Pay parents to stay home with baby, poll finds

Two-thirds of people believe parents should be financially supported to stay at home with their child for the first 12 months of its life.

A new poll, conducted for Early Childhood Ireland’s first-ever Childcare Barometer, also found that a similar percentage of respondents believe childcare should be free in Ireland.

In the poll of 1,000 people, one-quarter agreed that parents should be fully responsible for the cost of childcare.

It also showed that three-quarters of people believe the education of children aged under five is now every bit as important as the education of those aged over five, echoing calls from groups, such as Early Childhood Ireland, for an increased focus on the needs of the youngest children in the State.

The poll comes after the Children’s Rights Alliance issued its annual report card on the Government’s performance over the past 12 months, including in the provision of childcare, and three months after an EU Social Justice Index placed Ireland last among 22 EU member states for investment in early-years care and education.

The poll showed that while 56% of respondents agreed that staff in childcare services are qualified professionals, like teachers and nurses, a much smaller percentage — 24% — agreed that the current, average hourly wage, of €11.93, paid to staff reflected the value of their work.

It also found that 57% of those questioned agreed that parents should only pay towards childcare in line with their overall income, versus the 23% who believe parents should be fully responsible for the cost of childcare, with 65% agreeing childcare should be free and 69% agreeing that all parents should be financially supported to stay at home for the first year of their child’s life.

Frances Byrne, director of policy and advocacy with Early Childhood Ireland, said: “Early Childhood Ireland has long advocated for paid parental leave, stronger supports for staff, and greater funding for the early-years sector.

“Substantially increased investment is needed to bring Ireland in line with the Unicef international benchmark of 1% of GDP. The barometer shows a clear public mandate for Government to act on these issues,” she said.

Ms Byrne welcomed the progress of the Childcare Support Bill, currently before the Dáil, but said several significant challenges remained, including recruitment, low pay, and insufficient funding.

“The barometer underlines a broad, public desire for meaningful and urgent action on these issues,” she said.