Frequently Asked Questions about Family Day Care
How do I apply to use FDC?
How quickly should I interview the educators offered?
How soon can I put my child’s name on the waiting list for Family Day Care?
I have a baby, a toddler and a school age child. Can my children go to the same carer?
I have not heard anything about my Request For Care. What should I do?
Is there a priority order to your Wait List?
What happens if I am not happy with the educator I am referred to?
What do I do when I have selected a educator?
How much will my child care cost?
How often can educator’s increase their child care fees?
How can I reduce the cost of my childcare fees?
What hours and types of care are available?
Will my child need to leave Family Day Care and go to preschool when they are old enough?
How does the service choose educators for Family Day Care?
How do I apply to use FDC?
Please complete our Request For Care Form, as this provides us with all the details we require to begin the process of matching your families requirements with our vacancies. Email the completed waiting list form to us at fdc@umfc.com.au or fax your completed form to 02 6057 8499 or hand deliver to 76 Nordsvan Dve, Wodonga or post to PO Box 725, Wodonga 3689.
Alternatively we would be happy to take your care requirements and details over the phone on 02 6057 8400.
If a position is available, we will contact you and advise you on how to interview your prospective educator and how to register your child for care once you have successfully selected your educator.
If a match cannot be made immediately we will place your details on our Wait List and contact you as soon as we have found a suitable match.
How quickly should I interview the educator offered?
We recommend that you make an interview appointment with the educator/s offered within 24 to 48 hours as other families with an equal priority of access, commencement date and enquiry date will also have been given the educator’s details.
How soon can I put my child’s name on the waiting list for Family Day Care?
Your child can be added to our waiting list at anytime.
I have a baby, a toddler and a school age child. Can my children go to the same carer?
Yes. Family Day Care encourages family grouping and helps parents to find the most suitable carer for their family.
I have not heard anything about my Request For Care. What should I do?
Once you have provided us with your care requirements, we will check regularly for any matches of vacancies that correspond to your care request. We will immediately contact you if we need additional information from you or when we have a child care place to offer you.
You are always welcome to contact us at anytime to ask about the progress of your care request. Contacting us is particularly important if any of the details you initially provided to us change eg. requested days of care etc.
Is there a priority order to your Wait List?
Yes. We are governed by the Australian Governments Priority of Access guidelines and must prioritise all our placements and therefore our Wait List accordingly:
- Child/ren at risk of serious abuse or neglect
- Child/ren of a single parent who satisfies, or of parents who both satisfy, the work, training, study test under Section 14 of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999.
- Any other child/ren.
Within these Priority of Access levels our service then orders the Wait List by:
- Commencement Date
- Enquiry Date
What happens if I am not happy with the educator I am referred to?
Our policy is to provide parents with more than one educator to visit if we have a number of educator’s that match your care request. Parents can then interview each educator, view their home/care environment and decide which educator best suits their requirements and family’s values.
You are under no obligation to commence care if you feel that the educator/s you have been referred to do not suit your family’s needs. We ask that you advise the educator/s that you no longer require the position with them, recontact our Family Day Care office and ask staff to keep looking for another placement.
What do I do when I have selected a educator?
- Inform the FDC office of your selection and receive confirmation that the child care places with your selected educator are still available (when vacancies are scarce there maybe times that a educators details will be given out to other families who have an equal priority of access, commencement date and enquiry date; in that situation whoever has made a selection first will be able to go ahead with the care placement)
- Complete a Family Registration Package. This may be done by appointment at the Family Day care office or a package can be posted or emailed to you
- Once we have the completed Family Registration Details we can enter the details on our database and formally enrol your child/ren with the Australian governments Child Care Management System for Child Care Benefit purposes
- We will send a copy of your Family Registration Details to your selected educator
How much will my child care cost?
Family Day Care is an affordable form of child care for many families.
Family Day Care attracts a higher rate of Child Care Benefit (CCB) in the first 38 hours with our service, which means that families eligible for this Commonwealth Government benefit administered by Family Assistance Office will usually pay less in Family Day Care. For more information about the Child Care Benefit or Child Care Rebate contact your local Family Assistance Office.
Child care fees are set independently by each educator and will therefore vary. Charges will also vary according to the type of care, the hours of care and any meals, snacks or transport provided.
Educators selected by and registered with our service, are all small business operators and they will provide parents with a copy of their Fee Schedule, charging conditions and payment requirements at the initial interview. Most educators, to ensure their expenses are covered, will set a minimum of hours per day, nevertheless they are still often more affordable than centre based child care.
Educators will be able to provide parents with a quote for the full cost of care and if a parent knows their Child Care Benefit percentage educators will also be able to provide an estimate of the CCB amount and the remaining parent portion.
How often can educators increase their child care fees?
Whilst our educators can set their fees independently they are still bound by our services Policies and Procedures including those related to Fee Setting.
Educators therefore can only increase their fees maximum of twice a year; at the beginning of the calendar and financial year, and must give parents 4 weeks written notice.
How can I reduce the cost of my childcare fees?
Families may be able to reduce their cost of care by applying for the Australian Governments Child Care Benefit (CCB) by contacting the Family Assistance Office. Child Care Benefit can be used to reduce your childcare fees on a fortnightly basis or claimed back as a bulk amount at the end of each financial year.
You may also be entitled to the Child Care Rebate if you meet the governments work, study, training test. Contact the Family Assistance Office on 136 150 for more information.
What hours and types of care are available?
Family Day Care understands parent’s have busy lives and knows that flexibility is the key. Each educator offers a selection of the care types listed below, and some offer the full range.
- Full time care
- Part time care
- Casual care
- Rostered care for shift workers
- Before / after school care
- School holiday and Pupil Free days care
- Evening, Overnight and Weekend care
- 24 hour care (conditions apply)
Will my child need to leave Family Day Care and go to preschool when they are old enough?
No. Educators are able to assist parents who would like their child to access mainstream preschool as they can transport children to and from preschool.
For those children not accessing mainstream preschool educators provide age appropriate activities for all children in care, including preschool and school readiness programming for children in the three (3) to five (5) age group.
How does the service choose educators for Family Day Care?
Prospective educators are required to complete a thorough selection and registration process that involves an interview, minimum of 2 referee checks, compulsory Victorian Working With Children’s Checks and National Police Checks for themselves and for all adult members of the household, home safety check, completion of a senior first aid certificate and an anaphylaxis certificate, as well as training in Child Protection, OH&S, Code of Conduct, Program Planning, Food Handling and Hygiene.
All educators receive ongoing professional development and training each year and many have already completed formal qualifications such as Certificate III or Diploma in Children’s Services.
Related documents;
Request For Care Form
Changes to Family Reg details
General Comment Sheet
Related Links;
Family Assistance Office
