Parents to get first instalment of €1,000 childcare payment in August
It was originally planned in last year’s budget that the first quarterly payment of €250 would be made in April but this was postponed while the administration of the scheme was finalised.
The first payment of the Early Childcare Supplement (ECS) will be made in August for the period April 1-June 30. The second payment for the third quarter of the year, July 1-September 30, will be made in October. From then, it will be made every three months.
The Office of the Minister for Children has said there is no need to apply for the non-taxable scheme as names will be taken from the child benefit register. Parents who have their child benefit paid into a bank or post office account will have the new payment paid into the same account. Details of a new ECS payment book, for those who want cash payments, will be finalised over the summer and parents informed by the end of July.
Minister for Children Brian Lenihan said the payment will help stay-at-home parents to remain in the home and working parents to cope with the financial costs of childcare.
He defended the payment to stay-at-home and working parents.
“Some might be critical of this feature, but the Government believes it is right that parents should have choice when it comes to childcare. It is not, I believe, the role of the State to tell parents which childcare arrangements are best suited to their families. Rather it is for the State to support them in any such arrangements that are appropriate,” he said.
He also said it was time to update the Department of Social and Family Affairs database if necessary.
“The Child Benefit office of the Department of Social and Family Affairs has the information it needs to pay you the ECS automatically. However, you must ensure that this information is up to date and that addresses are correct and if a child isn’t living with you any longer, they must be informed,” he said.
Under the 2006 budget, paid maternity leave was extended since March by four weeks to 22 weeks, while unpaid leave can now be taken for a further 12 weeks — making a total of 34 weeks. In 2007, paid leave will increase to 26 weeks and unpaid to 16 weeks.
A new €575 million childcare investment programme was also unveiled under which the Government intend to fund a further 50,000 childcare places by 2010. It is estimated that 26,000 places have been developed to date under the Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme, with 15,000 more due to come on-stream.
