Question 1

What is the ECCE Scheme?

Accepted Answer

The Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Scheme provides early childhood care and education for children of pre-school age.
Children can start ECCE when they are 2 years and 8 months of age and continue until they transfer to primary school (provided that they are not older than 5 years and 6 months at the end of the pre-school year).
The programme is available to children who have turned 2 years and 8 months of age before 1 September.
The ECCE Scheme is for three hours a day for 38 weeks of the year. The scheme will generally track the school year.

Question 2

What is the NCS, and what do I need to do?

Accepted Answer

The NCS provides financial support to help families with their early learning and childcare costs.
There are two types of subsidies available for children aged between 24 weeks and 15 years of age:
 • A universal subsidy which is not means tested and provides €1.40 per hour for a maximum of 45 hours per week;
 • An income-assessed subsidy which is means tested and will be calculated based on your family’s individual circumstances. Rates will vary depending on your level of family income, your child’s age and educational stage, and the number of children in your family.
You should apply for whichever subsidy is of the greatest benefit to you and your family. A subsidy calculator is available here (https://www.ncs.gov.ie/en/childcare-subsidy-calculator-input/)which will help you estimate how much you may be eligible for before you apply.
How do I apply for the NCS?
You can apply online for the subsidy here (https://www.ncs.gov.ie/en/SignIn)using a verified MyGovID. Should you need guidance, please see our online Application guide, here.(https://www.ncs.gov.ie/en/application-form-guide/)
Alternatively, you can contact the Parent Support Centre on 01 906 8530 to request a postal application. Opening hours are Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm.

When your application has been approved, you will receive an NCS award for each child, containing their unique CHICK key (Childcare Identifier Code Key) and details of rate & number of eligible hours. You will need to share this with us so that we can register your child on the NCS portal (called HIVE) and enter the number of hours that your child attends.

After Mary's House registers your child and the hours, you will receive a notification from the government’s HIVE registration system asking you to confirm that the details entered are correct. Once you send your confirmation, the Department of Children and Youth Affairs will pay the subsidy to us on your behalf, and we will, in turn, subtract this amount from your monthly fee. If you do not validate our registration on the HIVE Portal we cannot deduct the subsidy from your fees.

FAQ