Childcare Support

Table of Contents

Affordable Childcare Scheme

The Childcare Support Act 2018 provides a statutory basis for the Affordable Childcare Scheme, which will replace a number of administrative schemes. The Affordable Childcare Scheme is intended to provide financial support for parents to help meet the cost of childcare.

The Scheme makes childcare more affordable for parents through making payments to registered childcare service providers that must be used to offset the fees that the providers charge parents. By making childcare more affordable, the Act aims to support children’s participation in quality childcare, to support parents’ participation in the labour market, and – through both these effects – to reduce child poverty.

Participation in the Scheme is limited to “approved” childcare service providers, which must not only be registered with the Child and Family Agency but also have a written agreement with the Minister in relation to the Scheme. This specifies the types of provision that may be included within these written agreements.

Monetary Support

The Act provides for both income related financial support, allowing the targeting of support and non-income related financial support, allowing a level of support for all parents with children of a prescribed age who use registered childcare services. It allows for additional support for families where there is an identified need for childcare on grounds of child development or child welfare.

Schedule 1 defines “income” and “allowable deductions” for the purpose of income assessments carried out under section 11.

The Act enables the establishment of an income assessment process that will largely be carried out on an automated basis through data-sharing arrangements with other Government Departments and agencies, thus improving administrative efficiency and streamlining application and registration procedures for parents and for childcare service providers. It

provides for the appointment of a scheme administrator;
gives a statutory basis for the data-sharing arrangements that will underpin the Scheme; establishes an independent appeals procedure in relation to decisions made under the Scheme;
gives statutory powers for authorised officers to examine attendance records and financial records of childcare service providers, in order to ensure the effective use of public funds; and provides for sanctions in the event of fraud or misrepresentation by a parent or by a childcare service provider.

“Childcare services” include both centre-based childcare and home-based childminding and cover both pre-school and school age childcare, the definition of “childcare services provider” limits participation in the Scheme to childcare services that are registered with the Child and Family Agency under the Child Care Act.

Scheme Administration

The Affordable Childcare Scheme (the “Scheme”) is funded out of monies provided by the Oireachtas each year, and states that the Scheme is operated by the scheme administrator. The scheme administrator has the necessary powers and to issue guidelines giving practical guidance on the operation of the Scheme.

The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs (the “Minister”) may issue directions to the scheme administrator and to arrange for inspections, reviews and audits of the scheme administrator in relation to the Scheme.

The scheme administrator (with the consent of the Minister) may enter into agreements with other persons for the provision of some of the scheme administrator’s functions, without removing the scheme administrator’s responsibility for those functions.

Eligibility

The residency requirements allow for applications not only from parents who are ordinarily resident in the State, but also from EU/EEA citizens who are not resident in the State and from other categories of parents formerly employed or self-employed in the State. Financial support is limited to childcare services registered under the Child Care Act 1991, which must be located in the State. Where parents are separated, both parents may receive financial support, but each parent may only receive support for the days or times that he or she has care of the child.

The Act specified the process by which parents may make applications for financial support under the Scheme, including the information they must provide as part of an application, and allows the scheme administrator to reject an application that does not provide all required information or that is not in the form specified by the scheme administrator. It requires applicants to provide PPS numbers in their application.

Assessment

When applications are for income-related financial support, the Act enables income data to be gathered through an automated process involving the Revenue Commissioners and the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection on the basis of PPS numbers supplied by the applicant. In such cases, applicants will not be required to supply income information directly. However, this also allows the scheme administrator to require an applicant to supply additional information – including income information – if this is required in order to determine whether an applicant is eligible for financial support and the amount of support for which they qualify.

The Act allows the Minister to vary the number of hours of income related financial support by the extent of parents’ participation in the labour market. There is a requirement that the scheme administrator should be able to verify information on the labour market participation of the applicant (and of his or her partner, where relevant). For the purpose of verification, the Act requires employers and education and training providers to provide relevant information to the scheme administrator when requested to do so.

The scheme administrator may carry out an income assessment, when an application is made for income-related financial support, using the definitions of “income” and “allowable deduction”. The Act gives the Minister the power to make regulations on the methodology by which the income assessment should be carried out.

The Act specifies the information that the scheme administrator must provide to the applicant after determining the amount of financial support (if any) for which the applicant qualifies, and states that a determination may be valid for 12 months at most.

Support Available

The Minister has the power to make regulations that determine the amount of financial support for which an applicant qualifies, and sets out the factors to which the Minister must have regard when making those regulations.The regulations may set out the maximum amounts of financial support (both income-related and non-income related), as well as the methodology for determining what proportion of the maximum amount an applicant qualifies for (which may depend on the applicant’s income and the number of children in the family).

It also allows the Minister to vary the number of hours of financial support each week by the extent of labour market participation of the applicant (and his or her partner), and to define “work” and “study” for the purpose of assessing labour market participation under the Scheme.

There is additional support where there is an identified need for childcare on grounds of child development or child welfare. Additional support may take the form of higher rates of payment (e.g. provision of childcare at no cost to parents), more hours of financial support each week, or wider age-limits for participation in the Scheme.

The Minister may sign agreements with statutory bodies that specify the procedures by which those statutory bodies may refer children or families for additional childcare support, and the additional support to be provided. Schedule 2 lists the relevant statutory bodies and the purposes for which they may make referrals under this section. As the nature of the referrals varies between the statutory bodies named..

When a child is referred for additional support agreement, the child’s parents do not fall within the definition of an “applicant” in section 1. As a result, the eligibility requirements , the application requirements and the assessment and determination provisions above are not relevant in such cases.

Provider Issues

Payment is to be made to an approved childcare service provider when a child at that service is the subject of financial support under the Scheme. The Minister has power to make regulations on the conditions under which payment will be made and on the requirements that both applicants and childcare service providers must meet in order for payments to be made.

An applicant must notify the scheme administrator if he or she is no longer eligible for financial support under the Scheme, or if he or she (or his or her partner) ceases to be engaged in work or study.

Parents and childcare service providers may request reviews of decisions made by the scheme administrator and of the amounts paid under the Scheme. The Minister has power to make regulations on procedures to be followed in reviews.

In cases where an application has been assessed through an automated process, a review allows a parent to request an administrative officer to examine the application. A review is the first stage of the appeals process; a person who wishes to appeal a decision must first seek a review. The scheme administrator has power to carry out reviews of its own initiative.

Enforcement

The scheme administrator (with the consent of the Minister) may appoint authorised officers who may enter the premises of childcare service providers in order to examine attendance records, financial records and other documents relevant to the Scheme. Childcare service providers must assist the authorised officers, and it is an offence to obstruct an authorised officer or to fail to comply with requests for information.

Where the premises of a childcare service provider are a dwelling and the occupier does not allow entry to an authorised officer, the authorised officer may seek a warrant from a judge of the District Court authorising entry. Authorised officer may be accompanied by members of the Garda Síochána, where necessary.

There is an appeals process. (A review must be carried out before an appeal can be made.) The scheme administrator, with the consent of the Minister,may appoint a panel of suitable persons to consider appeals, The members of the panel are to be independent in the performance of their functions. Persons aggrieved by a decision of the panel will have recourse to the High Court (on a point of law).

The scheme administrator may recover money from parents and from childcare service providers, both in cases of fraud or misrepresentation and in cases of overpayment.

Data Sharing

The Act allows the sharing of data between the bodies specified in Schedule 3 for the purposes identified, which include verifying information provided in an application, assessing the income of an applicant and his or her partner, registering a child at an approved childcare service provider, making payments to a childcare service provider, verifying attendance of children at the provider, and carrying out a review, an appeal or the prosecution of an offence. 3 lists the bodies that may share data.

The Minister may conduct a review of the operation of the Scheme and to make a report on its findings to the Oireachtas.