Locations
Booking and fees
Things to consider
Occasional care services in Australia are usually run by community groups or local councils. They aim to provide flexible, short-term childcare, catering for newborn babies and children up to school age. This arrangement gives children an opportunity to play, mix and socialise with other children of different ages. Occasional care also provides developmental and early learning programs to suit each child's age. Many parents use occasional care to slowly introduce their child to formal care, initially booking them in for short periods and then slowly building up the hours.
Occasional care services generally operate for shorter hours than long day care centres and are only available weekdays. Parents can use occasional childcare on a regular or casual basis for things like going shopping, attending appointments, pursuing study or leisure activities, or to simply just have a break. This arrangement can also suit parents who work casually, part time or do shift work and be a wonderful back up for crisis or emergency care. If you have a nanny, friend or relative caring for your child, they might use occasional care to have breaks, go on holidays or attend an appointment. Be aware that there is a limit to the number of children an occasional care centre can have at any given time, with most centres also placing restrictions on the number of hours one child can use for occasional care each week.
Occasional care services in Australia are licensed by state and territory governments to ensure they meet minimum quality standards. Some
long day care centres also provide occasional care services. If this is the case, you might use the centre occasionally, to help give you an insight into their care in case you wish to use it more regularly later on.
Locations
If you live in Australia, you can find the locations and contact details of occasional care centres at your local council.