QA6 Collaborative Partnerships with Families and Communities

Strengths

Family Handbook

2025 parent handbook.pdf

The family handbook gives new families all the information they require to attend OSHC. It includes fee structures, policies and information about key staff.

The family handbook is provided to new families in their enrolment packs when starting reception or just new families to the OSHC.

Each fortnight, the OSHC has a dedicated section in the school newsletter. This is used to communicate with families upcoming events, share past events or relay important information about the service.

Reconciliation Action Plan

RAP.pdf

Over the past 12 months the school has formed a committee to develop a reconciliation action plan. The OSHC had a member of staff on that committee. This meant the OSHC was considered heavily during the development of the plan.

SSO Work/Swimming Week

We are very lucky to have a very strong connection with the school community. Many of the OSHC staff also work at the School as SSO's. Further to that connection the school often asks our staff to help out during swimming week, sports days and other extra-curricular activities. Most recently a group assisted at the schools swimming week at Westminster School.

Extra-curricular Activities

We work with families and extra-curricular activity providers to support safe transitions between OSHC and children's sport, music and arts activities. Following consultation with the Education Standards Board, we reviewed our policy on children attending extra-curricular before, during and after attending a care session.

Educators update extra-curricular lists and set alarms to manage children's movements.

Forms are uploaded to children's Fully Booked profiles.

Induction Day Tasks

Each year, the new reception families are welcomed to the school via a series of transition visits. During each transition visit the new receptions come and spend some time at the OSHC. Although not every child that is new to the school will access the OSHC service it does mean that the ones that do are familiar with the service and its layout prior to their first days.

Vacation Care use Parent/Friend Networks

During Vacation Care days we are very lucky to have well connected educators and families. We recently held a sports clinic day and were able to tap into our community networks to source coaches. We used James Begley (OSHC parent and former AFL player), Jason Williams (OSHC parent and former 36er's basketballer), Lucy Austin (educators' friend and current Adelaide thunderbird) and Kaine Baldwin (educator friend and current AFL footballer) as coaches for our clinics.

End of Year Celebration

Each year we celebrate the end of the year with an OSHC family Xmas BBQ. This coincides with an extravaganza themed vac care day where we have bouncy castles and dunk tanks during the day that then stay until the family BBQ has finished. Last year we combined the family BBQ with a fundraiser and auction. The event had over 180 people attend and raised just over $1800. This money was then used to purchase resources for our OSHC quiet space.

Seesaw Communication

Seesaw is a powerful tool for fostering collaborative partnerships between families, communities, and our service. It enables real-time communication between educators, children, and their families, allowing for shared updates on children's activities throughout their time at OSHC. Families can easily engage in their child's learning and activity at OSHC by viewing and commenting on photos and videos uploaded to Seesaw, creating an ongoing dialogue. This transparency encourages a stronger connection between home and school, helping to support students' development both in and outside of the OSHC environment, while also fostering a sense of community involvement.

Collaboration with Concordia College

Using our OSHC director's former school and current networks, we were able to set up a sharing network with Concordia College. Initially we went to them to assist us with the design of our new space as they had recently moved into a new space also. This quickly developed into a more sustainable and regular practice as they then attended our several times over the next few months. This evolved then into a shared collaborative staff meeting and then into combining for several vac care excursions including an OSHC camp at west beach.

Family Induction

Welcoming families to our OSHC community is an important start to their OSHC journey. We prioritise meeting families before children attend OSHC. Point of contact, familiar faces, smooth over the transition to OSHC (and school), familiarity with the site and our areas/use of it, understanding our values based curriculum,

When families contact OSHC to enroll their children, we have several steps to get to know the family:

Family enrolment interview, tours, info on Fully Booked (contact info/child's interests/needs/additional info)
Family handbook provided
First day at OSHC Seesaw posts
Talk to teachers, leadership, Sentral overview
Medication individual plans, medication and logs shared
Risk minimisation and communication plan made between guardian and medications officer

Kindy transition visits to the school take place in Term 4. Over the years, OSHC has sought to become part of the school transition process in speaking at parent information sessions, being available at during transition visit drop off for to chat with new parents,

Family Surveys

OSHC family surveys are conducted every 2 years. This one asked a series of questions pertaining to not only the OSHC but also, it's transition into a new space.

The results of the survey are then shared at both the OSHC advisory committee and then with staff at staff meetings.

The results are then used to shape future practice.

We also send out surveys when we require family input about a range of things. This one was for quiet space resourcing.

Homework Club

Family requests and refection amongst educators led to a homework club beginning in Term 1 2024 soon after the move into the new build.

We staff this with an educator to supervise the children, greet families and cover administration tasks.

Exceeding Themes

Standard 6.1 – Supportive relationships with families: Respectful relationships with families are developed and maintained and families are supported in their parenting role.

Embedded

Informed

Meaningful

Exceeding Themes

Standard 6.2 – Collaborative partnerships: Collaborative partnerships enhance children’s inclusion, learning and wellbeing.

Embedded

In our strengths we have highlighted our really strong connection with the school. This is how we know our practice is embedded. WE have staff working as SSO's, sitting on commitees and attending school extra curricula events. The RAP committee oshc representation is a great example of this.

Informed

Meaningful

Last year we were fortunate enough to get a visit from Blair Boyer. Balir attended Black Forest as a result of Adam's involvement with OSHCSA. Blair came out and spoke to educators about their importance to the industry and was able to listen to feedback we presented reating to difficulties retaining good staff.