Kildare families in childcare crisis consider leaving careers

ALMOST half of the respondents to a survey on the need for more childcare facilities in Kilcullen are considering giving up their careers because of the lack of services. A quarter of respondents have already done so, according to the organisers.

"That is a shocking situation," said Alice Malone O'Neill, of the Kilcullen Needs Childcare community group, noting that the figures are only preliminary and relate to the first 50 responses, which came within 24 hours.

The canvass at this link (https://forms.office.com/e/S5iFzjucac) will continue until the middle of August and is being conducted by Kilcullen Needs Childcare in association with Labour TD Mark Wall.

A high 45 per cent of respondents indicated that they have had to reduce their working hours because of a lack of childcare in Kilcullen, and in a small number of cases, both parents have had to.

Alice is aware of one person who has had their house valued and is considering moving back to Kilkenny to be closer to family, for childcare support.

Reasons why existing childcare facilities in Kilcullen are stretched, with long waiting lists, are complex. In a village grown bigger, many families are at different stages of development — some with young babies and toddlers, others with primary school children.

The cessation of after-school care beyond senior infants by a key local childcare service 'had a massive impact', as did a change in policy by the local community childcare service about providing after-school care for children who have been in their pre-school service.

Chronic staff shortage in the sector is also having an effect. Alice, a teacher, and her chef husband are directly affected.

“I'm fortunate that our two younger children have pre-school places, but we will have an after-school problem with our eldest child from September," Alice said. "We don't have family nearby to help out. It's a continuing worry.” In June, she set up a simple online survey to gauge the extent of the issue. The results barrelled in.

“I set it up on a platform linked to my phone, and for the next three days, it was beeping non-stop. I was absolutely in shock — I got 82 responses, involving 120 children needing after-school childcare places.” That prompted Alice and her friend Gina Begley to form Kilcullen Needs Childcare and get in touch with local politicians.

Deputy Mark Wall responded quickly, and a meeting was held with him and several mothers on 18 July. Deputy Wall set up a second survey, this time seeking more detailed information, including on issues such as affordability. This is the survey from which came those preliminary figures outlined at the top of this article.

Quantifying the problem is one thing; solutions are something else. For Alice and her group, who need remedies now and not just a programme for the future, the use of local schools' space for after-school care could be one fast-track solution.

She references a Naas school, where an after-school provider works in a room not used by any teachers outside school hours.

"They have that, and then they go to the school hall, and they have a kitchenette and their outdoor facility as well. Sixty or seventy children are using that service, and it also gets government support."

Deputy Wall told the Kildare Nationalist that people with important skills could leave Kilcullen if the childcare crisis in the town isn't quickly dealt with.

He warned that what he calls a 'massive' crisis threatens to push women out of the workforce, with consequent loss of incomes and skill sets to the community. The issue disproportionately affects women, he notes, as they are the ones who typically must make the choices between careers and looking after children. "Many in Kilcullen have moved there because it's a growing, vibrant town. They're professional women in the main, many of them in the public service. But they can't get childcare, and in many cases, because they moved, they are separated from family backup such as parents and grandparents who might have been able to help."

In the immediate situation, he wants the government to step in and work with schools, sports clubs, HSE centres or any other location that might provide space for childcare.

The deputy emphasises that he is not suggesting taking over childcare from the private sector, but stepping in where the private services are unable to provide enough spaces.

He says that licensed home-based childcare is under consideration at the government level, as part of a range of possible solutions.

How childcare is managed in other parts of the world, like Scandinavia and Australia, is also being looked at. But changes from this process won't come quickly enough.

"We're also a long way still from the government ambition of making childcare affordable at €200 a month, and I'm in constant touch with Minister Norma Foley on that. But the bottom line at the moment, particularly in Kilcullen, is not enough places, and we have to deal with that now."