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In Home Care FAQs
Overview
What is happening with the Nanny Pilot Programme and In Home Care?
From 2 July 2018, a new In Home Care service type will replace the current In Home Care and the Nanny Pilot Programme. The reset In Home Carewill be availableunder the Australian Government’s new child care package.
The revised In Home Care will better support families’ workforce participation and early childhood education and care requirements. The new arrangements provide flexible early childhood education and care for families who can demonstrate that the other types of approved child care are not suitable or available and where:
•parents or carers are working non-standard or variable hours
•families are geographically isolated from other types of approved child care, particularly in rural or remote locations
•the family is experiencing challenging or complex situations and their needs cannot be met by other approved child care services.
The department has appointed a Transition Consultant to identify the care requirements of those families currently receiving In Home Care, and help them transition to appropriate care arrangements post 2 July 2018. Families eligible for the Child Care Subsidy and meeting the criteria for In Home Care will be transitioned to the revised care type. Where necessary, families will be referred to other government-funded support or community based support services such as parental support and disability support.
Why is In Home Care changing?
The current In Home Care program requires a reset in order to ensure it is sustainable for the families who really need it.
The findings of independent reviews into the current In Home Care and Nanny Pilot Programme has shown that services being delivered are broader than the program’s original intent of delivering child care for those families for whom other mainstream services are not available or appropriate. The review showed that many educators are delivering social support to families including cleaning, meal preparation, respite care and parental support, in addition to child care. As a result, there was a large variation in the fees charged by services, with fees varying from $15 to $108 per hour.The renewed In Home Care will be targeted to children and families who need the care the most, focusing on early childhood education but ensuring that the program is affordable and sustainable.
What are the key elements of the revised In Home care program?
Key elements of the new In Home Care policy include:
- a $25 family hourly rate cap
- a renewed focus on early childhood education and care
- qualification requirement for educators – as a minimum, Certificate III in a relevant course
- 3,000 places capped nationally (above current utilisation)
- the introduction of In Home Care Support Agencies
- a maximum of five children to be cared for by an educator.
If I am currently receiving In Home Care, will I continue to receive In Home Care from 2 July 2018?
The Government is committed to avoiding unnecessary disruption to families’ care arrangements.
In Home Care will be delivered through a network of In Home Care Support Agencies that will advocate for families. The In Home Care Support Agencies will be required to prioritise the assessment and allocation of places to current In Home Care and Nanny Pilot families. Current families who meet the eligibility requirements will transition to the new In Home Care service type.
Some families may transition from In Home Care to other mainstream services or other support services or a combination of both. The In Home Care Support Agencies will assess their needs and refer them to other support as necessary.
How will families be referred to the new In Home Care program?
Families in each jurisdiction will be referred to the In Home Care program by the In Home Care Support Agency and/or Service. Existing families will be referred by the Transition Consultant. In Home Care Support Agencies may establish a network of referral agencies in each jurisdiction.
Criteria
What are the criteria for the revised In Home care program?
In Home Care must be provided only for children in families eligible for the Child Care Subsidy who can demonstrate that other types of approved child care are not available or appropriate and where one or more of the following criteria apply:
- parents or carers are working non-standard or variable hours, outside normal child care service hours
- parents or carers are geographically isolated from other types of approved child care, particularly in rural or remote locations
- the family has challenging or complex needs, including where families are experiencing challenging situations, and other approved child care services are not able to meet the needs of the child or the family.
Can In Home Care be used for the supervision of distance education?
Families cannot receive In Home Care subsidies for the purpose of supervising distance education for the school years. This is longstanding policy and will remain with the introduction of the new child care package.
Supervision of distance education may be provided in the family home by an In Home Care educator as a private arrangement between the family and the service, complimentary to the provision of subsidised child care.
Will In Home Care support families in rural and remote areas and vulnerable and disadvantagedfamilies?
The Government is committed to meeting the needs of Australian families who need access to care irrespective of where they live, and to remove barriers for vulnerable or disadvantaged children.
The reset In Home Care service type will target families most in need of this care type, and where other care types are not available or appropriate, particularly in rural and remote areas.
In Home Care Support Agencies will support families to find services that have the capacity to provide care that meets the family’s unique requirements, including educators who meet the qualification requirements for In Home Care.
Will I be able to access In Home Care if my child accesses the NDIS?
Families will be able to access In Home Care for children receiving funding through the NDIS, however sessions of In Home Care must have a focus on early childhood education and care.
Subsidy
What subsidy will I receive for In Home Care?
The Child Care Subsidy for In Home Care will be based on a family hourly rate cap of $25 per hour.
The percentage of the subsidy to which the family is entitled will be based on the family’s combined adjusted taxable income, and will be up to 85 per cent of the actual fee charged or 85 per cent of the family hourly rate cap, whichever is lower. Families are required to pay the remainder of the fee.
Additional fee assistance will be available through the Additional Child Care Subsidy up to a family hourly rate of $30 for families that are genuinely disadvantaged. Where exceptional circumstances apply, a family may be eligible for the full cost of care to be subsidised.
Why is the family rate cap set at $25?
The In Home Care rate cap was set by the Government as part of the policy for the revised In Home Care program.
Places
Why are places capped at 3,000?
In Home Care will betargeted atthose families that need and at a time when they need thisIn Home Care the most. The number of places available will be capped at 3,000 which is above current usageand will ensure families only access the care type where no other child care options are available or appropriate.
Places will initially be allocated based on current usage levels, with the allocation moving to an equitable distribution based on 0-5-year-old jurisdictional population within two years.
Matching families with educators
Do families get to keep their present educator?
Families may be able to retain the services of the existing educators provided the educator is engaged by an In Home Care Service (approved for the Child Care Subsidy) and meets the requirements for the In Home Care as outlined in the national guidelines. These include the qualification requirements for In Home Care.
Families will be able to discuss these arrangements with the In Home Care Support Agency in their state or territory.
Are families able to find their own educator?
There may be instances where a family finds an educator to provide In Home Care. To be able to provide In Home Care, the educator must be engaged by an In Home Care Service and meet the requirements for In Home Care including qualification requirements. In such cases, the relevant In Home Care Support Agency may be able to assist the families by advocating their needs with the relevant In Home Care Service(s).
Qualifications
What are the educator qualification requirements for the revised In Home Care service type?
One of the key elements of the new In Home Care policy is a renewed focus on early childhood education and care.To ensure the quality of care and national consistency in service delivery, In Home Care educators will be required to have, as a minimum, a Certificate III in a relevant course or provide documentary evidence that they are working towards such a qualification.
What qualifications will be accepted for an In Home Care educator?
Qualifications acceptable for In Home Care include a Certificate III, Diploma or Bachelor’s degree in Early Childhood Education and Care, or working towards one of these qualifications.
Further information about acceptable qualifications will be available in the In Home Care Handbook currently being developed. This will take into consideration feedback received during the consultation period on the draft In Home Care National Guidelines.
Will educators have a transitional period in which to commence a CertificateIII?
From 2 July 2018, all In Home Care Educators will be required to have a minimum Certificate III level qualification in a relevant course, or be working towards, a Certificate III qualification.
In Home Care Educators who do not hold currently hold relevant qualifications will be required to complete or at a minimum be enrolled in a relevant course by 2 July 2018. To continue to provide In Home Care, educators will need to provide documentary evidence from the course provider to the service indicating that educator is making satisfactory progress towards completing the course and meeting the requirements to maintain the enrolment.
Why are qualifications for educators necessary?
The reviews of the current In Home Care and Nanny Pilot programs recommended that the qualifications of educators be raised to increase and standardise the quality of care provided in the home, as well as to attract and retain quality educators by improving career pathways.
Stakeholder feedback also supported In Home Care Educators holding qualifications due to the high responsibility placed upon educators working independently within a family environment.
In Home Care Services and Support Agencies
What are the roles of In Home Care Services vs Support Agencies?
In Home Care Support Agencies will match suitable families to approved services (services approved for the Child Care Subsidy as In Home Care Services under the family assistance law), and recommend to the department the number of places to be allocated to each service. The department will take into account these recommendations in allocating In Home Care places to services.
In Home Care Services will be responsible for the actual service delivery. Broadly, this will involve engaging a qualified educator, undertaking home inspections, monitoring service delivery and undertaking Child Care Subsidy related activities such as submission of child care attendance records and making Additional Child Care Subsidy claims.
While the In Home Care Support Agencies will provide general support and professional development opportunities to educators, In Home Care Services will be responsible for their employment arrangements including verifying the necessary documentary evidence relating to qualifications and checks.
How are In Home Care Support Agencies being selected?
In Home Care Support Agencies will be selected through an open tender process.The Request for Tender (RFT) for In Home Care Support Agencies closed on 2 February 2018.
Who can become an In Home Care Service?
To be able to provide In Home Care, services will need to be approved for the Child Care Subsidy to provide In Home Care, and be operated by a provider approved under the family assistance law.
Information on becoming an approved childcare service can be found on the department’s website at:
How does a provider/service become an In Home Care Service?
In Home Care can only be provided by Approved Providers and Approved Services. Providers and services approved under the previous In Home Care program will be deemed to be approved for the Child Care Subsidy from 2 July 2018. Providers that have been approved for the Child Care Subsidy to offer other types of approved child care and wishing to offer In Home Care must also obtain a separate service approval for In Home Care. Further information for providers can be found on the department’s website at:
Once the In Home Care Support Agencies are established, they will contact all existing service providers (those currently providing In Home Care) to discuss their options, and should they wish to continue to provide In Home Care post 2 July 2018, they will register these services as potential In Home Care providers.
Details of the In Home Care Support Agencies will be published on the department’s website.
Is there an operational subsidy available for In Home Care Services?
Services providing In Home Care from 2 July 2018 will not receive an operational subsidy as has previously been the case, but may be able to claim some travel expenses for site visits.Reimbursement for travel costs to services is limited to only locations classified as Outer Regional, Remote and/or Very Remote. Travel costs will be reimbursed by the In Home Care Support Agency. Further details will be provided in the In Home CareHandbook.
Interim Standards
Will the Interim Standards be updated?
The Interim Standards for In Home Care were published in 2008 and set the minimum requirements for quality for In Home Care. These standards are in the process of being updated to reflect the revised In Home Care service type and the broader Child Care Package. The new standards will be legislated through an amendment to the Child Care Subsidy Minister’s Rules in the first half of 2018.
Transition
What is the role of the Transition Consultant?
The department has appointed a Transition Consultant, Pricewaterhouse Coopers, who will contact existing In Home Care and Nanny Pilot Programme families to identify their care needs, and assist them to transition to new care arrangements with the least possible disruption.During that process, families will be supported to understand how the new child care package and In Home Care arrangements impact on them and the process for transition.
The Transition Consultant will contact the family as part of a needs analysis exercise. Where a family has complex needs, the Transition Consultant will develop a Family Transition Plan to capture the complex care needs.
The Transition Consultant will identify possible referral pathways to other suitable services that may meet the family’s needs. This could include other approved child care types, disability support and maternal and child health services.
In some cases, In Home Care may be a transitional arrangement, noting children benefit from mixing with their peers.
Once the In Home Care Support Agencies are established, these agencies and the Transition Consultant will work together in the initial phase. The In Home Care Support Agencies will contact the families for whom there are no Family Transition Plans in place, and develop Family Management Plans that identify their education and care needs and requirements for other support services, including potential sources of support services.
The In Home Care Support Agencies will then match families to services, and where appropriate identify possible referral pathways to other family support services.
When will the Transition Consultant contact services and families?
The Transition Consultant will begin contacting services and families from early February 2018.
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