Minister for Children, Disability and Equality Norma Foley has announced a €135 million investment to expand State-led early learning and childcare services across Ireland. The initiative aims to provide high-quality, accessible childcare, focusing on areas of greatest need and complementing existing private and community services. The programme will begin in 2026 with the acquisition and refurbishment of buildings, prioritizing speed of delivery, while the option to construct new facilities will be considered as the initiative progresses.
Up to eight buildings will be selected for investment this year, each offering more than 100 childcare places. The Department will collaborate with not-for-profit providers, who will operate the services, ensuring thousands of additional places become available by 2030. Minister Foley highlighted that this programme is a groundbreaking effort to support children, families, and communities, with a particular focus on places for 1-3-year-old children where demand is highest.
The programme will target both rural and urban areas that are currently underserved, with extra attention given to disadvantaged communities where early learning can have a transformative impact. It will also seek to rebalance supply in locations with high private provision but limited community childcare. Coordination with local authorities and State agencies, including the Land Development Agency, is underway, with specific projects under discussion such as the early learning facility at Shanganagh Castle Estate in Dun Laoghaire Rathdown.
This initiative forms part of a broader strategy under the Programme for Government to strengthen childcare infrastructure. It includes transforming the Supply Management Unit into a Forward Planning and Delivery Unit to forecast demand and deliver public supply, integrating State-led facilities with the school building programme, and ensuring that new services are inclusive, high-quality, and accessible. The capital funding under the National Development Plan will support the construction, purchase, and refurbishment of facilities to meet these objectives.
The programme also aligns with complementary measures, such as the 2026 round of the Building Blocks scheme, which will fund extensions to existing early learning and childcare services. Overall, the initiative seeks to provide cost-effective, timely, and well-located childcare, strengthening communities while ensuring children have access to safe, supportive, and high-quality early learning environments.
