Education-focused early years inspections of crèches and pre-schools which take part in the State’s free pre-school year programme have begun this week.

The Department of Education inspectorate will carry out the programme in organisations taking part in the Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) Programme.

The inspections under the Departments of Education and Children are complementary to the regulatory inspections by Tusla.

The early years inspectors "will monitor the quality of the educational experiences provided for children in pre-schools and will give feedback and practical advice to practitioners about how provision can be improved," a statement from Department of Education and Skills (DES) and the Department of Children and Youth Affairs (DCYA) said.

The inspections will result in written reports which will be published on the websites of the Department of Education and the Department of Children from June.

It is anticipated the reports will “in addition to making information available to parents and the early-years sector, bring about incremental improvement in education provision in pre-schools,” the report said.

Pilot inspections have already been carried out in 55 pre-schools while consultations with early-years practitioners, owners of crèches and pre-schools, parents and academics have taken place.

Minister for Education Jan O’Sullivan said the development was “very positive” and of particular interest to parents. She said enhancing the “ educational quality of early years was a priority” for her as Minister.

The ECCE scheme means the State pays a capitation fee to pre-schools for a set number of hours for participating children who are aged over three.

The guide to the inspections can be found on the Department's website.