After School Programme

The After school programme is a service for children in primary school.

Age group:

Between 6 and 12 years

Times:

Monday to Friday from 2.30pm to 6pm.

Children who attend are given a snack and are given the space to do their homework with the help of the After School Assistants.

On finishing their homework children/young people participate in a variety of activities that they have been consulted about such as:

Art and creativity
Play
Games/activities
Outdoor walks

This programme is supported by the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) which provides financial support to help with your childcare costs for parents/guardians.

Information:

There are two types of childcare subsidy for children over 6 months of age:

A universal subsidy for children under 3. Children over 3 who have not yet qualified for the ECCE are also eligible. It is not means tested.
An income-assessed subsidy for children up to 15. It is means tested.

You can apply online for the subsidy here using your MyGovID. See the Application Guide for assistance on how to apply.

To make a paper application, please contact the NCS Parent Support Centre on 01 906 8530. The Parent Support Centre will then send you an application form by post.

Your childcare provider, including childminders and school-age childcare services, must be registered with Tusla and have a National Childcare Scheme contract with the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.

The subsidy will be paid directly to your childcare provider. Your provider then will subtract your subsidy from your childcare bill.

IMPORTANT:

You can use the Childcare Search Function to search the full list of NCS childcare service providers.

You can also view the services’ fees for both NCS and ECCE on this page: https://www.ncs.gov.ie/en/