The review finds that the average cost of providing child care across all services in Ireland is € 4.14 per hour

AN INDEPENDENT REVIEW has found that the overall average cost of providing childcare services across all services in Ireland is 4.14 euros per hour.

The review, conducted by Crowe in association with Apteligen in 2018, is part of efforts to establish an evidence base for accessible child care development and support.

It found that location, type of service provided, occupancy levels and size of a service are among the key drivers of the cost of providing child care in Ireland.

The average unit cost of € 4.14 per hour varies according to the type of service and the geographical area.

The review noted that childcare services may generally be cheaper to provide in rural areas and for some services, such as school-age childcare services, due to lower ratio requirements.

It also found that learning and caring for children can sometimes be delivered more efficiently, such as in larger services possibly due to economies of scale and services with higher occupancy rates.

In addition, evidence of higher costs was found for higher quality, such as in services where graduates are employed. The review suggested that this is possibly due to higher personnel costs.

The review looked at the various costs of providing child care services and the factors that impact these costs, in order to allow a more robust analysis of policy changes and variations in what drives those costs.

The process involved engaging with key industry stakeholders and administering a nationwide survey of center providers.

The review found that staffing costs generally account for nearly 70% of overall child care operating costs in Ireland, a pattern consistent with other countries.

The Minister for Children, Roderic O’Gorman, welcomed the publication of the review and thanked the providers who participated in it.

“The findings of this review provide us with a rich and detailed understanding of the child care market and a strong analytical foundation to inform future financing decisions,” he said.

“While the unit cost findings give us some confidence in our current state grant levels, I am well aware that unit cost is based on unacceptably low industry pay rates.

“I also recognize that the unit cost varies substantially between services and, for some services, your unit cost will be lower or higher.”

The Minister added that the development of a ‘cost calculator’ would help his department estimate how future policy changes would affect the cost of service provision.