Early years services in Ireland cannot operate without renewing their registration
Creche (file photo)(Image: RTE)
17 childcare facilities across the country could be shut on Monday due to outstanding renewals or registrations with Tusla, mostly related to Garda vetting.
Early years providers in Ireland cannot continue to operate without renewing their registration, or completing an application for registration and must register every three years.
While over 3,270 childcare providers successfully renewed their registration before the December 31, 2025 deadline, 17 childcare services did not complete their registration renewal by the required deadline and currently have incomplete renewals. The incomplete documentation is understood to relate to Garda Vetting and/or other documentation.
From February 1, 2025, Tusla commenced providing the Garda Vetting Application Service for anyone who is a registered provider of an early years service or anyone who is planning to submit an application to become a Registered Provider. Early Childhood Ireland previously managed Garda vetting for childcare providers.
A Tusla spokesperson told the Irish Mirror there was extensive communication with service providers at that time to advise of this new process and to provide information on how to submit garda vetting via the Tusla portal.
Creche(Image: )
The Tusla spokesperson added: “Tusla is conscious of the disruption that any closure of those services who failed to engage or fully complete the renewal requirements would cause for parents and families.
“Our registration team is working through the weekend to assist providers to ensure they submit the relevant documentation so they can be registered before Monday, to minimise any disruption to services in the coming days.
“In relation to the 17 services who have incomplete renewals, they include providers from across the country who are in a process to renew their registration, and it would not be appropriate to provide further detail at this time.
“We are hopeful that most of the providers will engage with the registration team and their registration will be complete before Monday, avoiding service disruption.
“It isn’t appropriate to comment on individual provider’s materials, in general the incomplete documentation relates to Garda Vetting and / or other documentation.”
The Federation of Early Childhood Providers have called for a grace period for providers to complete registration and minimise disruption.
Federation Chairperson, Elaine Dunne, told RTÉ that a meeting should take place to ensure that this issue does not repeat.
“An emergency meeting between Tusla and the provider representatives across the country must take place to ensure that this disruption to providers, families and staff does not happen again,” she said.
LIttle Kyran was last seen alive in 2022.(Image: )
Criticisms have been made of Ireland’s child and family agency, Tusla, after incidents involving children over the last year.
A young boy, Daniel Aruebose, was reported missing from Dublin after Irish authorities discovered in August last year he had not been seen for several years. The agency had previously engaged with the family of the boy. It came a year after Kyran Durnin, who would be nine years old this year if still alive, was reported missing from Co Louth.
In October last year, Ukrainian teenager Vadym Davydenko died and two others were taken to hospital following an incident at Tusla emergency accommodation in Dublin.
Further questions were raised of Tusla after a 10-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted in west Dublin after being in state care earlier that day.
This week, tragic Oisin Reddin (12), who had just started in Scoil Talbot Senior National School in Bawnogue, was found dead in a house in Lindisfarne Grove, Clondalkin, west Dublin on Thursday.
Speaking to the Irish Mirror, a distraught family member of Oisin told of his “bright” nature and how they felt that Tusla had failed the little boy. “Tusla failed him. They both went missing before and that was a red flag,” the family member said.
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