Third-level institutions have yet to apply for funding for childcare provision under the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme, which is supported to the tune of £250 million under the National Development Plan. However, a VEC and a further education college have put in applications, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.
Two years ago, a report of the Higher Education Equality Unit (HEEU) showed that the extent of childcare provision in third-level institutions in the State was poor. At the end of the year 2000, nothing much has changed.
Yes, the seven universities all provide creche facilities for students, but in the IT sector facilities remain scanty. And even in institutions with long-established creche facilities, waiting lists are long.
"Compared to Northern Ireland," says USI's Cian O'Callaghan, "we fare very badly. There, 80 per cent of the universities and colleges of further education have on or near-campus creches."
According to the HEEU, "the availability of quality, reliable and affordable childcare is a key equality issue." Such provision is of critical importance in enabling access to third-level education by student-parents. Childcare provision also facilitates equality of opportunity among members of staff who have childcare responsibilities, the HEEU says.
"Creches are essential if we are going to prevent drop-out," says Justin McDermott, student union president at Tralee IT. "We estimate that between 30 and 40 Tralee students will need creche facilities next year," he says.
The cost of childcare is a major issue for both student, parents and staff. Creche charges vary from college to college. However, in many of the colleges offering creche facilities, student childcare is subsidised. Take UCD for example. "The subsidy to students is slightly above two-thirds of the cost, which is quite generous," says JohnPaul Swaine, who is UCDSU welfare officer. However, "if you don't get your child into the campus creche, you get nothing". In fact, he notes, student-parents can lose out twice - on the subsidy and on the high quality care offered by UCD's creche.
Childcare subsidies to student parents are available in some of the colleges which lack creche facilities. In some cases, they are means-tested, in other instances they may be distributed from the hardship fund, which means that students have no entitlement to funding.
TCD's student welfare officer, Karen Griffin, is also a student-parent. "It's crucial that there is a creche," she says, "I couldn't have gone to college otherwise." Money is a major problem for student-parents, she says. "They can't take parttime jobs and if they're paying out for a creche, life is very difficult."
At Waterford Institute of Technology, which is one of the largest of the ITs, the student union has set up its own childcare subsidy fund. "So far, we've raised over £10,000 through sponsorship and fundraising activities," says Piaras O'Sullivan, the student union president. "We distribute this to students who have childcare costs." The college, he notes, is in the process of setting up a creche.
According to USI's Ciaran O'Callaghan, "it's our view that student parents should be entitled to childcare provision and it should be the same throughout the colleges. The costs should be met by the Government. The Government should be removing all barriers to higher education - and childcare costs can be a barrier."
But even where campus creches are available, problems still exist. Firstly, it can be difficult to get your child into a creche. Some colleges have waiting lists that run to treble figures and some of these are considering establishing extra creche facilities.
In UCD, SIPTU is running an awareness campaign to highlight the need for an extra creche. The 68 creche places for college population, which includes 18,000 students and almost 4,000 staff, is grossly inadequate, according to a SIPTU spokesperson.
Opening and closing times can also be problematic. "Most of the creches operate on a nine-to-five basis," says Cian O'Callaghan. "There's no provision for night-time care. Evening students and students who want to study in the library at night, are not catered for."
Meanwhile, students at Dundalk IT are disappointed that a creche, which, they say, was promised for September, is not yet open. The creche, which can accommodate up to 15 children, is part of the new student-services building, which is currently under completion. The student union is critical of the authorities because, they say, the creche is too small. "They said we would have a creche in September," says Darren Reddy, Dundalk's student union president. "Some students picked the college because of the creche and now they're in a real bind."
However, according to Stephen McManus, who is Dundalk's registrar, an extension is already being built to provide a separate sleeping area and will allow a larger proportion of under-two-year-olds to be catered for. "The structure is complete and ready for occupation, " he says. Only loose furniture and toys have to be bought. As yet, no staff has been appointed to the creche - because of an industrial dispute on the campus.
As Dundalk IT is discovering, running a campus creche is not plain sailing. For a start, it's labour intensive. In the babies room, for example, you have to have one staff person for every three babies.
TCD's creche, includes a babies room (six babies), a wobbler room (nine), a toddler room (10), a playgroup (12) and a Montessori group (16). The fact that it has space for only six infants is a major problem, according to Mary McKevitt, deputy supervisor at the TCD creche, since it limits the number of children they can admit. "Parents want their children to stay in one place," she says. "They don't want them going from creche to creche. Ideally, more baby rooms are needed so that there is more consistency and less coming and going."
