National Guidelines for School Aged Care

National Guidelines for
School Aged Care
My Time, Our Place

Minister for Early Childhood Peter Garrett has launched a new national framework for before and after school care and vacation care which he says will provide educators and parents with a set of guidelines and expected results for the school age care sector.

Mr Garrett visited Maroubra Junction Before and After School and Vacation Care Centre in Sydney to launch My Time, Our Place – Framework for School Age Care in Australia, which emphasises learning through play and is to be introduced across the country in 2012.

Mr Garrett said this is the first time a national set of principles has been in place for a care sector used by a growing proportion of Australian families.

"We know that this is one of the fastest growing sectors in child care – for example, during the December 2010 quarter, almost 256,000 children attended before and after school care, compared to 242,600 children over the same period the year before."

"This represents an increase of 5.5 per cent but until now there has been no national set of standards and expected results.

Minister for Child Care Kate Ellis said the aim of the framework was to provide children with a strong sense of identity and wellbeing, to give them confidence and communication skills, and to help them feel connected to the world.

"Children thrive when families, educators, schools and the wider community work together in partnership to support their wellbeing and learning. In school age care settings there is great importance placed on relationships and nurturing children's talents and interests," Ms Ellis said

"We're moving away from the highly structured, one size fits all approach and more towards a system of care which responds to the needs and interests of individual children," she said.

My Time, Our Place sets out the main principles for school age care, such as collaborating with children and learning through play, and methods that educators can use to follow these principles.

The framework emphasises the importance of giving children a place to engage in a range of play and leisure experiences which allow them to feel happy, safe and relaxed after school and recognises that they need time to interact with friends, practice social skills, solve problems, try new activities and learn life skills.

The framework will be supported by a web based support package for educators and a guide for families.

Click here for copies of My Time, Our Place