General Terms and Conditions governing participation in the Community Childcare Subvention ( CCS ) Scheme.
September 2010
1. A participating service must have an agreed contract with the Minister for Health and Children and be:
(a) notified to the Health Service Executive ( HSE ) as a pre-school service and have a satisfactory level of compliance with the Child Care (Pre-School Services) (No. 2) Regulations 2006, or
(b) a service which is limited to the care, outside of normal school hours, of children who are attending schoo l (a “school age service”).
2. Administration of the scheme shall be the responsibility of the Office of the Minister for Children and
Youth Affairs (OMCYA). The Term of the contract shall be from September 2010 to August 2012 , however, it will be open to either party to withdraw from the contractual agreement at the end of August 2011 subject to the provision of 3 months notice to the other party.
3. Participating services must be not for profit and trading as a partnership, limited liability company or School Board of Management , and must demonstrate tax compliance by providing a current Tax Clearance Certificate.
4. Participating services must agree to use grant funding received under the Community Childcare Subvention ( CCS ) scheme to reduce the childcare fees charged to qualifying parents of children attending the service.
5. Parents will qualify for reduced childcare fees where they meet the CCS criteria, outlined in paragraph 6 below, which establish their status as Band A or Band B.
6.1. Parents will qualify as Band A where they are in receipt of a social welfare payment or Family Income Supplement (FIS). Subject to paragraph 6.2, Parents in this category must be provided with a weekly fee reduction of
€100 in the case of a full-time service ;
€50 in the case of part-time service ;
€33 in the case of a sessional service , and
€16 in the case of a shorter hours service .
(A school age service may be provided as a part-time sessional or shorter hours service.)
6.2. Parents who qualify as Band A on the grounds that they are in receipt of Job Seekers Benefit or Allowance , will qualify for a fee reduction in respect of a part-time, sessional or shorter hours service, but not in respect of a full- time service.
6.3. Parents will qualify as Band B where they hold a medical card or a G.P. visit card. Parents in this category must be provided with a weekly fee reduction of
€50 in the case of a full-time service ;
€25 in the case of a part-time service ;
€17 in the case of a sessional service ; and
€8.50 in the case of a shorter hours service.
7. Pre-school services participating in the CCS will normally be required to participate also in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) scheme and meet the terms and conditions of that scheme including the provision of an appropriate educational programme for children in their pre-school year which adheres to the principles of Síolta, the national framework for early years care and education. Services will be supported in meeting this requirement through the assistance of Síolta Co-ordinators and their local City or County Childcare Committee ( CCC ). Services must agree to accept assistive visits and advice from Síolta Co-ordinators and staff of the local CCC .
8.1 Where a service, which during January to August 2010 participated in both the Community Childcare Subvention Scheme (CCSS) and the ECCE scheme, wishes to enter the CCS and the ECCE schemes from September 2010, it should have completed and returned application forms by 30 April 2010. The ECCE application form must be accompanied by (1) an up to date Tax Clearance Certificate, (2) copies of the staff qualifications held (or details of any changes to qualifications since a service's previous application) and (3) the applicant's bank details and email address.
8.2 Where a service, which during January to August 2010 participated in the CCSS but did not participate in the ECCE scheme, wishes to enter the ECCE scheme from September 2010, it should have completed and returned an application form in respect of the ECCE scheme, accompanied by the details referred to in paragraph 8.1 above, to its local CCC by 30 April 2010.
8.3 Applications from services which wish to enter the CCS from September 2010 but did not participate in the CCSS during January to August 2010, are subject to a preliminary assessment process. Where this is completed in time to allow them to apply for entry to the CCS and or the ECCE schemes from September 2010, they will be contacted in this regard by the OMCYA.
9. Except in the case of services referred to in paragraph 8.3, services will be required to complete all contractual requirements and have a contract in place with the OMCYA by July 2010. A later date may be permitted where the OMCYA deems it appropriate. Contractual requirements will include requirements governing record-keeping, accounts, reporting and audit procedures. All approved providers will be required to submit for approval, a Fees Policy to their local CCC at contract stage which demonstrates that the appropriate reductions in childcare fees for qualifying parents will be applied. The OMCYA will require services to communicate, where requested, by email and to make an electronic return in September 2010, and on other date(s) thereafter, giving details of eligible children enrolled and for whom the capitation grant is being claimed.