Private creches catering for more than 20 children are to qualify for grant aid under a £40 million Government child care package to be unveiled today.
It has been learned that the additional £40 million, agreed by the Government last July with the social partners, will be targeted at larger, privately run facilities.
There will also be financial assistance for the conversion of spare school classrooms into creches to create more places.
The package will bring Government funding on childcare to £290 million over the life of the National Development Plan. The Government pledged £250 million under the Plan to childcare for not-for-profit childcare in disadvantaged areas.
The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Mr O'Donoghue, will announce today how the £40 million will be given out and will announce financial assistance for private creches with more than 20 children.
To date only self-employed childcare providers with fewer than 20 children could apply for a grant.
The package will also provide grants for the conversion of spare classrooms in schools for childcare. There will also be money for community-based childcare, for the development of creches in local authority developments and for training and research.
A Government source said last night that while to date it had sought to promote equality in childcare, it was anxious to expand childcare in the private sector.
The community and voluntary pillar of the social partners has put forward three key proposals for childcare.
They include the introduction of a universal taxable parents' childcare payment, paid to the primary carer starting at £20 per week for under-fives and £10 for children aged six to 14 years; a scheme to support the childcare costs of low-income parents participating in education and training programmes and subsidised childcare for low-income families.