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CPD Payments for Hanen, Lámh, and NSAI Training 2019 

CPD Payments will be issued to all services for participants who completed Hanen and/or Lámh between April 2019 and 29th of June 2019 and/or Aistear and Play (NSAI) between March 2019 and 5th June 2019 on the 19th of July 2019.

Please note that each staff member can avail of a maximum of 18 hours of paid CPD training per calendar year and payments are calculated on this basis. Payments for all participants will be made to the employer/ childcare setting and NOT to the individual. Re-imbursement by way of payment or time worked is the responsibility of the employer.

The rate of payment is €13 per hour.

If you have any queries regarding your payments; please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 01-5117222

Investing in the Rights of the Child, Gender Equality and Climate Change focus of Irish Permanent Representation to UN
Minister Zappone to address UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF)

Monday 15th July 2019

The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Dr. Katherine Zappone, will address the UN High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) during a permanent representation to the UN, starting Monday (15th July).

Minister Zappone will address a panel meeting of the Ireland and Global Education Monitoring Report at Ireland’s Permanent Mission to the UN. Minister Zappone will discuss the measures taken in Ireland to strengthen early-years education provision.

In commemorating the 30th Anniversary of the Convention of the Rights of the Child this year, Minister Zappone will attend the, “Leave no Child Behind: Achieving the SDGs through investing in the Rights of the Child” event at the HLPF. The Minister will highlight how Ireland is implementing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with an emphasis on investing in child rights as a key accelerator for progress.

On Tuesday (16th July) Minister Zappone will address “Role of Youth and Civil Society in Climate Action”, an intergenerational dialogue in advance of the UN Youth Climate Summit taking place in September. The Minister will highlight the importance of the need for genuine engagement between leaders and youth on the issue of climate action.

Minister Zappone will also speak at the High Level Plenary Meeting, “Commemoration of the 25th Anniversary of the International Conference on Population and Development”. Minister Zappone will focus on Ireland’s Policy for International Development “A Better World” and Gender Equality.

Minister Zappone said:

“Among my priorities as Minister for Children and Youth Affairs is to ensure that every child and young person, in Ireland, male or female, has equal opportunities to thrive and reach their full potential in all aspects of their lives. We have placed gender equality at the heart of our new policy for international development, A Better World. The policy commits to increasing Ireland’s support to programmes directly related to achieving gender equality.

A joint-up approach between the education sector, industry and employers, the political system and the civil society is required to remove any obstacles remaining which limit the involvement of young women in the workplace and other sections of society. Our Education Institutions and workplaces should always be beacons of equality, diversity and inclusion. If we allow women to become excluded from future job growth, it would not only harm gender equality in our society but would also leave our economy short of their talent, skills and knowledge.”

Minister Zappone will also meet with Natalia Kanem, Executive Director of UN FPA along with Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason.

ECCE 2019-20 Optional Extras Guide

An Optional Extras Guide for ECCE 2019-20 has been added to the PIP Portal under ECCE Programme Information, and can also be found here.

Please note that with the exception of sessional only services, no extra time-slots of any duration are permitted as optional extras on ECCE.

National Childcare Scheme - Statement 
Monday July 1st 2019

Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Katherine Zappone, T.D., will update Government this week on the development of the new National Childcare Scheme. Good progress is being made. Many of the major elements are now in place in preparation for the Scheme’s opening in October 2019.

• Over 2,100 providers have signed up to participate in the Scheme.
• A dedicated website, launched in March, has received over 150,000 hits and over 50,000 parent information booklets have been distributed nationwide.
• A Parent Support Centre for the National Childcare Scheme opened last week. It is available to assist parents or guardians with any queries regarding the new National Childcare Scheme. It is open Monday to Friday from 9:00am – 5:00pm and parents can contact the centre by calling (01) 906 8530.

While good progress is being made, the Minister noted that the development of the Scheme is highly complex and has thrown up challenges along the way. This would be expected with a scheme of this size which will benefit many families across Ireland. In particular, the Minister referenced the development of the Scheme’s supporting ICT system. The highly innovative system is being designed to deliver the option of a user-friendly, paperless, automated assessment process for parents.

The Minister explained:
“We know parents have a lot on their plate, so we are designing an application process that will be as safe, speedy and stress-free as possible. This means that we have to plan for and develop 30,000 different applicant circumstances and choices through the system, to cater for all possible variations.”

Given the ambition of the National Childcare Scheme, and the associated challenges this brings, the experts overseeing its development have recommended a phased launch approach. While the main IT system to deal with online applications is largely built, work is continuing on the supporting structures to deal with postal applications. We will deliver online, on time, in October. The paper based system will be available in January for those who do not wish to apply online.

Parents will be able to apply for the Scheme online or by post. In order to get the Scheme safely up and running, it will open firstly to online applications, commencing in October 2019, with subsidy payments flowing from November. The Scheme will then open to paper-based (i.e. postal) applications in January 2020. From this point on, parents can apply either via the online or the postal route.

Accepting the expert recommendation, the Minister noted that:
“This approach allows us to deliver the important benefits of the Scheme to parents and providers from this October as promised. It also allows us to deliver the type of timely, user-friendly experience which we have worked so hard to design and which innovative ICT enables. Alongside this, we have supports in place to ensure that any parent who wishes to apply online but lacks IT access or knowledge can get practical help.

"In addition to our new Parent Support Centre, all 30 of our City and County Childcare Committees are available to provide information and practical support to parents. We have also been working with and providing training to many key stakeholders and groups who support vulnerable families. In addition, we have been delighted to engage positively with Intreo Offices, Citizens Information Services and library services, and will be continuing this important work in the weeks and months ahead.”

The Minister emphasised the importance of parents getting MyGovID-verified so that they are ready to apply for the Scheme once it launches later this year.

The Parent Support Centre will help parents with any queries they may have regarding the application process. Their local City or County Childcare Committee is also available to help.

The National Childcare Scheme is the first ever statutory entitlement to financial support for childcare in Ireland. It aims to improve outcomes for children, support lifelong learning, reduce child poverty and tangibly reduce the cost of quality childcare for thousands of families across Ireland.

To ensure continuity of service for both parents and providers, the existing childcare support programmes will continue to operate until the launch of the National Childcare Scheme and for the 2019/2020 programme year. Children registered on these schemes will be able to remain on them for the duration of the academic year or switch over to the National Childcare Scheme once it launches.

Further information for parents and providers is available on the Scheme’s dedicated website: ncs.gov.ie

Tusla – Child and Family Agency, is pleased to announce the launch of its new Child Protection and Welfare Practice Handbook 2. The Practice Handbook 2 is published as a companion 
document to the 2011 HSE Child Protection and Welfare Practice Handbook and Children First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children (DCYA 2017).

The content of the Child Protection and Welfare Practice Handbook 2 was compiled from submissions from numerous stakeholders and content experts, both within Tusla and from partner agencies with particular expertise. The new Child Protection and Welfare Practice Handbook 2 is written for use by front-line social workers, their line managers and other professionals. Practice Handbook 2 is divided into four sections, following the categories identified in Children First: National Guidance (DCYA 2017: 11–12): Parent or Carer Factors, Child Factors, Community Factors, and Environmental Factors. Chapters are provided under each of these headings on factors identified in Children First: National Guidance as well as some additional areas. Chapters provide a short description of each topic area, followed by some key messages from research and a practice note to assist professionals in making evidence informed decisions and judgements.

The Child Protection and Welfare Practice Handbook 2 can be found here