In order to address the shortage of vacancies in the social and solidarity sector in the municipalities where there are crèches adhering to the lucrative network, the Government announced that “for the month of September, the supplementary offer is active for all rooms of the adhering crèches.”

According to an ordinance published in Diário da República, “for the purposes of the month of September, the lack of vacancies is recognized for the municipalities in which there are active participating daycare centers, covering the respective rooms, based on the information collected during the previous month of July.”

This measure stems from the procedure for extending free access to daycare centers by children attending licensed daycare centers in the profitable private network, who have not been able to find a place in the public network.

It should be recalled that, since this year, children born from 1 September 2021 (inclusive) can now attend, free of charge, daycare centers in the solidarity network without a cooperation agreement and in the private sector, when there are no free places in daycare centers in the social and solidarity sector with an agreement or Santa Casa da Misericórdia de Lisboa in the intended municipalities.