Average weekly cost of childcare in Cork County is €186

A new report which provides an overview of the 4,300 facilities providing childcare services across Ireland shows that the average weekly cost of a full time place in a childcare facility in Cork County is €186.05.

Nationally, the report shows that Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown had highest childcare costs in the State with a weekly average fee of €213.94 for a full-time place, while Co Monaghan was the least expensive with a weekly rate of €142.14. The national average is €167.03 per week.

Overall, between September 2015 and June 2016, 73,964 children enrolled in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) free preschool year. This represents an increase of 13% on the previous year and increased expenditure on the scheme by 28%, up to €178 million.

The report was compiled and prepared by Pobal and launched by Katherine Zappone, TD, Minister for Children and Youth Affairs

To supplement the report, Pobal have developed a range of interactive ‘dashboards’, which reflect a range of topics covered in the report and allow readers access data and information at county level.

Speaking about the report, Minister Zappone said: “The publication of this information is particularly timely. At the moment, the sector is undergoing a period of significant policy change and development. It is vital that these changes are underpinned by accurate, reliable information. “The information contained in this report will help my Department’s policy development so that we can meet the goal of providing affordable, quality and accessible childcare for all.”

She added that a major aspect of achieving this is the development of a new Single Affordable Childcare Scheme which will replace some of the existing programmes. The data in this report will help inform the roll out of this new scheme.