Ireland must uphold its commitment to children’s rights That ‘children have the right to affordable early childhood education and care of good quality’[1] is one of 20 key principles of the European Pillar of Social Rights, which was agreed by the heads of 27 EU Member states in 2017 as a means of strengthening the
The European Quality Framework provides key principles and a European approach to high-quality Early Years provision based on good practices in EU Member States. In 2014, the European Union (EU) Directorate General for Education and Culture published Proposal for key principles of a quality framework for Early Childhood Education and Care. This report was from
Grant to improve capacity not spent “Not a single penny” of the Building Blocks grant has been spent, according to Labour’s Marie Sherlock TD, who raised the matter recently with the Tánaiste, Simon Harris TD, during Leaders’ Questions in the Dáil. Deputy Sherlock was referring to the government’s Building Blocks Extension Scheme, which is providing
“No child should be too young to count”. . Bremner & Co, a research and strategy consultancy specialising in food policy and systems change based in the United Kingdom, recently published a report entitled “Too young to count? Why most disadvantaged under-5s miss out on free meals”, which reveals that despite rising hunger and poverty,
Early Childhood Ireland has voiced deep concern over Budget 2026, stating that it fails to adequately address the persistent challenges in Early Years and School Age Care. Without the introduction of targeted measures to relieve staff recruitment and retention difficulties, progress will remain stalled, and thousands of children will continue to sit on waiting lists
The working group on early childhood education and care (ECEC), established by the European Commission, recently published a report on Leadership in ECEC: competences and training. This is the second output of the working group. In this Policy in Focus, we provide an overview of the proposed competence profile developed by the working group as
From March to May 2024, the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted) in the United Kingdom, held a consultation entitled “Big Listen” which sought views on Ofsted’s work from children’s schools and children’s social care and Early Years. The consultation responses were summarised last year in Early Childhood Ireland’s Policy in Focus and can
During the past months, Early Childhood Ireland has campaigned to place Early Years and School Age Care at the centre of Budget 2026. While the challenges facing children, families, educators, and providers received significant attention in the lead-up to Budget Day, the final announcement fell short and lacked the meaningful investment the system needs. This
Press note: Early Years education is key to addressing child poverty Thursday, 9 October: Today, Early Childhood Ireland presented to the Joint Committee on Children and Equality on the issue of child poverty. The CEO of Early Childhood Ireland, Teresa Heeney, outlined how high-quality Early Years education can break cycles of income inequality, poor
Tuesday, 7 October: Following today’s Budget 2026 announcement, Early Childhood Ireland has voiced deep concern over the lack of meaningful investment in Early Years and School Age Care. It represents a missed opportunity to build a fit-for-purpose system that supports the needs of children, families, the workforce and providers. With just €125 million added in
Funded by the Irish Government under the National Development Plan, 2018-2027 Company Registration No: 506235
Charity No CHY: 19987
Registered Charity No: 20078904
