Effective: 1st January 2015, for the school year, unless otherwise advised as per the terms of this policy.

 

Why fees are necessary?

In the past St Kevin’s has struggled to operate an Out of Hours School Care due to low numbers and high care costs. We meet all of our operational costs through fees and can only purchase new equipment through grants and fundraising. St. Kevin’s Out of Hours School Care provides a range of support options for parents/guardians experiencing difficulty with paying fees.

How fees are set?
As part of the budget development process, the committee sets fees for the programs for the following year (prior to enrolment), taking into consideration:
• Financial viability
• Fees charged by similar centres in the area
• Level of government funding provided for the program
• Availability of other income sources, such as grants
• Capacity of parents/guardians to pay
• Reasonable expenditure, ensuring agreed program quality/standards
• Requirements of the Child Care Management System (CCMS).
Fees set for the year would only be reviewed in extraordinary circumstances; for example, if attendance rates fall below the budget ‘break even’ point. 

Other charges
Member Enrolment/Re-Enrolment Administration Fee: To meet the cost of running and updating our enrolment and financial systems which allow government child care rebates to be processed we charge a member enrolment fee and a re-enrolment administration fee.  This is $30 per family upon first enrolment and $20 per family for each additional year they re-enrol in the service.  These fees are refundable within 14 days of enrolling if you cancel your membership.

 

Late collection charge: A late collection of children charge applies when parents/guardians are frequently late in collecting a child/ren. In these situations, after a reminder from the staff member, if the parents/guardians/carer are between:

• 5 and 15 minutes late, a fee of $1 for every minute, or part thereof will apply, and

• after 15 minutes the charge will be $10 for every 5 minutes or part thereof. This will be invoiced by the committee. 

 

Refundable levy: The committee is committed to making St Kevin’s Out of Hours School Care affordable for all families and providing families with access to all subsidies, hence no refundable levy’s are currently being charged. E.g. working bees

Ezi Debit Fee for default payments: If Ezi debit are unable to deduct amounts from your nominated account due to insufficient funds than a $10 default payment fee will automatically charge your account.

 

Child Care Benefits

The federal government through the Department of Education Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) provide child care assistance for out of hours school care.  Most families are eligible for one of the two types of assistance: the Child Care Benefit (CCB) and Child Care Rebate (CCR).  There is an income test for CCB but not for CCR, so you may still be eligible for CCR regardless of your income.

 

St. Kevin’s Out of Hours School Care is an ‘accredited’ service so parents can receive government support for the under the Federal governments “Child Care Management System”(CCMS), as long as the family register with DEEWR for the benefit and advise the centre of their CRN.

 

​Refunds

Fees are non-refundable (exceptional circumstances may apply). There will be no refund of fees due to a child’s short-term illness; family holiday during operational times; closure of the Centre for one or more days when a qualified staff member is absent and a qualified reliever is not available; closure of the Centre for staff training days; or closure of the Centre due to extreme and unavoidable circumstances.

 

Payment of accounts 
Fees will be invoiced and emailed to parents/guardians directly.  Parents are then asked to ensure their bank account/credit card has the amount to be charged available as you will be direct debited by the date indicated on the invoice by ezi-debit.  For a schedule of our invoicing and direct debit dates please click here. This is a secure service which authorises ezi-debit to automatically pay monies due to St Kevin’s Out of Hours School Care from your nominated bank account (or credit card).  See www.ezidebit.com.au

 

Parents may nominate a bank account or a credit card for payment. OHSC absorbs the cost of credit card transactions for master and visa card but NOT for American Express or Diners cards. They attract an additional fee of 4.4% (or min of $0.88 cents will be charged) . Any other forms of payment must be approved by the Treasurer.

If you are experiencing financial hardship, please contact the Treasurer to discuss payment options.

 

​Support services

Families experiencing financial hardship often require access to family support services.  The committee can enlist the support of these services if required.

​Unpaid fees

If fees not paid by the due date, this will usually mean there was sufficient money in the direct debit bank account to meet the invoiced cost.  In this instance fees from ezidebit will apply.  

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The treasurer will be followed up by:
• An initial reminder letter is sent stating fees are overdue, giving 5 working days for payment or provide alternative bank account. 
• If payment is not received, families will be invited to attend a meeting to discuss a payment plan and a range of support options available.
• Failure to attend the meeting and continued non-payment will result in a suspension of your membership and your child/ren will not be able to attend the Centre until fees are paid in full.
• If invoices continue to be unpaid and families do not contact the Treasurer, families may be stopped from attending the Centre on a permanent basis.
• The committee will continue to offer support and reserves the right to employ the services of a debt collector.
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A copy of the full policy is available here