From today – parents of children under three will get an extra €80 a month

Parents of children under the age of three will now receive an allowance of €80 per month.

The new childcare subsidies were introduced today and will include an €80 monthly allowance for parents of children aged between six months and three years old. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs Katherine Zappone has already launched an informative website that covers all aspects of the More Affordable Childcare scheme. The scheme will also mean that children under the age of six months could qualify for a means-tested childcare subsidy of up to €145. “This is a very good day for parents and families and children," Minister Zappone said when she initially made the announcement in May. “For decades, several Governments of all political persuasions have struggled to come up with an equitable way to make childcare more affordable," she added.

Countdown to More Affordable Childcare has begun...info packs on way to providers ...in two weeks our info campaign for parents begins.

— Katherine Zappone (@KZapponeTD) May 19, 2017

Additional investment in childcare will see €19 million set aside from the budget, in the hopes of benefitting up to 70,000 children. “The primary issue the childcare providers are raising with me have to do with their pay as well as their working conditions," the minister continued. "What I want to do is increase the amounts of money to be provided to crèches and early education and care centres so that they can pay a little bit more for the non-contact time they have with children." Parents who are hoping to avail of the new scheme should contact their childcare provider or local childcare committee.