These are the deadlines, information, and announcements for the week of 3– 7th February 2025.
DEADLINES / IMPORTANT DATES:
1 February to 14 February 2025.
Deadline for Core Funding Review and confirm
28th February 2025
Submission of Core Funding Reporting – Income and Expenditure
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
Mid-term Break Updates: NCS Service Calendar and Returns; NCS Bridging Payments; ECCE Service Calendar; CCSP Saver Session Amendments 6-2-2025
As services are closed for the mid-term on Thursday 20 February and Friday 21 February, with the option to extend to a five-day break, it may be necessary to make the following changes on your Early Years Hive.
We advise making any necessary changes as soon as possible to ensure there are no issues when returns are submitted and payments processed.
NCS: Service Calendar and Returns
If your service is closed for part or all of the week, you must mark the closures on your NCS service calendar accordingly. You must also note whether it is a subsidised (paid) closure or not.
For more information, please see ‘How to add a closure’ on the NCS Service Calendar section of Help & Support.
For school-aged/ECCE children, if you are increasing their hours during mid-term, please ensure you do not forget to amend the hours for children whose hours reduce after mid-term. NCS subsidy hours cannot be claimed for hours that a child is in school or ECCE, or hours that your service is closed, and any over-claims are liable to be recouped.
NCS returns must be submitted on the Early Years Hive each week. Returns become available from the last day (Sunday) of the reporting week and must be completed by the following Tuesday and are based on the previous week’s attendance. If a return is not submitted within the required timeframe, all subsidy payments will be suspended until it is submitted.
Changes cannot be made to service calendar opening hours or claim hours once a return for that week has been submitted on the Early Years Hive.
If you require further assistance, please raise a Request using the following categories, ensuring that you include the CHICK number in the request:
• Programme: NCS
• Request Type: NCS Calendar
• Request Type Details: General
NCS Bridging payments
A ‘Bridging Payment’ is available to service providers during periods of subsidised closure, if they are unavailable to submit their weekly NCS return i.e., mid-term breaks, Christmas etc.
When submitting the NCS return that is two weeks before the subsidised closure period, the Hive recognises the closure coming up and asks the following: “You have an upcoming closure, do you want to request a Bridging Payment for the dates from “X” to “Z”? (Yes/No)” .
If yes is selected, the payment is made during the week the service is closed i.e. when they are unable to submit their returns. The service must then submit ‘Fast returns’ for this period when they return after the closure.
Important: Please keep claims active at all stages. Please do not amend calendars in regard to bridging payments unless the hours of the service have changed for that period. Example: Normal opening hours 9am – 5pm however over the mid-term opening hours 2pm – 6pm.
For guidance on returns, please see the NCS Attendance Returns Guide.
ECCE: Service Calendar
Providers in contract for the ECCE programme are reminded that changes to service calendars must be first approved by County Childcare Committees (CCCs) and parents must be given 20 working days’ notice in writing of any change to the service’s calendar.
Copies of such notices must be kept on file for compliance purposes.
Approved providers in contract for the ECCE Programme must be open for a minimum of 38 weeks (or 182 days) over the programme year.
For further information on service calendars, please contact your local CCC or refer to the ECCE Service Calendar section of Help & Support.
If you require further assistance, please raise a Request using the following categories:
• Programme: ECCE
• Request Type: ECCE Calendar
• Request Type Details: General
CCSP Saver Programme: Amending Sessions (e.g. a child is moving from part-time to full-time)
If a registration is changing and needs to be updated from part-time to full-time, please input a CCSP Leaver with the date the child is changing service level. A new registration should then be created with the updated level of service for the appropriate period, within 6 weeks of the start date of the new registration.
Please see ‘How to end/add a CCSP Saver Programme child registration’ on the CCSP child registration section of Help & Support for guidance.
If you require further assistance, please raise a Request using the following categories:
• Programme: CCSP
• Request Type: Registrations
• Request Type Details: Leaver
Improvements to the Early Years Hive based on your feedback – 6-2-2025
We are pleased to announcement that the following improvements were released onto the Early Years Hive following last Thursday’s scheduled updates to the portal.
Removal of child name-validation from NCS CHICK registration
The process of retrieving a CHICK / registering a child for the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) on the Early Years Hive has been simplified.
When registering a child for NCS, you must still enter the child’s first and last name, their date of birth and the CHICK number. However, now the system will only validate the date of birth and the CHICK number.
This means you will no longer be blocked from completing the registration and therefore required to contact the Early Years Provider Centre (EYPC), if the child’s name being input differs from the name used by the parent/guardian on their NCS application form.
Early Years Hive banner notification
An ‘Important notification’ banner is now available to display urgent messages to service providers on the Early Years Hive, such as scheduled maintenance, application deadlines, Force Majeure reminders, etc.
This new function was made in response to the EYPC Customer Survey. We ask that you continue to share your feedback if selected to complete this survey as it helps us to improve our services.
There is no change to the Announcement page, which is where you should go to check for more detailed information.
Core Funding February Review and Confirm
The February Review and Confirm window will open from 1 February to 14 February 2025.
This process enables Core Funding payments to continue by facilitating Partner Services to review their most recent application information.
Partner Services can complete their Review and Confirm with two options available:
1. Review and Confirm with Changes
2. Review and Confirm without Changes
Prior to completing the Review and Confirm, Partner Services should:
• Ensure all data captured in the Service Profile is accurate and up to date for the 2024/2025 programme year.
• Ensure your Core Funding Application is at status ‘Approved’. If your application is at ‘Referred back’, you must address the reason for the refer back and then complete the February Review and Confirm process.
If you have an Update Due Date populated on your most recently ‘Approved’ Core Funding application record equal to or before 1 February, you must action this as part of your Review and Confirm using the option of ‘Review and Confirm with Changes’ either replacing the departed staff member or reducing your capacity.
Core Funding supports and training materials can be found under the Help and Support section of the Early Years Hive.
Core Funding Payments
After the Review and Confirm window is closed, Core Funding payments will only continue to be processed as per the payment schedule on the Early Years Hive, provided your February Review and Confirm is at an ‘Approved’ status.
New Garda Vetting procedures
New Garda Vetting procedures for ELC and SAC services are coming into effect on February 1st. The following changes will take effect:
• Early Childhood Ireland (ECI) will manage Garda Vetting services for all ELC & SAC employees. Membership with ECI is not a requirement to avail of vetting services.
• Tusla will manage Garda Vetting services for registered providers including Chairpersons of Boards of Management and Childminders.
• As part of these changes, Barnardos will no longer provide vetting services.
More detailed information on the new Garda Vetting procedures can be found on the gov.ie website HERE.
AIM Level 1 2024/2025 reminder
AIM Level 1 2024 reminder – It is still possible for services with new and existing Graduates of LINC to submit your AIM Level 1 application.
As AIM Level 1 is an annual application, if you currently have a qualified LINC graduate working in your service as an Inclusion Coordinator and have not submitted your AIM Level 1 2024 application, then we encourage you to apply for the 2024/2025 programme call.
Please note: AIM level 1 funding will commence from the Monday following approval of your application.
Applications must be submitted via the AIM Level 1 applications page of the Early Years Hive. Applicant guidelines can be found here.
Should you have any queries in relation to the AIM Level 1 application process, please contact the Early Years Provider Centre by raising a Request using the following categories:
• Programme: AIM Level 1
• Request type: Application
• Request type detail: How To
Westmeath Libraries are looking forward to the 5th year of Ireland Reads which will take place on Saturday February 22nd 2025.
Ireland Reads is a national day that celebrates reading and books. Its aim is to promote the wonders of reading to all people, young and old.
The event is an initiative of the government of Ireland, funded by Healthy Ireland and supported by public libraries, and many organisations that promote literacy and the arts.
Westmeath Libraries would love to involve Early Learning Centres in 2025; share your love of reading with us, your favourite book, poem, a piece of text that resonates with you or that fostered your love of reading.
Have a poll among staff and children and let us know what the favourite book is?
We would love to share your enthusiasm for reading with the public via our social media channels so if you wish to be recorded or share a clip from your centre, please contact Fiona.shortt@westmeathcoco.ie
Perhaps your words will inspire someone to pick up a book and let their imagination take over even for a few magical minutes in their busy day.
Please let us know if you would like to be part of Westmeath Libraries Ireland Reads journey for 2025 and I can explain further how to share your experiences.
Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare Services are required to have a procedure in place that outlines how all workers and volunteers can access information and training that is relevant to their role in child safeguarding. The National Child Safeguarding Programme have developed the attached poster to support services to develop a Child Safeguarding Information and Training Procedure. It is recommended that this training cycle is completed over a 5 year cycle.
Further information on developing child safeguarding procedures can be found in the Child Safeguarding Resource Document; Guidance for Early Learning and Care and School Age Childcare Services in Ireland and on the National Child Safeguarding Programme website https://childsafeguardingelc.ie/
Minister Foley launches the Childminding Development Grants for 2025
Full Press Release – https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/7256f-minister-foley-launches-the-childminding-development-grants-for-2025
CMDG Now opened, for further information please contact Michelle on 087 433 7700 or email childminding@westmeathchildcare.ie
Upcoming training and Events
ALWAYS CHILDREN FIRST FOR EARLY YEARS SERVICES
Basic Level –One day training course.
Date: 27th March 2025
Time: 9.30am – 4.30pm
Cost: €20
Venue: Westmeath County Childcare Committee Training Room, N91 E430
Book through Eventbrite : https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/1028002040777?aff=oddtdtcreator
ONE BOOKING PER SERVICE – Any duplicate or second bookings will be cancelled and refunded accordingly.
Diversity Equity and inclusion in Updated Aistear.
The LINC Team is delighted to invite you to an insightful webinar exploring how Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are embedded in the updated Aistear framework. This webinar will highlight how these core principles shape Aistear’s vision, principles, and themes, as well as the guidelines for good practice, offering valuable insights for curriculum planning in early childhood settings.
We are pleased to welcome Dr. Sharon Skehill, Education Officer with the NCCA, and Lorraine Farrell, National Aistear Development Officer, as our guest speakers. Dr. Skehill will discuss how the updated framework fosters inclusive and equitable learning environments for all children. Lorraine Farrell will provide an overview of the updated Aistear Síolta Practice Guide and share practical strategies for implementation in early years settings.
Webinar Details:
- Date: Wednesday, February 12th 2025
- Time: 7 PM
- Location: Online
Registration: Register Here
Critical Incident in ELC & SAC
Westmeath CCC are planning to deliver workshops in QTR 2 on Critical Incidents – Planning and Responding in Mullingar and Athlone.
To submit your EOI, please complete the MS form https://forms.office.com/e/syReP1uzQn
We will contact interested parties with dates and times of critical incident sessions.
Covid Case Advice
Please see below links to relevant information: Preventing the spread of covid 19 in school or childcare – HSE & Pre_School_ManagementInfectiousDisease.pdf
General Covid-19 queries: Contact HSE on 1800 700 700 between 8 am and 8 pm Monday to Friday and 9 am – 5 pm Saturday and Sunday / HSE Covid-19
