Green Umbrella
Family Handbook
2024
Green Umbrella Contact Details:
Email: greenoshc@gmail.com
Mobile: 0468 371 342 during session times
Website: https://www.greenumbrella.nsw.edu.au
About:
Green Umbrella OSHC Inc. provides not-for-profit Outside of School Hours Care (OSHC) to primary school children from the age of 5 to 13 years and is located on the grounds of Kinma School, Terrey Hills.
Green Umbrella offers permanent, casual or emergency care at short notice after school on selected days and vacation care on select days during school holidays. The $25 per year enrolment fee per child also entitles you to membership of Green Umbrella OSHC Inc.
A maximum of 30 children attend each session, with average attendance of 15-20, with two staff members present at each session.
Green Umbrella OSHC Inc. was established in 2018 as a not-for-profit association, formed and led by Kinma families. This means the children are being nurtured in OSHC in a way which is aligned with how they are taught and cared for within school hours.
Green Umbrella is a relaxed environment where children have free choice about how to spend their time. Green Umbrella has the use of the Kinma school hall as its indoor space and the use of all playground areas.
Many children choose to use their time at Green Umbrella as “backyard time”, where they spend unstructured time playing outdoors with friends. Children also enjoy engaging in art and craft activities, reading books, doing gardening, listening to music, resting, playing chess and other indoor games, assisting with the preparation and serving of afternoon tea or, most commonly, a combination of everything!
Green Umbrella programs reflect a nationally approved framework called “My Time Our Place” (found online at http://www.mytimeourplace.com). This approach provides children with choice and control during dynamic sessions of meaningful play and leisure opportunities that support their well-being and learning.
Although Green Umbrella is a relaxed environment we ensure that we meet legislation and the specific needs of the school-aged children. In our 2020 assessment, Green Umbrella was rated as Exceeding the National Quality Standard by the NSW Department of Education.
All staff members have obtained a Working with Children Check and at least one person at each shift has Child Protection, First Aid, Asthma and Anaphylaxis Training.
Please see this link for information about the National Quality Standards and information for contact details should you have any concerns or complaints about the service. http://acecqa.gov.au/national-quality-framework/the-national-quality-standard
Green Umbrella is a Child Care Subsidy (CCS) approved service, so eligible families can apply through Centrelink to have their OSHC cost reduced if they are eligible.
Hours of operation:
After School Care: 3.00 pm to 6.00 pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.
Vacation care on select days from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm.
Kinma staff will send all children enrolled on the day at Green Umbrella to the school hall for sign in at 3pm.
Please note children must be signed out of Green Umbrella by 6:00 pm. Late pick ups will incur an additional fee as outlined further in this booklet under “Late pick up fees”.
Before School Care is not currently offered. Our hours and days of operation may expand in future, depending on demand.
Our Philosophy:
It is our belief that children learn through play and that allowing children time to participate in unstructured, child-led play is essential to children’s development and learning. Children at Green Umbrella are free to choose how they spend their OSHC time and Green Umbrella staff support children to participate in their chosen activity by fostering and modelling mutual respect, open communication and conflict resolution skills.
As Green Umbrella has the same philosophy as Kinma we are able to provide the children with a relatively seamless transition between OSHC and their school time, something which is fostered by open communication between Green Umbrella staff and Kinma staff. Green Umbrella works within the agreements and procedures of Kinma wherever possible and aims to continue the philosophy of progressive education.
It is our aim to provide a safe, nurturing, fun, “home-away-from-home” environment for children to spend their out of school hours time. We aim to strengthen children’s creativity by offering a range of engaging arts and crafts activities. We aim to strengthen their connection to, and respect for, the natural environment by incorporating natural crafts and science into our programming. We aim to strengthen children’s care for their bodies by promoting healthy eating and physical activity. We encourage managed risk taking in physical play. We promote mental well-being by promoting supportive relationships, open communication and conflict resolution.
We celebrate a diverse range of cultures, languages and traditions with our children at Green Umbrella, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander culture, and welcome children and families to share their experiences, traditions and languages with us all at the service. Families are a big part of our whole at Green Umbrella and we thrive on community and family involvement. Parent volunteers are encouraged and we celebrate and welcome parent involvement at the service.
Our Goals:
∙ For children to enjoy themselves.
∙ To assist children to appreciate and care for each other and their surroundings.
∙ To provide healthy food.
∙ To encourage children to be active through the provision of age appropriate, active and stimulating programs.
∙ To implement a balanced program which develops new skills involving the areas of craft, physical activities, reading, fine and gross motor skills and life skills.
∙ To provide a friendly, caring and safe environment, fostering each child’s growth and development, as well as nurturing each child’s self-esteem.
∙ To appropriately meet the guidelines as set by the National Quality Standards.
Fees and bookings:
Annual enrolment fee for one or all services: | $25 per child (per year) |
Before school care: | To be advised |
After school care permanent bookings: | $38.00 per child per day |
After school care casual bookings: | $45.00 per child per day |
Special rate: day rate for permanent before and after school care on the same day: | To be advised |
Vacation care: | To be advised |
Late pick up fee | $15 for the first 10 minutes or part thereof, and $1 per minute after this per child |
There are no refunds on cancellation or non-attendance.
BOOKINGS RULES
Non- attendance for permanent bookings and vacation care bookings:
Fees:
Fees are invoiced via email on a fortnightly basis. Green Umbrella, as a not-for-profit organisation, relies on fees to run the service. Fees must be paid via direct debit fortnightly either from your bank account or your credit card. Please note that fees may apply. Cash payments are not accepted.
Green Umbrella is a CCS (Child Care Subsidy) registered service and eligible families will have any benefits or rebates deducted from their invoice prior to payment in order to keep fees as low as possible for families. In order for this to occur, parents need to register for the Child Care Subsidy and provide Green Umbrella with the Centrelink Customer Reference Numbers (CRNs) for the enrolled child and also for the parent to whom that child is linked in the Centrelink database. Any enrolment errors associated with Centrelink must be rectified by the family as Green Umbrella is not able to act on behalf of children or families.
Fees are paid for the days that a child is booked into Green Umbrella irrespective of attendance. If we receive sufficient advance notice of an absence for health reasons or pre-booked holidays and we are able to offer this vacancy to another child then the fee for this day may be deducted from your invoice.
Please contact Green Umbrella by mobile: 0468 371 342 or email: greenoshc@gmail.com for notification of any absences ASAP. If we are not informed of your child’s absence we will be left looking for them at school unnecessarily. Searching for your child can cause a great deal of stress and worry for Green Umbrella staff, especially if we are unable to locate them due to them being away without us being informed of their absence.
Late Pick Up Fees:
Children must be collected from Green Umbrella by 6.00 pm. Green Umbrella closes at 6.00pm sharp, signing your child/ren out after this time will incur a late fee of $15 for the first 10 minutes or part thereof, and $1 per minute after this per child. The penalty fee must be paid with the next invoice.
If a child has not been collected from Green Umbrella by 6.00pm with no notification, staff will attempt to contact parents and then all of the emergency numbers on the child’s enrolment form.
Xplor app for bookings and administration
Bookings and payments for Green Umbrella are administered via an external software provider, Xplor. Fees are charged via Debitsuccess direct debit and this is set up via the Xplor app which all parents are required to download. Upon enrolment, you will be provided with an email invitation to register with the app and set up your direct debit.
Daily Routine:
Our weekly program is sent to all parents at the start of each week. For updates on the daily and weekly programs and activities of the children please see our floor book/ journal or come and have a chat to any of Green Umbrella staff members.
The afternoon provides a relaxed atmosphere for children where they are free to make choices and decisions about what they want to participate in. At 3.00 pm all enrolled children are signed into Green Umbrella for the afternoon. A fruit and veggie platter and snacks are offered on arrival as well a second snack around 4.45 pm. Children are encouraged to drink water during the session. Please ensure that Green Umbrella is aware of any food allergies or religious restrictions your child may have.
Departure of Children:
On departure please ensure that your child is signed out and a staff member is aware that you are collecting your child.
If your child is to be collected by anyone other than yourself, he/she must be named on the enrolment form as having authorisation to collect your child, or has a signed note/email from the parent nominating them to collect their child on the day, which must be given to a staff member or sent to greenoshc@gmail.com.
In the event of a new person collecting, they will be asked to present photo ID to staff upon collection.
Written authorisation must be given in the child’s enrolment form if children have permission to leave the service themselves. In this case, the Coordinator would sign the child out of the service.
Green Umbrella is not permitted to allow your child to leave the centre with anyone under the age of 16 years, nor someone who is not authorised to collect the child. You will be contacted if these requirements are not met.
If written consent is provided for children participating in extra- curricular activities which are taking place on school grounds, a staff member will ensure the child gets safely to the activity on time, and will sign the child out, where necessary.
Enrolment Procedures:
To enrol a child in GU, an enrolment form must be completed and annual enrolment fee be paid. The enrolment form can be found here: https://www.greenumbrella.nsw.edu.au/#enrolment
Permanent and Casual Bookings:
Permanent bookings will automatically rollover to the next term (including from Term 4 one year to Term 1 the following year) unless the parent notifies the service otherwise.
If you require your child to attend a session which has not been booked, you must send Green Umbrella an email at greenoshc@gmail.com or text Green Umbrella mobile: 0468 371 342. Please understand that Green Umbrella is granted a limited number of places (30 each session) by the government and we are unable to exceed this number.
Casual bookings can only be accepted if the child has a completed Green Umbrella enrolment form and space is available.
Non-Attendance – All Bookings:
Parents must notify Green Umbrella (Ph: 0468 371 342 or email greenoshc@gmail.com) if a child is not attending or if the child has been taken home from school during the day (we cannot accept information via the child’s sibling).
If your child is absent without explanation you will be contacted to confirm the whereabouts of your child. If you cannot be reached, we will contact the emergency contacts listed on the child’s enrolment form.
Accident Policy:
Staff will assess accidents/situations and, if minor, provide basic first aid to the injury. If there is doubt to the extent of the injury or how the situation should be handled, an ambulance will be immediately called.
Any major incident that occurs at Green Umbrella will have an accident/incident report completed by a staff member. The incident will be dated and the name of the staff member who saw the accident occur will be included. The parent must read and sign the report stating that they were informed of what occurred and what treatment was implemented.
If a child becomes ill or is injured in circumstances which require immediate medical attention, all reasonable steps will be taken without delay. The parent or legal guardian will be notified immediately.
Infectious Disease:
Green Umbrella cannot care for children with infectious diseases such as measles, mumps, chicken pox, influenza, Covid19, fever, virus or vomiting, in order to maintain a healthy environment for families and staff.
If your child has any symptoms of the above-mentioned infections whilst in our care, you, or emergency contacts, will be contacted to collect the child immediately.
Medication:
If a child is undergoing medical treatment and requires medication, the following procedures must be adhered to:
Important:
∙ Medication must be brought to Green Umbrella in the original packaging, in date, with the child’s name and clear instructions on the label from the doctor.
∙ No medication prescribed to another person will be administered.
∙ Any spill, reaction or refusal to take medication will be recorded.
∙ Staff will ideally accept only the daily requirement/dose of medication per day, where practical.
Medical Plans – Asthma and Anaphylaxis
If a child enrolled at OSHC has a specific health care need, allergy or other relevant medical condition, parents/carers will be provided with a copy of the management of medical conditions policy. Green Umbrella requires medical plans signed by the child’s medical practitioner. Alternatively, if the child has a current medical plan for Kinma, a copy may be taken to display in the hall. (These medical plans must be reviewed annually). Where a child has been diagnosed as at risk of a medical condition, a notice stating the condition and the management of this condition will be displayed in the hall kitchen for educators to follow.
Photographs:
Photographs are taken at Green Umbrella in order to evaluate programs and show parents the types of activities in which children have participated. These photographs may be displayed throughout the hall and may also be used in documents which are sent home to families attending Green Umbrella and Kinma. We also use the Xplor app where we share photos and updates with parents and carers. Please inform Green Umbrella in writing if you do not wish to have your child’s photographs in documents and/or you do not wish for your child’s photograph to be taken.
Lost Property:
Please label your child’s belongings, as we do not take responsibility for lost items. All items left in Green Umbrella will be placed in the school’s lost property.
Smoke Free Workplace:
By law, smoking is prohibited on the school grounds, including Green Umbrella.
Fire Safety and Evacuation Drill:
In Green Umbrella we have an evacuation plan that follows the same procedures as at Kinma.
We conduct fire/evacuation drills with the children regularly; the children are made aware of the fire drill procedures and when drills will occur. Spontaneous drill will occur during the later stages of the year, once children become accustomed to the drills.
A drill will be conducted in the following manner:
We can never be too prepared for evacuation.
Each drill is assessed and recorded with comments, how long the process took and what improvements need to occur at the next drill. If any child does not cooperate or act appropriately during the drill, their parents will be informed.
In case of a real emergency, ‘000’ will be called immediately. GU staff will notify school manager and follow processes in the Emergency/Evacuation policy.
Green Umbrella will also follow Kinma School’s direction with regard to closure in the event of extreme fire danger warnings for the surrounding area.
Exclusion for Out of School Hours Care
a) If the Nominated Supervisor considers that a student has engaged in a serious breach of the rules or has otherwise engaged in conduct which is prejudicial to the running of the OSHC program or its students or staff, the Nominated Supervisor may exclude the student permanently or temporarily at their absolute discretion.
b) If the Green Umbrella Board believes that a mutually beneficial relationship of trust and co-operation between a parent and Service has broken down to the extent that it adversely impacts on that relationship, then Green Umbrella OSHC and the Board may require the parent to remove the child from OSHC.
c) Green Umbrella OSHC will only exercise its powers under this clause to exclude a pupil permanently if it has provided the pupil and the parents or guardians of the pupil with details of the conduct which may result in a decision to exclude the pupil and provided them with a reasonable opportunity to respond.
No remission of fees will apply in relation to any of the above cases
Management:
The Approved Provider for Green Umbrella is Kinma Ltd, but Green Umbrella OSHC Inc. is the Approved Service Provider. Green Umbrella OSHC is a not-for-profit business which is run separately to Kinma Primary and Preschool. Green Umbrella reports once per school term to Kinma School Board and has a transparent relationship with the school. Green Umbrella OSHC Inc. has a separate Board and parents are members of the association and are eligible to stand for election to the Board at the AGM of the association.
Staffing at Green Umbrella:
Green Umbrella is staffed to ensure that there is a smooth transition between OSHC and school time for the children. Green Umbrella meet all legal requirements in their staffing. All staff members have a working with children check clearance and there is a staff member rostered on shift at all times who has:
Parent Involvement:
When external circumstances permit, parents are always welcome and encouraged to spend time at the centre to watch or play with their children. We also encourage parents to assist in increasing our knowledge of their own individual cultures and family traditions so Green Umbrella will be better equipped at incorporating them into our service program.
We recognise and appreciate that parents are very busy and as a result require childcare. However, we do encourage your input and participation wherever possible. Please feel free to comment or provide feedback with all areas of Green Umbrella, as we greatly value your ideas and observations.
Vacation Care:
Green Umbrella currently provides Vacation care most pupil free days prior to term starting and hopes to expand this into the future should there be sufficient demand. Vacation Care runs from 9.00 am to 3.00 pm and children are provided with morning and afternoon tea but are required to bring their own lunch.
To make Vacation Care as much fun as possible we may run additional activities during this time which may incur an additional cost to families which would be payable alongside their regular fees.