Thousands of families to benefit from substantial reductions in early learning and childcare costs from today

– New subsidy rates under the National Childcare Scheme effective from 2 January.
– Record numbers of children now benefitting from supports under the Scheme.
– All families encouraged to ensure they are availing of their entitlements under the Scheme.

3 January 2023

Roderic O’Gorman, Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth today welcomed the
introduction of new subsidy rates under the National Childcare Scheme, which is set to substantially reduce out
of pocket costs for early learning and childcare for thousands of families across the country.
From 2 January, the minimum hourly subsidy under the National Childcare Scheme for all children under 15 will
be €1.40 – an increase of €0.90 per hour from last year.
For families using Tusla-registered early learning and childcare, this subsidy increase represents further cost
reductions of €2,106 (or a reduction of €3,326 in total) off the annual cost of early learning and childcare for
each child.
The change to the National Childcare Scheme is being backed by €121 million secured in Budget 2023 by
Minister O’Gorman, bringing total funding for the Scheme to €358 million this year.
Record numbers of children are now accessing supports under the Scheme. More than 98,000 children are
currently in receipt of support, representing an 82% increase in the number of children for the same period last
year.
Welcoming today’s changes to the National Childcare Scheme, the Minister said:
“This Government is delivering on its promise to make high-quality early learning and childcare more affordable
for families and accessible to all children.
Families can now benefit from significant increases in the National Childcare Scheme, helping to ease the
financial pressure associated with early learning and childcare in Ireland.
Increasing the subsidy that families can avail of under the National Childcare Scheme is the best way to ensure
all families with children in Tusla-registered early learning and childcare can benefit from the Government’s €1
billion investment in early learning and childcare for 2023.
More families than ever before are already availing of the National Childcare Scheme, offsetting their early
learning and childcare costs, and I am confident that with this additional investment starting today, we can
bring further benefits to these families and thousands more like them.
I encourage all eligible families to avail of these supports on offer, by visiting www.ncs.gov.ie, calling the Parent
Support Centre on 01 906 8530 or talking to their early learning and childcare provider”