Invitation to Nurturing Skills Midpoint Review Workforce Focus Group
Educators/Practitioners Wanted – Nurturing Skills: The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare 2022-2028 Focus Group
Share your professional experience and help inform priorities, we’d love to hear from you.
The Department of Children, Disability and Equality are seeking Educators/practitioners to contribute to a focus group for the Mid‑Term Review of the Nurturing Skills: The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare 2022-2028.
Background
The Nurturing Skills Workforce Plan is a national plan for Early Learning and Care (ELC) and School‑Age Childcare (SAC) staff in Ireland. It runs from 2022–2028 and explains how the Government will support, develop, and professionalise the workforce.
In simple terms, it is a roadmap for making sure Early Years Educators, School‑Age Childcare practitioners, and childminders are:
- well‑qualified
- well‑supported
- valued as professionals
- able to access clear career pathways
The plan aims to strengthen the workforce through five pillars:
- Establishing a career framework
- Raising qualification levels
- Developing a national Continuing Professional Development (CPD) system
- Supporting recruitment, retention and diversity
- Moving towards regulation of the profession
DCDE are currently conducting a midpoint review of Nurturing Skills to examine progress to dates and develop a new implementation plan which will set out the actions needed to reach the objectives of the plan from 2026-2028.
Focus Group
As part of the Mid-Term Review of Nurturing Skills: The Workforce Plan for Early Learning and Care and School-Age Childcare 2022–2028, the Department is seeking to engage directly with the workforce through an online focus group.
- Date: Tuesday, 28 April
- Time: 7.00pm – 8.30pm
- Format: Online (Microsoft Teams)
The focus group provides an important opportunity for those working in the sector to:
- Share their professional experiences
- Reflect on progress to date
- Help inform priorities and actions for the next phase of the plan (2026–2028)
Participation is open to a wide mix of roles and backgrounds, and the session will take place online to support accessibility.
If you would like to apply to participate in the focus group please complete the survey at the link below.