The institutions will have to return the amounts paid in the registration by the families whose children will be covered for the measure of free childcareaccording to the ordinance published this Wednesday in the Diário da República.
The diploma also establishes that free attendance at nurseries Depends on facility capacitywith the sole exception of cases of children at risk who may be forced to create an additional place.
The ordinance defines how the measure announced last week by the prime minister will work, which is intended in this first phase for the approximately 80,000 children born in the last year, from September 1, 2021.
However, gratuity depends on existing vacancies in the social and solidarity sector: “The measure of free assistance to daycare centers and family daycare centers extends up to the limit of the authorized capacity for the establishment“.
The only exception is children with promotion and protection measures, applied by the commissions for the protection of children and young people (CPCJ) or by the courts, “with indication of attendance at day care, who have mandatory access and admission in the day care responsealthough it is necessary to create an extra vacancy for this purpose, ”adds the diploma that comes into force this Thursday.
In the event that there are not places for all those interested in a certain day center, a social and economic evaluation of the home is carried outapplying criteria that take into account the family economic situation but also other “circumstances that lead to the social disadvantage of the child and his family”.
According to the annex to the ordinance, the priority list for admission to social response vacancies is headed by children who already attended kindergarten in the previous yearfollowed by children with disabilities or disabilities.
The children of parents “underage students, or beneficiaries of personal assistance in the field of Support for Independent Living or recognized as the main informal caregiver, or children in foster care or in a foster home” appear in third place on the list of priorities.
They are followed by those who already have siblings in the institution, children who are beneficiaries of the Child Guarantee social benefit and/or with family allowance at the 1st and 2nd levels, and needy children whose parents work in the area and those from families single parents. homes. or large families.
The diploma also defines that at least 30% of the places assigned free of charge are for children covered by the social benefit Guarantee for Children or beneficiaries of the family subsidy up to the 3rd level.
The Government intends that by 2024 free nurseries be implemented in a staggered manner, annually increasing one more year of covered nursery, until reaching all the children of the social and solidarity network.
The children, who are now covered by the measure, will keep it for all the years they are in day care.
In addition to babies born in the last year, childcare continues to be free for all other children from more disadvantaged families (from the 1st or 2nd family contribution bracket).
“Only the extra-pedagogical project activities, of an optional nature, that the institutions intend to develop and in which the parents or legal representatives enroll the children, as well as the acquisition of uniforms and school uniforms. are excluded from the gratuity measure“says the ordinance.
The measure must reach 100,000 children in two yearsaccording to the agreement established between the Government and the Social and Solidarity sector.
Source: Observadora
