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In-Home Care — Frequently Asked Questions
What is In-Home Care?
When is In-Home Care available?
Are carers employed by the service?
How do you become an approved carer?
What happens if my carer is ill or takes leave?
What happens if my child is ill?
What support is offered to families and carers?
What experiences would my child be offered?
How much does In-Home Care cost?
Is there any assistance for families with the payment of fees?
Where do I go from here?
What is In-Home Care?
Communities@Work In-Home Care is a community based child care service.
In-Home Care is a flexible form of child care provided in the child's home by an approved carer but you need to meet certain criteria.
As of 1 January 2007 In Home Care places will be targeted to families who:
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have no access to existing child care services: or their circumstances mean that an existing child care service cannot meet their needs
AND
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where the family meets one or more of the following criteria:
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the parent/s work shift work or non-standard hours;
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the family lives in a rural or remote area;
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has a child with an illness or disability;
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one of the parents has an illness or disability that reduces the family's capacity to care for the child(ren);
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the parent/s have had a multiple birth (three or more); and/or
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the parent/s have three or more children not yet attending school.
Care is monitored and supported by the Coordination Unit to ensure quality outcomes for children.
When is In-Home Care available?
The hours of care are flexible and can range from full-time care, regular part-time care, roster care, before and after school care, casual on call and weekend care.
Families and carers complete an agreement outlining the days and hours of care required.
Are carers employed by the service?
Carers approved with the Communities@Work In-Home Care Service are self-employed operating their own business. Our Coordination Unit assists them in setting up their business and offers ongoing support.
The service provides information on insurance through the resources of Family Day Care Australia website.
How do you become an approved carer?
To become approved with the In-Home Care service, carers are required to undergo an interview process, provide referees, obtain a satisfactory police records check and obtain a senior first aid certificate.
An orientation meeting, facilitated by Coordination Unit staff, is arranged before any carer can start caring for children.
What happens if my carer is ill or takes leave?
If your carer is unavailable due to ill health or because she/he is on leave, Coordination Unit staff will endeavour to arrange backup care with another carer. You may also choose to make alternative care arrangements. If your carer is unavailable, she/he does not receive payment for that time.
What happens if my child is ill?
If your child is sick or is at a contagious stage in an illness, you must inform your carer and the Communities@Work In-Home Care service. Each case is considered on an individual basis.
What support is offered to families and carers?
Each carer and family has a Support Manager responsible for visiting and monitoring the carer and the children they are caring for. Support Managers try to visit each carer at least once a month (if the care is within business hours). The Support Manager also contacts the family and the carer each month.
The Coordination Unit also offers support to carers by providing In-service training throughout the year. It also supplies equipment like car seats and double strollers for loan for short periods of time, provides five playgroups each week, and a toy library which carers can access five days a week.
Families are encouraged to contact their Support Manager to discuss care arrangements.
What experiences would my child be offered?
Children accessing In-Home Care are offered a variety of experiences depending on the children's routine. Carers have programs covering recreational and learning activities like craft, music, stories, make believe play and outdoor activities.
How much does In-Home Care cost?
Carers follow a Recommended Payment Schedule (available in the Fees and Charges section of this website) which outlines hourly rates.
These rates are adjusted in July each year, usually in line with the Consumer Price Index.
Carers may charge a different rate to that outlined in the Recommended Payment Schedule.
Is there any assistance for families with the payment of fees?
Child Care Benefit is a payment from the Australian Government to help families with the cost of child care.
The amount of Child Care Benefit families receive depends on the amount of care used, the number of children in care and whether children in care attend school, whether children meet immunisation requirements, whether care is for work related reasons and the family income.
You can obtain further information regarding Child Care Benefit from the Family Assistance Office website or on 13 6150.
Where do I go from here?
Interested in In-Home Care for your child/children?
Complete the Family Registration form (available in the Forms area of this website) and send to Communities@Work.
You can also contact the Coordination Unit and our staff will take the details of the care you require and endeavour to match your requirements with the carers available.
Once the Coordination Unit has identified carers for you to interview they will contact you and give the carer's name and telephone number for you to contact and arrange an interview time. Once you and the carer have agreed on the child care arrangements, you need to recontact the Coordination Unit to organise an appointment to complete the registration papers. The Coordination Unit will also make a time for a safety check of your home.
Interested in becoming a carer?
Complete the Carer Application form (available in the Forms area of this website) and send to Communities@Work.
Alternatively, contact the Coordination Unit and staff will take your details and mail the Carer Application form and In-Home Care information to you.
When you have completed and returned the Carer Application form you will be contacted and an appointment will be made for an interview.
