Since 2019, almost 1,000 early years childcare services have closed their doors. The Minister has said that 579 new services have opened but she failed to say that most of these only cater for school-age children. There are currently 40,000 children on waiting lists for childcare across the country. The services that have closed could potentially have provided for 30,000 of those children. Childcare facilities are closing because of ever-rising costs and a lack of funding from Government. Many more small early childhood care and education, ECCE, services are going to close because the Department of children is making no funding available to cover these costs. New rates bills are now being foisted upon them. Although these small service providers have been rates-exempt since 2010, over the last six months, they have been receiving these rates bills, which they cannot afford to pay. It is the death knell for many of these providers. The ECCE programme is a free two-year programme for children aged from two years and eight months to five years old. It runs five days a week and provides three hours a day of free pre-school. Service providers say that Government funding of between €69 and €82 per child per week is not enough to sustain these services. Costs have increased but Government funding has not. Their contracts do not allow them to charge parents. These increasing costs on crèches are not sustainable. According to Elaine Dunne, chairperson of the Federation of Early Childhood Providers, if Government funding is not increased, more closures will follow. As a starting point in resolving this urgent issue, the Government must increase the current rate per child per hour from €4.60 to the sponsorship rate of €5.30. The Department of children must take responsibility for the payment of the rates bills or, alternatively, rates must be abolished entirely. I will address some issues that parents are having. One issue affecting families in Skibbereen and across the wider west Cork area is the serious lack of childcare facilities, which puts pressure on parents who are simply trying to balance work and family life. I recently heard from the parent of a 12-month-old girl who had been searching for childcare for most of the year. This parent applied to crèches not only in Skibbereen but also in Ballydehob and even as far away as Clonakilty. Despite placing their daughter on multiple waiting lists, they were eventually told there was simply no space for her anywhere. After months of uncertainty, they finally found childcare but only by piecing together two separate childminders, one covering Monday through Thursday and another who would take their daughter on Fridays. They consider themselves lucky because many parents in their community are still struggling and often relying heavily on family support, which not everyone has. Even for those who do find childcare, the financial burden can be overwhelming. This family is paying nearly €1,300 every month for two childminders with no Government subsidy, no scheme and no relief available to them. They are not alone. Many parents in west Cork and all over Ireland are in similar situations, working full-time and doing everything right and yet finding themselves financially stretched because essential childcare infrastructure simply does not exist. This is more than an inconvenience. It is a failure of basic social infrastructure. Childcare is not a luxury. It is a necessity for working families and an essential pillar of a functioning equitable society. When families cannot access childcare, their economic security is threatened, their ability to work is compromised and the well-being of their children is affected. It is deeply concerning that such a vital service is missing from a town as large and vibrant as Skibbereen. We cannot expect families to thrive when they are forced into last-minute arrangements, long commutes or unaffordable private options. I call for the urgent prioritisation of new crèches, expanded childcare supports and meaningful investment in early years services in areas like Skibbereen. Families deserve stability, affordability and access to the childcare services that every community should have as a basic right. I will also raise an issue that many parents in my constituency have contacted me about, that is, the decision to end the ECCE split-place exemptions from the beginning of the 2026 programme year. Only last week, the Government announced a major investment in early years education, claiming that it would improve access and make childcare more affordable. However, almost straight away, families were being told that split-place exemptions will be removed. For many parents, this feels like giving with one hand and taking with the other. There are families who simply do not have the option to keep their child in one service for five days a week. Their local services are full. There are not enough places. To make childcare work and to stay in employment, they have no choice but to use two different services. This is not a lifestyle choice. It is the only arrangement that allows them to manage work and care availability. Removing these exemptions punishes families who are already dealing with a shortage of childcare places, especially in rural areas.

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