Public Services Card only route to childcare scheme

The Public Services Card (PSC) will be the only way by which parents can access the new National Childcare Scheme when it goes live in October, despite a ruling from the Data Protection Commissioner (DPC) that the card is unlawful when applied to State services other than welfare.

The new childcare scheme has been in the works for more than three years, but had been consistently delayed due to the technological infrastructure not being in place for the processing of applications.