Kildare families face childcare payments of €1,450 per month
This photo is for illustrative purposes only
KILDARE families are facing childcare fees of €1,450 per month after a Newbridge creche confirmed its plan to withdraw from the Government’s Core Funding scheme.
Under the fee increase, a five-day full-time place in baby, toddler, or preschool rooms will cost €1,450 per month, while four-day care will cost €1,162 and three-day care €871.
These figures come before any deduction under the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) or the National Childcare Scheme (NCS), meaning even families eligible for the subsidies will see substantial increases.
“This is yet another blow to working families in Kildare who are already under pressure from rising rents, cost-of-living, and stress around housing,” said Sinn Fein’s Shónagh Ní Raghallaigh TD.
“Childcare should not be a luxury — it is essential, yet parents are being forced to shoulder the brunt of a failing system.”
She continued: “This is unacceptable. The Government claimed to expand childcare affordability earlier this year — introducing a new cap of €295 per week for Core-funded services and increasing funding to €390 million. Yet when providers say their costs cannot be covered under that scheme, parents are the ones paying the price.”
For many in Newbridge and across Kildare, the withdrawal of state support and steep fee hikes will make full-time childcare unaffordable. Deputy Ní Raghallaigh warns that the consequences will be felt hardest by lower-income households, single-parent families, and those juggling multiple jobs.
Newbridge Social Democrats cllr Chris Pender also weighed in on the news and said:
“I have real sympathy for childcare providers who are under huge financial pressure from wages, insurance, energy and compliance costs. Many entered Core Funding in good faith to keep fees affordable while trying to keep services viable.”
He continued: “However, my strongest concern is for parents and children who are now facing a sudden and severe cost shock through no fault of their own. Core Funding was sold to families as a way to bring stability and certainty to childcare costs. Once a service leaves the scheme, that protection disappears overnight.”
“Over recent days I have been contacted by parents who are genuinely fearful about how they will cope. With rent, food and energy already at record levels, sharp childcare fee increases risk forcing people out of work and placing families under extreme strain.”
Both Deputy Ní Raghallaigh and cllr Pender have called on the Minister for Children to urgently review the Core Funding scheme’s funding model to address these policy gaps that are leaving Kildare families behind.
