The Department of Children and Youth Affairs has said closing a crèche should be a last resort.

Officials from the department and the Child and Family agency Tusla are appearing before an Oireachtas committee on the back of concerns raised about standards of care at the Hyde and Seek chain in Dublin.

An RTÉ Investigates documentary revealed repeated breaches of regulation with two undercover researchers.

Hyde & Seek Childcare says the programme "raised some real issues for us and we will deal with them quickly".

"The overall picture it painted does not reflect who we are, but there are specific issues we need to address and are addressing quickly."

It is also retaining an expert external consultant to review its management structure and service.

Bernie McNally, assistant secretary-general for the early years division in the Department of Children, will appear before the Oireachtas Committee on Children and Youth Affairs on Wednesday.

She will say: "It would not be in the interests of children or parents if Tusla closed down services immediately whenever they observe non-compliance.

"We know that parents rely on the continued operation of services in order to go to work every day.

"Closing down a service at short notice can cause enormous inconvenience to families.

"Wherever possible, and where there is no serious risk to children, helping services to improve is the right thing to do.

"Clearly, where there is evidence of a serious risk to children, and a failure of the operator to immediately address it, all the force of the law must be applied to closing the service.

"There is also a need to keep parents informed of what is happening, although this poses challenges to due process."

While Pat Smyth, interim chief executive of Tusla, will tell the committee: "While regulation and inspection is an essential component in identifying and addressing risks within the early years sector, the Early Years Inspectorate alone cannot regulate for individual behaviours which are not in evidence during inspections or not reported to Tusla through other appropriate channels such as Children First Mandatory Reporting or the Early Years Inspectorate.

"It is the professionalism of individuals that keeps children safe and also ensures the delivery of good care".