17 August 2026
SDLP Opposition Economy Spokesperson Sinéad McLaughlin MLA has said new figures on the Northern Ireland Childcare Subsidy Scheme (NICSS) cannot disguise the failure to deliver additional support promised to families.
The Department of Education has revealed that 27,486 children benefited from NICSS during 2025-26, with £18.4m paid in subsidies. However, the Childcare Strategy set out an increase in the NICSS contribution to 20% for all eligible children from April 2026 – an increase that has still not been delivered.
Sinéad McLaughlin MLA said:
"Any support that puts money back into the pockets of families struggling with childcare costs is welcome, but the Minister cannot point to these figures and pretend that enough is being done. The Childcare Strategy laid out a plan for how the NICSS contribution would increase to 20% from April. Months later, parents are still waiting for clarity about when that additional support will actually reach them.
"There is still no agreed Executive Budget, and the draft Budget does not provide enough funding to deliver all of the actions contained within the Childcare Strategy. The Executive cannot make commitments to parents and then fail to provide the money required to deliver them. Meanwhile, childcare costs continue to rise. When costs increase faster than the support available, families are left running just to stand still, and any additional help is quickly swallowed up by higher bills.
"Progress on childcare has to be measured by what parents are actually paying. Right now, their bills are continuing to rise. Until families see those costs coming down, Ministers cannot claim that childcare is becoming more affordable.
"The Minister also points to the fact that very few families reach the maximum subsidy as evidence that existing support is sufficient. But his own Department says the average nursery invoice submitted through NICSS was £683 per month, compared with £1,210 for a full-time nursery place. We should be asking whether cost is forcing families to use less childcare than they actually need.
"Parents have waited long enough. They need affordable childcare, certainty about the support available to them and an Executive prepared to fund the promises it has made."