am sure the Minister will agree, however, that even one instance of non-compliance is a concern. I know she will come back to me with further information on this. When we get the figures and have time to study them, I am sure we will all have further questions. The reason for tabling this question was to ensure that there is some regulation of this important childcare sector. The fact that the number of issues identified is good in one sense. Without the detail behind them, however, we cannot comment any further. I am glad that the figures relating to the 3,500 inspections are on the low side. I again stress that one instance of non-compliance is one too many.

I will add some information in order to provide flavour. In the context of qualifications, there are a number of factors relating to why people might be non-compliant. Staff may have some component modules of a level 5 completed and may be in the process of studying further. Some staff from abroad may not yet have applied to the Department for qualification recognition. They may have a qualification but are in the process of applying for recognition. Some Irish staff may not have applied to the Department for qualification equivalency. They could be coming from a different background and may be looking for equivalency. In the case of Kildare, as I know that is of interest to the Deputy, the level of non-compliance at the end of the inspection process, post submission of corrective action and preventive action response from the provider, was zero for Garda vetting, zero for qualifications and zero issues in respect of staffing levels. There was one issue regarding the health, welfare and development of the child. That could be for a variety of different reasons. The early years inspectorate requires registered providers to submit a corrective action and a preventive action, with supporting evidence, to address all instances of non-compliance identified in the draft inspection report issued to them. If the corrective actions and-or preventive actions do not address the non-compliance, the registered provider may be subject to the escalation and-or enforcement processes.

That is why we need more childcare in Kildare.

There you go. I thought it was a very good report.

Absolutely.