An information campaign to raise awareness among parents of the range of measures available to make childcare more affordable has been underway since late May. An additional €19m was secured as part of Budget 2017 and officials from my department and Pobal have worked hard to ensure that this money can have a positive impact by lowering the cost of childcare for Irish families from September of this year.

The comprehensive information campaign to raise awareness of the new measures among parents and childcare providers included two radio campaigns (nationwide and local), a targeted online and social media campaign, outdoor billboards nationwide and a Dublin Bus poster campaign. The total cost for this work has come in at just over €200,000.

At the time of writing this reply nearly 80% of eligible childcare providers have contracted to offer the scheme to parents; information on the supports available have been viewed nearly 420,000 times on the dedicated website over three months and more than 8,000 children have registered to receive these supports within the first week of registration.