1009. Deputy Emer Currie asked the Minister for Children, Disability and Equality whether full-day crèches in core funding are subject to minimum hours to assist parents in drop-offs and pick-ups when they work full-time, as some crèches are open from 8.30am to 5.30pm so parents cannot use them. [64174/26]

Core Funding is a supply-side grant to providers designed to support quality, sustainability, and enhanced public management, with associated conditions in relation to fee control and cost transparency, incorporating funding for administration, and to support the employment of graduate staff.

For the purpose of Core Funding, a service must be open for at least 3 days of the week in order for that week to be considered an operating week, i.e. a week where the service is open and available to children. However, as private businesses, Partner Services can set their own daily opening and operating hours.

In relation to Core Funding, services are subject to minimum hour requirements based on the type of care they provide. Full-time care is categorised as care provided for five or more hours per day. All services are required to declare their weekly operating hours accurately. “Operating Hours per Week” means the time during which the relevant session, room or service is open and available to children. A service operating from 8:30am to 5:30pm, five days per week, provides 45 operating hours per week and must declare their opening times; during these times the service must be open and available to children.

It should be noted that the Core Funding scheme does not prescribe particular opening or closing times for full-time services. Every effort has been made to ensure the Core Funding Scheme is designed to accommodate all children and parents. This flexibility is an important feature of the Core Funding scheme, enabling individual providers to establish operating hours that reflect local circumstances and demand, while continuing to meet the requirements of the scheme.

Parents experiencing difficulty in relation to their early learning and childcare needs should contact their local City/County Childcare Committee for assistance. For information, the Department has a list of all Core Funding Partner Services which is updated regularly on the Departments website under How to Find a Partner Service.https://www.gov.ie/en/department-of-children-disability-and-equality/publications/how-to-find-a-partner-service/