Proudly part of the community since 1978, Bankstown Occasional Care is a Not-for-Profit organisation run occasional child care centre in the heart of Bankstown for children aged 6 weeks to 8 years.
BACKGROUND
Bankstown Occasional Care has been proudly part of the community since 1988, providing high quality care to meet the ever changing needs of families and for fun, reliable and safe child care in day to day life. It is run by Allevia, an organisation that aims to make life easier by working alongside people and families.
Bankstown Occasional Care moved to our new centre in 2012 where it is conveniently located in the Bankstown Women’s and Children’s Health Centre, alongside the Child and Family Information Hub, Immunisation Clinic and below the Women’s Health Centre.
OUR SERVICE
We cater for Children & Infants aged 6 weeks to 8 years
Bankstown Occasional Care has:
• A new purpose built centre
• Bi-lingual staff
• Above regulation high staff to child ratios
• Home like, high quality environment & facilities
• Specialised staff in children’s education and care; disability and medical needs
• Extensive experience in catering for individual needs
• Partnerships with local community organisations
• Access to additional support, funding and equipment for those families in need
• A large range of flexible bookings options
• Discounted fees options for families and regular users of the service
• Family grouping
OUR VISION
Bankstown Occasional Care is a service that makes family life easier, and contributes to a society where everyone can make choices about how they live their lives.
OUR MISSION
We work alongside families to enhance their ability to live and participate in the community.
OUR ROLE
We provide fun, flexible, and personalised child care in a home-like environment where each child feels safe and secure.
OUR PHILOSOPHY
We believe that all children should be treated as unique individuals and nurtured to promote their overall well-being. We believe in having a strong partnership with families, which respects and values their needs.
We believe that as a service to families we are part of a greater community that honours the necessary connection to the local community for families and individuals and facilitates participation. We promote an inclusive and an anti-bias approach through role modelling and practice, and accept children and families regardless of their ability; gender; sexuality; socio-economic status; culture, race, or religion. At all times staff ensure every child and family is treated with respect.
We strive to deliver children’s programmes that aim to integrate care and education. This approach ensures our service is able to respond to the individual needs of children and families. We plan programmes that cater for the children’s age, stage and ability, and provide a positive environment to promote active learning and development through play.
We believe in the replication of a home-like environment, where children will thrive through the development of a sense of security away from home and their family. This environment is established not only in the physical setting of the service, but also through tailoring to individual routines and needs for familiarity in cultural, language and family interactions. Staff use warmth and positive guidance, giving clear guidelines to promote self-discipline and predictability in their expectations of what happens at the service. Staff acknowledge the importance of attachment for children’s growth and well-being, and encourage bonds and positive relationships between staff and children.
CHILD CARE BOOKINGS
Bankstown Occasional Care offers a range of flexible booking options to meet the needs of the local community.
These are:
• Permanent and regular booking options in half or full day sessions that are booked in advance for a guaranteed period of time.
• Casual and occasional bookings options, that can be taken up to 4 weeks in advance but can be made on the day of care subject to availability.
Each type of booking comes with its own guidelines and fee payments, and all families are encouraged to discuss their care needs with the Authorised Supervisor to ensure the right booking type is provided for you and your family.
GETTING STARTED AT THE CENTRE
Enrolments are taken by appointment only and can be arranged by phoning or emailing the centre. This is to ensure that the staff have enough time to give you all the information you need; give you a tour of the centre and get to know how we can best support you and your family. Visits to the centre to assist your child get used to the environment with you and ease their entry to child care with short bookings to start with are encouraged.
This information is excerpts of Bankstown Occasional Care Policies, all families will receive the full policies and information in the Bankstown Occasional Care Family Handbook on enrolment.
Please visit our website or contact the centre if you would like more information about Bankstown Occasional Care services.
For more information about Allevia, please see the Allevia website or Facebook page:
www.allevia.org.au
www.facebook.com/TheAlleviaGroup