The ECCE sector and its range of occupations

The ECCE sector and its range of occupations

            There is great provision for Childcare in Ireland, at present every town they have pre-school, creche or Montessori.  Many communities run pre-school and after school subsidised by the government. I live in rural area, no pre-school that caters for 0 to 6 years old children, but I think childminders are available.  Childminder is the most popular since a parent can make an arrangement and don’t get any problem.  Parents preferred childminder to keep their children healthy and encountered less problem.  In the creche they would not accept a sick child.  On the other hand, there are range of occupations in the Early Child Care like the following:

Nursery nurses. They are responsible for the learning, development and care for children in day or residential nurseries, children’s homes, maternity units and other similar establishments.  Their related job titles include créche assistant and nursery assistant.

Playgroup leaders. They are responsible to the day to day running of playgroup sessions to ensure safe, stimulating play, like play scheme, free play locations and after school activities.  Also provide needs of the children in a range of formal and informal setting.  Their related job titles include play leader and playgroup assistant.

Educational/Special Needs Assistants. They are the one who assist teachers with a variety of non-teaching duties.  They related job titles includes the following: classroom helper, education care officer, non-teaching assistant, school helper and special needs assistant.

Childcare Manager/Supervisor. They are responsible to the day-to-day running of the childcare facility.  The role requires childcare qualifications as well as experience in the area.  Also requires excellent interpersonal and organization skills and the ability to manage a team of employees.    They also ensure that the care and education of the children is being maintained at all times and take care issues that it may arise.

Montessori Teacher. Their objective is to prepare and organize the learning environment to meet the needs and interest of the children as well as promote independence. They ensure efficient day-to-day running of a Montessori education setting and follow guidelines regarding the education of the young children.  Using the Montessori materials, they present different exercises to children and practice observation on a regular basis. (https://montessori-nw.org/)

Other childcare and related occupations.  There are many other childcare practitioners who perform a variety of domestic activities in day-today care of children.  They supervise and participate in children’s play, education and other activities.  The related job titles include childminder, nanny and au pair.

City/Council Childcare Committees (CCCs). These sectors were established in 2001 to encouraged and facilitate the development of childcare locally.  They are 33 City/County Childcare Committees in the entire country who provides information and advice on setting up your own business in the childcare sector.  They also provide training courses for people interested in working in the childcare sector and useful information for parents about local childcare facilities. In 2006 budget, Irish government announced the establishment of the National Childcare Investment Programme 2006-2010 (NCIP).  It was succeeded the previous earlier Equal Opportunities Childcare Programme.  They are open to members of the public who wish to apply for grant assistance and support information under the National Childcare Investment Programme.

Public Health Nurse. Their role is to serve the community with a range of healthcare service and employed by the HSE and are registered general nurses.  They may visit schools, elderly who require help to dress a wound.  Also, visit new-born babies and their mothers within a six-week period of them discharged from hospital.  They are engaged in regular contact with GPs, hospitals and other healthcare providers about a patient in their care.  The best practice they did is, they provide other healthcare with an up to date knowledge.

Special Needs Assistants (SNAs). They are employed to facilitate learners with disability and work in a special school or in mainstream schools as part-time or full-time position.   They are under the supervision of a class teacher since they are on a non-teaching role.  They help children to get on and off the buses and help them in reading and writing exercises.  Also, they help them feeding and toileting.  They are required to have an appropriate qualification to work as a special needs assistant like Special Needs Assisting Course level 5.

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