Making the News: Budget 2027 in Focus

In July, we launched our Budget 2027 campaign, End the Exodus, with a Meet the CEO event in Buswell’s Hotel, Dublin. Our CEO, Teresa Heeney, met with key policymakers to discuss our concerns and vision for the Early Years and School Age Care system in Ireland.

Soon after the event, we published our Budget 2027 submission, calling on the government to prioritise the Early Years and School Age Care workforce. For Early Childhood Ireland, valuing the workforce means providing educators with pay and conditions that reflect the vital role they play in the lives of young children. We propose three essential steps:

• Name a date to introduce pay parity for Early Years and School Age Care graduates under public-sector conditions, in line with teachers.
• Double the Graduate Premium in Core Funding from €4.44 to €8.88.
• Invest in 3 in-service days per year for every setting.

We were delighted to see coverage across the country, echoing our concerns and appeals for the system. Highlights include a Letter to the Editor in The Irish Times and an opinion piece by Early Childhood Ireland’s CEO Teresa Heeney in the Irish Examiner as well as interviews with our Director of Policy Frances Byrne, on Galway FM, Kildare FM and Dundalk FM.

Learn more about the importance of workforce investment in our recent Policy in Action.

Contact Us

If you have any questions or would like to engage with Early Childhood Ireland’s media team, please contact us at media@earlychildhoodireland.ie

For ongoing updates, follow us on Bluesky (@earlychildhoodireland.ie).