Political parties need to be explain to service providers how they intend to bring about State-led early education and childcare services and fund huge cuts to parents’ fees, a group of creche owners have said in an open letter to those contesting the general election.
Sixteen providers, including Karen Clince, chief executive of Tigers, which has 22 services around the country attended by more than 2,000 children, signed the letter which warns the scale of change being promised in manifestos is creating uncertainty, and calls for consultations during the remaining two weeks of the campaign.
All of main political parties have committed to capping the fees charged to parents, with most saying €200 per child would be the most any family would have to pay, while the Social Democrats put the figure at €250 and People Before Profit want to see the system made entirely free. The average currently paid for full-time care is just under €800, while some services charge in excess of €1,200.
Other commitments made in recent weeks include a greatly increased State role in provision, new State-backed services in areas with shortages, a guarantee of preschool places, improved pay for the 30,000 or so educators working in the system and a general shift to a publicly-run model.
Industry body Early Childhood Ireland has welcomed the prominence the issue of early education and childcare has been given in the campaign but has expressed reservations about whether the promises can be delivered.
In their letter, published on Friday, the group of providers said there was growing uncertainty in the sector regarding its future and how the promised changes might be implemented.
“The proposal to promise voters State-led childcare provision, coupled with capping childcare costs, raises concerns for operators who provide this care. While we welcome further reductions in the cost of childcare, providers are unable to foot this bill. We urge political parties and the forthcoming government to provide transparency regarding the specific changes that would facilitate the implementation of these welcome, yet significantly costly, caps.
“The absence of a clear and comprehensive plan raises fears that the proposed electoral promises could lead to diminished quality of care and unsustainable services, ultimately harming the families they are intended to support.”
Although some of the parties have said they favour the voluntary purchase of existing services as part of a move to public system, research suggests a large scale move on that front would require a huge capital investment by the State.
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