770. Deputy Ivana Bacik asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality further to Parliamentary Question No. 1087 of 26 May 2026, her views on the upcoming evaluation of the national childcare scheme; specifically; the scope of review due to be taken in respect of the matters raised; and the level of public consultation that will take place in respect of same. [45005/26]

The National Childcare Scheme (NCS) evaluation aims to assess the performance of the NCS to date and its operation within the wider early learning and childcare funding and policy environment. The evaluation will examine whether the NCS, as part of the wider funding model, is making high-quality early learning and childcare more accessible and affordable, particularly for families in the lowest income groups and the most disadvantaged households. It will also identify any improvements that could be made to enhance accessibility and affordability and to ensure that the NCS is working for as many families as possible. As part of this, the hours-based model of the NCS will be reviewed.

The Evaluation process commenced in March 2026 and will include consultation and engagement with parents, educators, practitioners, providers and representative organisations. This will include surveys and interviews with educators, practitioners and providers, surveys and interviews with parents and carers, and interviews with relevant representative bodies and advocacy groups. The consultation phase will be informed by a literature review and scoping phase. The scoping phase includes stakeholder mapping to identify and prioritise stakeholders to be engaged with through surveys and interviews.