Preschool support

We explain below how the following programmes work - Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE), Access and Inclusion Model (AIM), Early Intervention classes, and the Home Tuition Grant Scheme

Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) programme

This is a free preschool programme for children for two years before starting primary school. It runs from September to June for three hours a day, five days a week.

Children can access ECCE hours from the September after they turn 2 years and 8 months. The upper age limit is 5 years and 6 months.

See a list of participating services: www.childcare.ie

Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) in Early Childhood Care and Education

The Access and Inclusion Model (AIM) is designed to enable children with disabilities to access and fully participate in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme. A child does not need to have any diagnosis to receive AIM support.

It has seven levels of progressive support, moving from universal to the targeted supports. The different levels are based on the needs of the child and the preschool provider.  

Your child’s preschool service provider can apply for targeted supports under this model. Targeted supports are focused supports specific to your child’s needs. Examples of targeted supports might be, for example, additional assistance in the preschool room, specialised equipment, minor alterations, and/or therapeutic supports. See: www.aim.gov.ie  

Your CDNT will provide support with the AIM application, if required, for example, in relation to specialised equipment.

Any equipment that children receive through AIM will be transferred to primary school with them. If they are not ready for school, children with additional needs can apply for one extra year in preschool or an over-age exception to continue their preschool education. AIM’s support will also be provided during this additional year.

Early Intervention Classes for autistic children

These are preschool classes usually located within or attached to mainstream primary schools or special schools. They are organised by the National Council for Special Education (NCSE) in response to an identified need in an area.

Early intervention classes are designed to provide a range of educational supports and interventions to autistic children before their start in primary school. To qualify for a place, a child must have a report from a relevant professional or team of professionals confirming their autism diagnosis.

The National Council for Special Education (NCSE) delivers its local service through a national network of Special Educational Needs Organisers (SENOs). You should contact your local SENO to apply for an early intervention class: www.ncse.ie/seno-support-service

The NCSE has a schools information map which shows which schools have an early intervention class.

There are also some private autism-specific preschools which are usually funded through the Home Tuition Grant. Places in these preschools will only be funded for those children who cannot access a suitable place in an Early Intervention Class.

The Home Tuition Grant Scheme

The Home Tuition Grant Scheme is a measure to provide for education until an educational placement becomes available. Contact your local SENO for further information on this scheme: www.ncse.ie/seno-support-service

Home Tuition is available for:

  • Children aged between 2 ½ and 3 years of age with an Autism diagnosis (maximum 10 hours).
  • Children between 3 and 4 years of age with an Autism diagnosis and for whom an early intervention placement is not available, as confirmed by the NCSE (maximum 20 hours).
  • Children over 4 years of age with an Autism diagnosis and a recommendation for an early intervention placement (who will not reach the age of 6 during the school calendar year) and for whom an early intervention placement is not available, as confirmed by the NCSE (maximum 20 hours).

When a school placement becomes available the home tuition grant will be discontinued. 

Diagnosed autistic children who attend a local ECCE preschool can also get 5 hours of home tuition a week (15 preschool hours + 5 hours Home Tuition). Under the Scheme, in certain cases, the home tuition grant may be extended until the end of July.

For more information on Home Tuition, see here: Home Tuition This link on gov.ie will share the updated information on the scheme each school calendar year.

 

Further information on this website

 

Page created: 10 August 2026

First review due: 10 August 2027