Childcare Subsidy Scheme reduces costs for working families across Northern Ireland
Date published:
Education Minister, Paul Givan, has today published administrative data from the Northern Ireland Childcare Subsidy Scheme (NICSS) for the period 1 September 2024 to 31 March 2025, highlighting its impact in reducing childcare costs for working families.
Launched in September 2024, the scheme to date has supported working parents who are eligible for Tax-Free Childcare (TFC) and have at least one child below primary school age using childcare. The Childcare Subsidy Scheme provides a 15% saving on eligible childcare costs, with Tax-Free Childcare offering an additional 20% reduction.
The data published today shows the average monthly childcare cost for those registered for the scheme after the NICSS and TFC reductions have been applied is just under £400 per month, reflecting the fact that most parents are using part-time provision.
For those children using full-time childcare with a daycare provider (five days per week), the average cost is £1,054 per month, reduced to approximately £739 per month after the NICSS and TFC reductions have been applied.
The data also revealed that only 2.3% of children consistently exceeded the NICSS subsidy cap of £167 per month which was applied during the period Sept 2024 to March 2025. This means that the vast majority of registered families benefitted from the full 15% reduction on their bill.
Paul Givan said:
“Since its launch in September 2024, over 16,000 children have registered for the Childcare Subsidy Scheme, and it has saved parents approximately £8 million on childcare costs.
“The data provides us with valuable, real-time information about the costs that families are facing, and we can see how the two schemes, when combined, make a considerable difference. Childcare is a significant challenge for many families, and we know that the costs have increased over recent weeks now that employers are having to pay higher National Insurance Contributions for staff, as well as higher National Living and Minimum Wages. Taking account of the impact of rising costs, I raised the NICCS subsidy cap in April 2025 to £184 per month per child. I have also secured Executive agreement to extend the support provided by the scheme to school age children from 1 September 2025.”
The Minister continued:
“I remain committed to supporting families with the cost of childcare, and this data will help inform future decisions on the scheme’s operation and funding. It is clear that the Childcare Subsidy Scheme is providing pivotal support to thousands of working families across Northern Ireland. I would encourage any parents or providers who have not yet signed up, to consider registering as we want to ensure as many parents as possible can benefit from this support.”
Information on how parents of school age children can register to benefit from the scheme from 1 September 2025 will be made available over the coming weeks.
The Childcare Subsidy Scheme is delivered through registered childcare providers, including daycares, playgroups, childminders, and Approved Home Childcarers.
The Northern Ireland Childcare Subsidy Scheme (NICSS) Administrative Data from September 2024 to March 2025 can be viewed here - https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/publications/northern-ireland-childcare-subsidy-scheme-nicss-administrative-data-september-2024-march-2025
Notes to editors:
- The NICSS is delivered by the Early Years Organisation on behalf of the Department of Education. Childcare providers and parents can register for the Scheme at: https://www.early-years.org/nicss(external link opens in a new window / tab)
- To date, the NICSS has been focused on working parents, based on Tax Free Childcare (TFC) eligibility, with children who have not yet started primary school. These tend to be the highest users of childcare and therefore incur the greatest costs. From 1 September 2025, the scheme will be extended to Primary school age children.
- TFC is a UK Government-backed scheme which helps working parents with the cost of childcare. The scheme gives eligible families an extra 20% towards their childcare costs.
- The NICSS provides a 15% subsidy towards parents’ bills (paid directly to providers to reduce upfront costs). The parent can then claim 20% TFC on the remaining bill.
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