Aussie Childcare Network Forum

Sometimes the only thing to do is take a deep breath, count to ten and then get control of the situation for the day, however seems best. I do have the option of calling the office, but that's a last resort and, should it ever come to that, I'd be filling termination papers at once.

Honestly, parents tend to be more difficult to deal with then their children. The kids are much more likely to, eventually, accept that I'm in charge then their parents - who are, on adverage a foot taller and ten years older then I am.

I've found natural and appropriate concequences work well with maintaining disipline. For example, I had one little girl insist that she was too tired to help with our afternoon tidy up. So I gave her a choice - She could either help tidy the room, or she could go to the sleep room and lie down - but she was not to take any toys or books with her. I also told her that, if that was her choice, then next week she would have to take a nap with the other napping children instead of staying awake for quiet activities. She choose the sleep room and daily naps next week.

I suspect that she'll be less eager for a nap next week, but she'll be taking one for awhile. While I'm pretty sure she was actually just wanting to get out of tidy up time, following through on what I say is important. And if she really was tired at 2:45 pm, then she'd benefit from a nap after lunch.

~Ann

Thank you so much for this insightful and helpful information. I am looking into commencing my career in FDC and this was really informatve

Hi Lorina,

Thanks for referring me to this forum, it's really very informative. I really like the idea of catching up with other FDC educators.

Thanks for sharing experience.

shree wrote:Hi Lorina,

Thanks for referring me to this forum, it's really very informative. I really like the idea of catching up with other FDC educators.

Thanks for sharing experience.

You're welcome!

It's great to actually hear first hand on what goes into setting up an FDC service!

,
Lorina

Thank you Lorina for sharing experiences and information.
Great help to me!

I have recently been thinking of opening a family day care and found this thread which has been very informative! I emailed my landlord today asking permission to do FDC so cross your fingers for me!

All the best Janea, some schemes have a special letter for landlords explaining the system and what we do, it might be an idea to look at a scheme near you and get that letter from them for your landlord.

Linsaa fdc

janea wrote:I have recently been thinking of opening a family day care and found this thread which has been very informative! I emailed my landlord today asking permission to do FDC so cross your fingers for me!

That's great! I really hope it goes well!

Let me know if you need information, assistance, support etc.

Happy to help!

,
Lorina

Hi all,

Can you please let me know whether there is a difference when you apply for FDC provider and FDC educator?

Hi Ole,

A provider is the actual registered scheme that we as educators work through.

Linsaa fdc

Sorry for budding in guys!
I have completed my Cert III and my Diploma. But I am not getting any job... whatever I apply for, I am getting unsuccessful.
So I have decided to start my own family day care at home... I have read this thread. But I don’t know what is the very first step!
First of all... i completed my diploma end of last year. And I haven’t started working.
The only money I have is from centerlink, fortnightly I get $550. I give $300 at home because my parents are also struggling... the $200 i use on my phone bills, and personal expenses... $200 is not enough for a person for 2 weeks.
Anyway, I really want to start my own family day care at home, but I don’t have the money to! I dont know what I can do to start.
I read here that we have to speak to the council here. I live with my mum dad and brother.
My mum is a full time house wife, dad works, and brother works as well, but we’re not in a condition to apply for a loan (we recently made a new house) that’s why we’re struggling. Anyways, Whom can I ask for guidance to start ny own family day care... what is the step by step guide I need to follow...
please tell me someone! I am from Melbourne. VIC!

Hi Nemodori!
Whereabouts in Melbourne are you?
Have you tried a childcare agency that could be another option for you besides fdc
You could volunteer to get some experience and then apply.
Fdc does require a lot of sacrifices and there are a lot of things to consider, it’s a serious commitment to have a miniature childcare centre in your house with your family, I would suggest you take your time and discuss with them first.
Starting an fdc will cost you a decent amount of money mostly on formalities such as first aid qualifications, child proofing and insurance.

If you want to start a fdc you need to have:
- At least a certificate in Certificate Ill level education and care qualification
- Current first aid and CPR certificates and training in the emergency management of asthma and anaphylaxis.
Your mum, dad, brother, yourself and any other resident of the house 18 years and over will also require:
- Appropriate clearances for working with children (working with children check) AND
- A national police check (must be no more than 6 months old)

If you have the above or are willing to get it then you need to:
- Work out the demand for care in your area and have some idea of how you might enrol children and families into care and
- Have the room to create safe play spaces/areas + some equipment & resources, then
- Join a scheme and complete their processes, finally you must
- Purchase and maintain current public liability insurance when you open

You can look for a scheme who will place children and families with you so you do not need to find them, however this depends on the scheme, demand in your area, other care available and so on.
Not all schemes have a wait list, are willing to promote their scheme and help their educators with enrolments.
Moreover they may not need to as the educators do this for themselves or have little to no vacancies as they have established themselves in their area much like a centre, kinder or school would.
You don't have to speak with your council in Victoria to start an fdc, unless the scheme you join is council run.



That’s basically what you need to start, unfortunately there are some expenses you will have to cover yourself, at the very least I would estimate up to $500 (if you have substantial changes to make to your home or other unexpected major out of pocket cost)
Otherwise you are looking at around the $200-$300 range to start a fdc which is not a huge amount to begin a small business from home.
If you a really frugal you may even be able to spend less than $200.
I would also recommend new fdc educators open their business at the start of the financial year, as opposed to the calendar year

If you have any questions feel free to ask!

Thank you so much for your response!
I am in the new side of Diggers Rest - near Sunbury! Yes I have tried childcare agency, in fact, I worked with McArthur childcare agency in 2016-2017 as a cert III educator. They started giving me very less shifts and told me that they require more of diploma qualified. So I ended up enrolling myself into a diploma course. I finished my diploma in end of 2018, all this time McArthur never gave me a shift. Anyway, once I completed, I emailed my consultant at McArthur and told her that I have completed my diploma and I am willing to start again, she called me and told me the last time you worked with us was in 2017. We may need to start all over again, so we did! I had to take an interview again... I did it, very well! She was very happy as well, but she said that my reference is very old (from 2016) and that I need 2 new ones.
She told me she needed a manager reference and someone who I recently worked with. I told her the last time I worked was with your company as an agency. And the only thing I have done is my diploma placement.
She saw my resume again and said you did your placement in April 2018, there’s a high chance that your manager might not remember you. I need you to go in to the Center you did your placement at and see if the manager can remember you or not. If yes, take her reference. And if not, then you might need to take 30 hours of placement somewhere.
I agreed.... so I eventually went to my placement Center and my bad luck that the manager didn’t remember me. But the educators did. So I took 3 educators who were my supervisors during placement! I took their reference. I emailed my consultant at McArthur and she strictly told me that I failed to provide her a manager reference and that good luck on applying for other jobs ... she rejected me. I emailed her back asking if I can do the 30 hours of placement, I got a reply back next day saying she’s gone for a leave and will reply in 2 weeks.
I replied saying I will be waiting for your response.
Eventually 3 weeks passed and she never got back to me. I emailed her again and she replied saying sorry, you’ve failed the requirements to be successful....
I cried so much, because of her I wasted nearly a whole month doing this and that. Anyway, I simply got rejected because I did’t have a manager reference. But I do have 3 new reference on my resume, with who I did my diploma placement with...

So yes I have tried childcare agency. I have applied for other childcare agency’s in Melbourne, but no response yet!

I have cert III and diploma. I don’t want to waste my qualifications. I want to do something!
Yes me and my family have discussed about me starting a family day care, they’re all in support of me. We have a theatre room, a pretty good size, but we haven’t set up anything in there yet. So I am willing to choose that room for my fdc. My house is newly built, so we don’t have a lot of junk related things in my house, neither we have any sharp-cornered furniture, I feel children are safe in my house.
Thank you for guiding me, i will update you all on what my process is
Thank you

Butterflyblue wrote: ↑

Fri Jun 21, 2019 10:59 am

Hi Nemodori!
Whereabouts in Melbourne are you?
Have you tried a childcare agency that could be another option for you besides fdc
You could volunteer to get some experience and then apply.
Fdc does require a lot of sacrifices and there are a lot of things to consider, it’s a serious commitment to have a miniature childcare centre in your house with your family, I would suggest you take your time and discuss with them first.
Starting an fdc will cost you a decent amount of money mostly on formalities such as first aid qualifications, child proofing and insurance.

If you want to start a fdc you need to have:
- At least a certificate in Certificate Ill level education and care qualification
- Current first aid and CPR certificates and training in the emergency management of asthma and anaphylaxis.
Your mum, dad, brother, yourself and any other resident of the house 18 years and over will also require:
- Appropriate clearances for working with children (working with children check) AND
- A national police check (must be no more than 6 months old)

If you have the above or are willing to get it then you need to:
- Work out the demand for care in your area and have some idea of how you might enrol children and families into care and
- Have the room to create safe play spaces/areas + some equipment & resources, then
- Join a scheme and complete their processes, finally you must
- Purchase and maintain current public liability insurance when you open

You can look for a scheme who will place children and families with you so you do not need to find them, however this depends on the scheme, demand in your area, other care available and so on.
Not all schemes have a wait list, are willing to promote their scheme and help their educators with enrolments.
Moreover they may not need to as the educators do this for themselves or have little to no vacancies as they have established themselves in their area much like a centre, kinder or school would.
You don't have to speak with your council in Victoria to start an fdc, unless the scheme you join is council run.



That’s basically what you need to start, unfortunately there are some expenses you will have to cover yourself, at the very least I would estimate up to $500 (if you have substantial changes to make to your home or other unexpected major out of pocket cost)
Otherwise you are looking at around the $200-$300 range to start a fdc which is not a huge amount to begin a small business from home.
If you a really frugal you may even be able to spend less than $200.
I would also recommend new fdc educators open their business at the start of the financial year, as opposed to the calendar year

If you have any questions feel free to ask!

That’s terrible! Was actually going to recommend MacArthur as they have a lot of contracts with private and council work.
I’m actually not too far from you!
I’d highly recommend you call Our Village Family Childcare, they are based in Sunbury and are currently rated as exceeding the NQS.
They have a wonderful program, friendly staff and great perks for both educators plus the children and their families.
They also help out with resources and equipment which is fantastic

Choosing your scheme is the most important decision after starting a fdc so choose wisely!

Our Village is a safe option amongst many private schemes in the area
They select high quality educators and are compliant - which is something you must always be aware of, even after you start work.
(I haven’t worked for them now, or in the past but know a few of the educators and staff)

Just make sure you have an outdoor space available too.
If you want to see what family daycare educators get up to and what their setups are like have a look at Instagram:


Let me know how you go and if you have any questions at all!

Wow this is very useful!
Thank you so much
I might want to save up a little first. We are due to do landscaping very soon, I might try to save up as much as I can before I would start! Thank you so much for your advice! I am looking forward to this
Take care

Thank you Butterfly Blue

You’re very welcome!
Give our village a call they are definitely one of the best schemes in the state and you’re very lucky they’re in your area!
Good luck and let me know how you go

Hey! I had contacted Our Village, and they responded back with a positive response!
Gave me some forms to fill out etc. and soon I am going to submit them!! I have changed my plans a little - instead of starting my own FDC, I would want to work as a registered educator via our village first, for few years, I would like to work/earn then slowly start my own!
I was just wondering if anyone knew FDC wages of each children per hour or each child per day?

Butterflyblue wrote: ↑

Fri Jun 21, 2019 5:55 pm

You’re very welcome!
Give our village a call they are definitely one of the best schemes in the state and you’re very lucky they’re in your area!
Good luck and let me know how you go

I accidentally replied to the post instead of replying you! Do check it out