Communities@Work

“Great diverse activities in the program. My child loved it.”

“My daughter came home both days that she attended very happy and excited about her day. She said that the educators were lovely.”

– Happy parents from our Spring School Holiday Program 2020

Important Updates to Summer School Holiday Program 2020-21

Unfortunately, due to the recent COVID-19 outbreak in NSW, and subsequent health directions, some of our incursion (activity) providers are now unable to travel to Canberra for our school holiday programs. This has resulted in a number of changes. Updated Program Calendars (Daily Highlights) coming soon! 

Please monitor this section for the latest updates:

Update 20/01/2021: Please note that the Rufftrack Farmer’s Challenge incursion has been cancelled for the week of 25-29 January 2021. Instead, we have scheduled the Make Em Laugh incursion in its place. This means that for Week 4 of January, all scheduled visits by Rufftrack Farmer’s Challenge will instead be made by Make Em Laugh to the relevant services.

Make ‘Em Laugh is an interactive performance-based mime and clown workshop where children will learn the fundamentals of basic mime technique. They will have lots of fun using their imaginations in understanding visual humour. Children will also be given a chance to shine by devising a performance of their own with the encouragement of Jean-Paul – one of Australia’s beloved Clown Mimes. 

Fun Fact: Jean-Paul was in a Power Rangers movie and is one of the founders of the Clown Doctor Program that sends clowns into hospitals for sick children! 

Update 18/01/2021: Please note that the Artificial Intelligence workshop incursion has been cancelled for the week of 18-22 January 2021. Instead, there will be a range of fun in-service activities organised by the educators for the time this activity was scheduled. 

Update 13/01/2021: Please note that the Surreal Racing (GOKarts-2U) incursion has been cancelled for the week of 18-22 January 2021. Instead, we have replaced this with the Visit from Royal Flying Doctor Incursion. This means that for Week 3 of January, any services that have the Surreal Racing incursion will now have the Royal Flying Doctor incursion in its place (same time, same day). 

A Visit from the Royal Flying Doctor Service is a fantastic opportunity for children to learn about the RFDS, rescue a patient, and even practice landing a plane! Get ready for a whole lot of adventure with the incursion.  

Update 5/01/2021: Please note that the Tales Tall and Short Incursion has been cancelled for the week of 9-15 January 2021. Instead, we have replaced this with the Nerf Wars Incursion. This means that for Week 2 of January, any services that were supposed to have the Tales Tall & Short Incursion will now have the Nerf Wars incursion in its place (same time, same day).

Nerf Wars is an action-packed incursion where teams go head to head in a series of challenges. Children will reduce stress and release a whole bunch of built-up energy with Inflatable Bunkers, NERF darts, masks and guns. It’s a whole lot of fun!

Update 29/12/2020: Please note that the Horsing Around Incursion has been cancelled for the week of 4-8 January 2021. Instead, our educators will facilitate in-service fun activities for the relevant days.

Update 22/12/2020: We need to cancel two incursions – Bubbbles Galore and Wet & Wild Soccer – that were scheduled to run on 4-8 January 2021 for several locations.

School Holiday Program Locations and Dates

Our School Holiday Programs run at the following locations across Canberra. All locations are able to care for children in preschool to year 6, except for Amaroo which does not take preschool.

• Amaroo School
• Charles Weston School
• Fadden Primary School
• Maribyrnong Primary School
• Monash Primary School
• Mount Rogers Primary School
• Neville Bonner Primary School
• Palmerston District Primary School
• Wanniassa Hills Primary School
• Isabella Plains Early Childhood Service
• Narrabundah Early Childhood School (only available to in-service families)
• Ngunnawal Child Care and Education Centre (only available to in-service families)

School Holiday Program Activities

We’re also excited to announce that in addition to the activities in the program calendars (daily highlights),  ACT Brumbies Rugby Players will also be joining us these summer school holidays to visit several program locations to enjoy lots of sports fun and active play with the children:

Some of the other planned exciting excursions and fascinating incursions include:

⦿ Hoyts Movies: This summer, we’re back with excursions to Hoyts Cinemas to revel in the art of storytelling. Get ready with popcorn to be transported to the worlds of Dreambuilders, The Croods: A New Age, and The War with Grandpa. 

⦿ BattleGames: Muddy obstacle courses, here we come! A chance to get out of the heat and into the mud for a fun day of battling friends in this adventurous excursion.

⦿ A Visit to Canberra Aqua Park: What’s summer without splashing through a GIANT INFLATABLE COURSE! Yes, you read that right – we’ll be heading off to Lake Burley Griffin for lots of climbing, splashing, slipping and sliding as we beat the summer heat.

⦿ Raptor Reptiles: Enjoy fascinating insights into the lives of spectacular wildlife! Children will have the opportunity to touch the animals, learn about their history and unique traits, and have fun with all things scaly. The facilitator of this incursion is a certified snake handler and has worked with all animals from giraffes to tigers though his passion lies with the scaly and slimy!  Visit Raptor Reptiles for more information.

⦿ Farmers Challenge with The RuffTRACK Crew: Always a popular incursion, Farmer Dave will be back to take children on a learning journey of Australian culture, with lots of high energy team games and fun that will leave the children totally ‘bushed’!

SUBMIT AN ENROLMENT ENQUIRY >

*Please note that all activities are subject to change, based on the latest COVID-19 health advice from ACT Government. Please note that all activities may not be available at all locations – refer to the program highlights for more information.

Additional Information

If you’re looking for information on Child Care Subsidy, Additional Child Care Subsidy, and answers to other Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), please download our Holiday Program FAQs here. You can also visit our Children’s Services page for more information.

Our School Holiday Programs

Our July School Holiday Programs were a hit with activities like Hatching Chicks, Dr Hubble’s Bubble’s, interactive game shows, winter crafts, science experiments, Mini Olympics, scavenger hunts and more!  View what our clients had to say from our July school holiday program survey.

In Spring, we celebrated dance and expression through Mission Movement, engaged in an Obstacle and Activity Course with an Active Warrior incursion, played in teams with Aim4Fun Inflatable Laser Tag, experimented with earth’s secrets during Dynamic Earth incursion, and became a Masterchef with Cooking Craze.

With Summer, expect a lot of fun across a variety of incursions and in-service activities, and possibly excursions permitting COVID-19 guidelines from the ACT Government.

Communities@Work’s Response to COVID-19

Communities@Work is working to ensure that we are in the best position to support children, families, clients and our community during the COVID-19 crisis. We will continue to be guided by the latest regulatory advice from the ACT Government and ACT Health, ensuring the safety of your child is paramount. We have implemented hygiene, increased cleaning and other measures across all of our services to reduce the risk of infection and spread of COVID-19. Communities@Work has a commitment to the Canberra community, and we aim to ensure that we can continue to provide our essential community services in the face of this crisis.

The government is also offering support for families experiencing hardship, including Additional Child Care Subsidy (ACCS). Please visit our children’s services page for more information. 

More information about this can be found on the dedicated COVID-19 page on our website.

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