Sinn Féin TD for Dublin South West Seán Crowe has said that the continued inaction of the government to reform the childcare and early years sector has led to huge staff turnover in the industry and the inability of providers to expand their capacity to meet demand.

Teachta Crowe said that the problem was especially acute in the south Dublin area, which had one of the highest staff turnover rates in the state.

Teachta Crowe said:

“The level of staff turnover for private early learning and care services in the South Dublin County Council area is some of the highest in the state. The voices and needs of early years sector workers have been disregarded by the government and this is the result.

“Between 2022 and 2023, the most recent years we have figures for, over 45% of staff in the large private providers left their jobs. This is way above the statewide average that year of 31%.

“When these valued professionals leave, it is children and their parents who pay the price – losing out on the consistency of a key person who builds relationships and attachments at this crucial time.

“The loss also impacts providers who, in many instances, have the physical space to accommodate more children, but instead must close rooms because they do not have the Early Years Educators.

“This means that parents simply cannot find childcare places and this impacts on the child’s early years education and the parent’s ability to return to work.

“This government clearly has no intention of cutting the cost of childcare, making it affordable to parents, building much needed capacity to ensure access in the first place and has no commitment to Early Years Educators. All the talk before the election was just that.

“Sinn Féin would prioritise ending the childcare crisis and delivering a system where childcare costs €10 a day, is accessible and has fair working conditions for childcare workers.”