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29th March 2018
10:46am BST

Indeed, shockingly a recent survey from Seas Suas - the organisation that represents childcare and early education providers - reveals that the number of places available to babies and toddlers is actually falling.
The survey of 128 providers was carried out last month - and it highlights that a shortage of staff is the biggest driver of this: almost half of respondents said they had vacancies; a third said it can take up to four months to fill an opening. More than two-thirds said the difficulty in finding staff meant they had to limit their service.
Full-time staff-to-child ratios in Ireland are as follows:
0 – 1 year of age 1 adult : 3 children
1 – 2 years of age 1 adult : 5 children
2 – 3 years of age 1 adult : 6 children
3 – 6 years of age 1 adult : 8 children