CHILDCARE services across the Southside have received a major boost through grants aimed at improving their services.
In Dun Laoghaire Rathdown, 35 childcare facilities have been awarded grants as part of the
?¬7m scheme for early years services.
Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Dr James Reilly TD, said
?¬5 million of the grant funding was being made available for community/not for profit childcare services while the other
?¬2 million would go to both private and community/not for profit childcare facilities.
Childcare facilities right across the constituency will benefit from the fund with services in Dundrum, Churchtown, Ballinteer, Sandyford, Ballyogan, Leopardstown, Stepaside, Kilternan, Stillorgan, Kilmacud, Clonskeagh, Mount Merrion and Rathfarnham all receiving grants.
Labour TD for Dublin South, Alex White, added that
?¬17,258 has been allocated to go towards the upgrade of ICT equipment at childcare facilities.
“These grants will help facilities keep up with the demands of a busy modern childcare service,
? he said.
The scheme is part of a wider national programme of Capital Grant Funding for Early Years Services that provides large scale funding for relocation or refurbishment, medium scale essential maintenance, quality improvement and sustainability works to improve the Building Energy Rating (BER) of facilities and the upgrade of ICT equipment.
“This capital programme represents a strong commitment by Government to the continued development of the childcare sector,
? Deputy White added.
Elsewhere on the Southside a dozen childcare facilities in Clondalkin, Lucan, Palmerstown and surrounding areas have also been awarded grants as part of the scheme.
The grants announced include
?¬250,000 to build a new childcare facility on the grounds of St Ronan’s Primary School in Deansrath, where the existing childcare facility in St Ronan’s Community Centre will move to.
Some of the other childcare facilities that will benefit from grants include NaoÃnra TÃr na nog in Palmerstown, Dublin West Limetree Childcare on the Bawnogue Road in Clondalkin, St Finian’s Childcare Services in Lucan and several others.
The news comes as Labour launched a new
‘Let’s Talk About Childcare’ campaign last week.
The nationwide grassroots campaign is targeting parents who use childcare resources.
The campaign wants to know the views of parents on how childcare can be made more affordable.
Parents are being encouraged to fill out a short online survey on labour.ie/childcare.
The results of the survey will feed into the party’s election manifesto process.
A working group has also been set up within the Labour Parliamentary Party to help examine the issues surrounding childcare, while other elements of the campaign include public meetings, online videos and local literature.
Deputy Robert Dowds (Lab) explained:
“We want to hear from parents about their childcare arrangements, what works and what doesn’t and more importantly how things could be made easier for parents across Ireland,
? he said.
“There is no one-size fits all solution to the issue of childcare. It is clear, however, that we need to ensure that our children are provided with the best quality childcare.
“Our campaign is a sincere attempt to enable parents to have a real input.
?
“In view of this, I’d strongly urge parents in Clondalkin and Lucan to participate in our simple questionnaire, which is at labour.ie/childcare.
?