Explorers Afterschool has signed up for the National Childcare Scheme (NCS) for the 2026/27 school year.

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​Explorers' are administrators of this funding scheme. We do not make any decisions or have any input into how the scheme is managed.

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Any parent who wishes to participate in the scheme will need to contact Home  · Applicant Portal (ncs.gov.ie) and sign up. 

Once you have received your CHICK please forward it to us.  We need all the details provided on the CHICK so please screenshot the full award with the child's full name and date of birth visible. Please click the yellow 'view details' button before you take the screenshot.
 
Parents are responsible for all fees until the CHICK is activated. Parents' need to be aware of their CHICK end date and apply for a new one in a timely manner. It is their responsibility to give us the new CHICK, we do not automatically receive it.

In order to facilitate continuous funding, Explorers must receive the new CHICK at
least a week before our invoices are issued. This is to ensure the retrieval of the
new CHICK before issuing the invoice. Funding is not retrospective. We will not re-issue invoices.

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WE WILL NOT SEND REMINDERS ABOUT CHICK EXPIRY.

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If parents have any questions please contact the Parent Support Centre on 019068530