Knowledge Centre
Straight answers on Tusla registration and inspections, ratios and staffing, ECCE, NCS and Core Funding, Aistear and Síolta, attendance, and parent communication - written for the people actually running Irish Montessoris, creches and early years services.
The cornerstone guide covering Tusla registration, ratios, Garda vetting, Aistear and Síolta, ECCE, Core Funding, NCS and inspection readiness in one place.
Sole trader, partnership, private limited company or CLG - what each means in practice.
Timelines, required documents, Garda vetting, and common delays.
Starting from templates, adapting them genuinely, and avoiding the common traps.
Ratios, qualification requirements, room structures and recruitment timing.
Fit-out, equipment, insurance, wages, fees and funding routes.
A vendor-neutral checklist covering compliance, funding, communication and support.
Governance, welfare, safety and staffing - what happens on the day and afterwards.
An area-by-area checklist plus what to do on the day and afterwards.
The full Regulation 16 list, plus good-practice extras and retention periods.
Regulation 31 reporting requirements and how to submit a notification.
Where services most often trip up, and how to stay consistently ready.
The core set of written policies needed before registration and inspection.
Minimum ratios, what counts as an adult, and keeping ratios genuinely maintained.
Minimum levels for staff, room leaders and preschool leaders under Regulation 9.
Who needs vetting, how long it takes, and keeping 36-month renewals from lapsing.
Writing the vacancy, interviews, references, and compliance steps.
Vetting, qualifications, induction and records, in the right order.
Building rotas that hold up under sick days and last-minute absence.
Eligibility, hours, programme years, capitation rates and exemptions.
Universal and income-assessed subsidies, hours calculations, and CHICK codes.
The base rate, staff funding, fee caps, and what changes each Programme Year.
What each pays for, how they were introduced, and how they fit together.
Why hours aren't double-counted, and what changed in 2022.
The seven levels of support for children with disabilities in ECCE.
How codes are used to claim NCS subsidy, and why they expire.
The four themes, and how they connect to Síolta and everyday practice.
Ireland's National Quality Framework - principles, standards, and how it works alongside Aistear.
Turning the four themes into practical weekly planning.
Writing observations that inform real planning, not just paperwork.
What a learning story is, and how it's used alongside Aistear.
Recording skill progression across the five Montessori curriculum areas.
What Regulation 16 requires, and NCS/ECCE hour tracking implications.
Separating hours by scheme, and avoiding double-counting.
The 8-week warning, the 12-week review point, and what providers must report.
Handling these fairly and consistently, without daily friction.
Managing collector lists safely and handling changes.
What belongs in a daily update, how often, and why the channel matters.
Why real-time, child-specific updates get read more reliably.
Why consistency, not frequency or polish, builds parent trust.
Photos, outings, medication and emergency treatment consents.
What belongs in the record, when to tell parents, and Regulation 16.
Meeting Regulation 16 without over-collecting.
Transparent, defensible and fair priority rules and communication.
Building sibling priority in fairly and transparently.
Accuracy, renewal workload, and what to consider before switching.
Why records go stale, and how to keep them genuinely current.
What a mandate needs, the refund window, and what to explain to parents.
What drives cost, and how Core Funding's fee conditions shape the decision.
Itemisation, subsidy detail, VAT status and payment terms.
Notice periods, explaining the reason, and keeping trust intact.
A staged, consistent approach to late or unpaid fees.
Registration as a school-age service, staffing and planning.
The separate rules that apply to school-age services.
Capacity tied to ratios, waitlists, and payment handling.