The Government will today announce the allocation of tens of millions of euro to encourage parents and community groups to set up after-school childcare services in school buildings.
Minister for Justice Michael McDowell is today publishing a report of the National Childcare Co-ordinating Committee - chaired by his department - on after-school childcare. The report, School Age Childcare in Ireland, also contains "best practice" guidelines for such after-school facilities.
He will also point out that there is funding available, from the €500 million Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme 2000 - 2006, for such services. Some €313 million of this has been allocated so far.
Mr McDowell will announce the allocation of tens of millions of euro for creches and other childcare services today. The report is designed to encourage this concept, highlighted during April's Progressive Democrats' conference, as worth pursuing.
The funding for such services would be disbursed through the existing County Childcare Committees. It can be used for capital spending, for paying staff and other costs.
The fund has already paid for some 24,600 pre-school childcare places in new centres, and funding has been committed for a further 12,000 places. However, the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) has estimated there will be a shortfall of more than 40,000 places by 2010.
At the Progressive Democrats' conference, the party's education spokesman, Senator John Minihan, proposed the State's primary schools should be made available to parents who wished to organise childcare schemes.
Parents could set up "not-for-profit" organisations to run such facilities, and receive State funding and support to do so.