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Dear Parents, The transition from preschool to primary school is one of the most significant milestones in a child’s early years. At the National Parents Council (NPC), we are committed to supporting parents and childcare providers in helping children navigate this...

Dear Provider, As you will be aware, applications for the Core Funding Scheme 2026/27 opened on 8 June and many providers have already contracted for the scheme for the coming programme year, with applications rates for this year on par with previous years. In...

Dear Service Provider, Join Better Start for a series of online mentoring sessions. Aistear in Practice is a series of online mentoring sessions developed by Better Start to support reflection on practice linked to Aistear, with a focus on quality inclusive...

Dear Service Provider, Thank you to all who attended the new National Childcare Scheme (NCS) mandatory co-payment functionality webinar on 23 July 2026. The recorded webinar is now available here. There is also a copy of the presentation available here. Two additional...

Dear Service Provider, You and your staff are invited to attend online training on the new co-payment functionality to be incorporated into the NCS claim process, which is due to be available on 31 July 2026. The training is intended to provide you with a detailed...

Dear Service Provider, For those that have already submitted an AIM Level 7 Standard Application for 2025/2026 and wish to avail of Non-Term support, please submit any AIM Non-Term applications for the summer period before 14 August 2026. Submitting your application...

Dear Service Provider, The information below explains what your AIM notification means and how to understand the support approved for a child. This part of the notification tells you which support level has been allocated to a child: AIM Level 7 – Application Outcome ...