Terms and Conditions
Staff Ratios
The staff/child ratio will be as follows:
At the centre 1:10
On excursions 1:8
At the pool 1:5
There will always be a minimum of two staff unless an exception has been granted by the Ministry of Social Development. All staff have experience and/or training in school age childcare and/or recreation. Children will be informed of the boundaries they are expected to stay within at all times and must inform a staff member if they are going to leave the area (to go to toilet, etc)
Attendance Procedures
Caregivers must sign children out of the programme at the end of the day. During holiday programmes, a caregiver must also sign in their child/ren. Children will not be allowed to leave with an unauthorised adult.
Children will not be permitted to leave Elmwood OSCAR without an adult unless the staff have been given written permission by the child/rens parent or caregiver.
Formal attendance checks will be made during each session. If a child is found to be missing, the following procedure will be followed:
1. Staff will conduct a thorough search.
2. Parents will be contacted.
3. If necessary, the Police will be contacted.
Please note that, if a child is not picked up by the end of the booked session, $20 will be charged for every 15 minutes over this time. This includes short-day sessions during school holidays as well as late pick ups when the programme closes for the day during term time and school holidays.
If a child is uncollected at the end of a programme, the following procedure will be followed:
Two staff members will remain with the child.
Parents and emergency contacts will be contacted.
If there has been no contact with the parents or emergency contacts within one hour of the programme closing, the child will be taken to the nearest Police station. A note will be left at the centre indicating where the child has been taken and the programme co-ordinator will be informed.
During school holiday programme times, parents need to inform OSCAR staff if they will be dropping the child/ren off late or picking them up early. If the group is not at the OSCAR room (e.g., outdoors in the playground) parents must make sure that the staff know that their child/ren has been dropped off. When the group leaves the OSCAR room for an excursion, a note will be left describing their whereabouts.
Bookings, cancellations and non-attendance
Changes to bookings can be made on Enrolmy up to 48 hours before the commencement of a day's activity. For last minute bookings after the cut-off time has been reached, please text the Elmwood OSCAR phone number: 027-733-7209
Once a child's name is on the roll, we expect them to be at the programme unless we have been notified by the parent/caregiver. Cancellations must be made at least 48 hours in advance to avoid being charged. Cancelations made less than 48 hours before the commencement of a day's activity will be charged the full fee unless the place can be filled. Where possible, we will endeavour to find an alternative day if a booking needs to be changed due to unforeseen circumstances.
Absence without notification will be charged the full day's fee.
Work and Income Subsidies
Subsidies are available from Work and Income. Please check to see if you are eligible. Parents will need to pay the balance of fees. Subsidy forms must be filled in, signed by the Supervisor and returned to WINZ before your child starts.
Late applications may not be accepted by WINZ so please ensure that all forms are in before the start of the programme, or full costs will be incurred.
Fees Payable
Invoices are sent every two weeks. Fees must be paid by the due date. If fees are in arrears at the end of the term, a late payment fee of 10% may be charged. If an overdue invoice is not rectified or a suitable repayment plan put in place and adhered to, your account will be forwarded to a debt collection agency. Any expenses incurred by this are payable by you.
All future bookings (including holiday programmes and bookings for the next term) will be subject to paying arrears.
Accident and Emergency Procedures
A first aid kit is kept at the centre and taken on excursions, along with emergency contact numbers.
In the event of any accident the following procedure will be followed:
Staff will immediately inform the other programme assistants on duty.
Appropriate first aid will be administered.
If a child needs medical attention, parents will be contacted to collect their child.
If serious injury occurs, parents will be notified, and an ambulance called.
Minor injuries will be recorded by staff and parents will be notified at the end of the day. For injuries requiring medical attention or when a more serious injury is suspected (e.g., a head injury) a complete accident report will be filled out, which the parent must sign.
Health, Illness and medication
Children presenting signs of illness or medical concern will not be permitted to attend the programme until symptoms are no longer present and the appropriate exclusion period has been completed. This includes, but is not limited to:
- Respiratory infections including influenza, strep throat, and any illness with common cold or COVID-19 like symptoms
- Scabies, school sores, chicken pox, conjunctivitis, or other contagious infections
- Diarrhoea and vomiting
For a complete list of infectious illness and diseases, symptoms, and exclusion periods, please visit this page on the Ministry of Health website.
If a child becomes ill during the programme, they will be made comfortable, put into a quiet area, and the parents will be notified.
Medicine will not be administered unless the Medicine Consent form has been signed by parents. This form must include dosage and be signed by the staff member when they administer the medicine. Parents must check this form daily. All medicine must be labelled showing the child/rens name and dosage.
It is the parent/guardians responsibility to ensure that health and medical condition information is kept up-to-date on Enrolmy. If there is anything our staff need to know about to help support your child, please have a conversation with our staff. Please be aware that we are a small, not-for-profit service with limited staff and facilities and it may not be possible for us to cater for children with complex medical and health conditions. Please consider this carefully when enrolling your child.
Behaviour
Elmwood OSCAR has a behaviour management policy to ensure the optimal level of participant and staff safety is met. Staff promote appropriate behaviour by recognising the children with positive feedback and expressing appreciation of good behaviour. In the case of disruptive behaviour, parents/guardians will be contacted and a behaviour agreement will be implemented.
If a child continues to behave in a manner that is disruptive or endangers themselves, other children, or staff, despite the above measures, parents will be notified by staff and asked to remove their child. In the case of ongoing disruptive or unsafe behaviour, Elmwood OSCAR may exclude the child from the programme.
Concerns and Complaints
If any parents have a concern about the programme, they should first approach a staff member who will attempt to rectify the situation. If a parent or caregiver feels their concerns have not been addressed or if they have a concern about a staff member, they should contact the chairperson of the managing committee member at [email=chairperson@elmwoodoscar.co.nz]chairperson@elmwoodoscar.co.nz[/email]
If you feel that your concern or complaint has not adequately resolved the complaint and is in breach of the Social Services Accreditation Standards, you can email SSA directly at accreditation@tekahuikahu.govt.nz with:
- your name (unless you want to remain anonymous)
- your contact details (unless you want to remain anonymous)
- the organisation's name and address
- details about the complaint.
If you want to remain anonymous, your complaint will be treated with the same level of importance. SSA will not be able to provide feedback for anonymous complaints. Please visit the Ministry of Social Developments Te Kahui Kahu website for further information.
Child Safety
The programme has a detailed child protection policy, which includes the reporting of any suspected child abuse to Oranga Tamariki .
Parents/Caregivers acknowledge and agree:
- To ensure that their child/ren's enrolment information is correct and kept up to date if anything changes
- To inform staff if a child will be absent by texting the OSCAR number 027-733-7209
- Absences and cancellations made less than 48 hours from the commencement of the activity will be charged the full fee
- To collect child/ren by the end of the booked session to avoid a late fee of $20 for every 15 minutes over this time
- To advise if someone other than the appointed person(s) will be collecting their child/ren
- To advise staff of any relevant concerns or conditions (behavioural and medical) related to a child
- Behaviour, which is consistently harmful to others, may result in dismissal from the programme.
- That any concerns or complaints should be reported in the first instance to a staff member or to the chair of the managing committee [email=chairperson@elmwoodoscar.co.nz]chairperson@elmwoodoscar.co.nz[/email]
- If a complaint or concern has not been adequately resolved and is a breach of the Social Sector Accreditation Standards, you may contact SSA directly at accreditation@tekahuikahu.govt.nz
- Fees are paid by the due date. If fees are in arrears at the end of the term, a late payment fee of 10% may be charged. Future bookings will be subject to paying arrears.
- If an overdue invoice is not rectified or a suitable repayment plan put in place and adhered to, your account will be forwarded to a debt collection agency. Any expenses incurred by this are payable by you.
- Any query regarding fees charged is to be addressed to accounts@elmwoodoscar.co.nz
- Elmwood OSCAR is managed by a small group of volunteer parents whose own children attend OSCAR. Our managing committee have full-time jobs of their own and, as such, response to communication will be timely, but not always immediate. Be aware that Elmwood OSCAR would not exist without parent volunteers and can not continue to operate without them. New volunteers are always welcomed.
- Neither the management nor the employed staff of Elmwood OSCAR has any personal liability for any loss or damage (by way of left, accident, injury or otherwise) arising out of attendance at the programme,
- The Committee of Elmwood OSCAR Inc. encourages active participation of parents in the running of the programme. Elmwood OSCAR is managed entirely by parent volunteers who are essential to the continued viability and existence of the programme.
