Out of School Hours Care

What is Out of School Hours Care?
Work within out of school hours care involves working with and caring for school-aged children – between the ages of 5-12 years.  Work will take place in an after school or before school care program or at vacation, holiday and camp programs.  Often, after and before school care services are linked to primary schools so that children can go straight from school to the program.

Is the Out of School Hours Care (OSHC) Profession for me?
A career in out of school hours care can be a demanding and extremely rewarding path to take if you have a passion and keen interest in working with school-aged children and their families. The responsibilities of an out of school hours care professional include providing quality care for the social, creative and recreational needs of children so it means being responsible, reliable and committed.  Professionals in this field get to share some of the most fun and enjoyable activities experienced by a child during school-days.
Desirable personal qualities of an out of school hours care professional are patience, understanding, creativity, imagination and energy.

What does the work involve?
Responsibilities of an OSHC professional include facilitating children’s play and leisure; program planning to meet developmental needs; providing nutritious food; providing play experiences which enhance physical, cognitive, language and emotional development; working with children with additional needs; being involved in an accreditation process; developing recreational programs; working with families and more!

What are the career options?
The career options for an OSHC professional are many and varied. Options include working within a camp program, OSHC service or holiday program as an assistant or supervisor; service coordination including supervising other staff; working within local government; training and assessing; working with children who have additional needs; child safety liaison or inspector and the possibilities go on.

What are the benefits of becoming qualified?
Qualifications in out of school hours care are highly regarded by the OSHC sector, prospective employers and by The National Standards for Out of School Hours Care which state that Service Coordinators must be suitably qualified to Diploma level.

I have been working in OSHC for a long time.  What are my options?
These courses offer those who’ve been working in the industry for some time to have their knowledge, skills and experience formally recognised and matched to an appropriate qualification.  Our supportive workplace-based RPL programs are a great option if you’ve been in the OSHC industry for 2 or more years.

Certificate IV in Out of School Hours Care

Suitable for: Those working or who wish to work as an assistant in an Out of School Hours Care environment.  The Certificate IV is the pathway to the Diploma of Out of School Hours Care.

Learning Outcomes: The Certificate IV supports entry-level work in the OSHC sector and will teach you about using organisational policies and procedures, providing care that supports children’s development, interacting effectively with children, working with families, monitoring risk and occupational health and safety as well as first aid.

Course Topics: Professional Development; Working with Families, Basic Child Development and Programming, Safety & Health; Legal & Administration Requirements and First Aid. 

Career Outcomes: Graduates of the course can expect to work as an assistant or supervisor within an out of school hours program or recreation centre, youth worker, group leader or as a play leader.

Certification: Certificate IV in Out of School Hours Care plus First Aid certificate.

Delivery Mode	Duration	Location	In-takes
Workplace Based	Self Paced – Average 12 months	In your workplace – Vic, SA, Qld	Start at any time
Traineeship	Determined by State Govt Contract	In your workplace – Vic, SA, Qld	Start at any time
Recognition RPL	Self Paced – Average 6 months	In your workplace – Vic, Qld, SA	Start at any time
Distance	Soon to become available

Diploma of Out of School Hours Care

Suitable for: Those working or who to wish to work as a room leader, coordinator or supervisor in an out of school hours care program. Units from the Certificate IV in Out of School Hours Care or equivalent are pre-requisites for this course.

Learning Outcomes: The Diploma supports intermediate level work within the sector and will prepare you to be responsible for the planning and implementing of quality, inclusive programs which meet the developmental needs of children.  You will gain knowledge of the administration requirements of an OSHC program as well as how to maintain quality and manage accreditation.

Career Outcomes: Students who complete this course can expect to work as a qualified coordinator, as a team or group leader, program leader, service manager, service director (depending on State legislation) or as a special needs inclusion worker. Depending on the setting, workers with this qualification may have responsibility for supervising other staff within the centre.

Course Topics: Professional Development, Networking, Policy Development, Advanced Child Development & Programming, Inclusion, Safety and Health.

Course Articulation: Graduates of this course can negotiate significant credits in degrees in education with many Universities.

Delivery Mode	Duration	Location	In-takes
Workplace Based	Self Paced – Average 12 months	In your workplace – Vic, SA, Qld	Start at any time
Traineeship	Determined by State Govt Contract	In your workplace – Vic, SA, Qld	Start at any time
Apprenticeship	Determined by State Govt Contract	In your workplace – Qld	Start at any time
Recognition RPL	Self Paced – Average 6 months	In your workplace – Vic, Qld, SA	Start at any time
Distance	Soon to become available

Advanced Diploma of Children’s Services

Suitable for: Those working or who wish to work at a management level within a children’s services centre or out of school hours care program/s.    This qualification focuses on all children’s age groups from 0-12 years.

Pre-Requisite: Diploma of Children’s Services or equivalent.  Applicants with the Diploma of Out of School Hours Care will be required to complete some bridging tasks for entry into this course.

Learning Outcomes: The Advanced Diploma supports advanced-level work within the children’s services and/or OSHC sectors and will prepare you with management skills for dealing with staff, finances and workplace issues effectively.  The course also provides you with skills to provide high quality care which includes meeting the individual needs of children, enhancing their development and advocating for their rights.

Career Outcomes: Graduates of this course can expect to work as a centre director or manager, a children’s services or OSHC field worker or area manager or you could own and run your own children’s services centre.  Professionals with this qualification can expect to have the responsibility of supervising small or large groups of staff.

Course Topics: Professional Development, Financial Management, Management & Leadership, Marketing, Quality & Service Innovation, Advocating for Children’s Rights and Meeting the Individual Needs of Children.

Course Articulation: Graduates of this course can negotiate significant credits into degrees in education with many Universities.

Delivery Mode	Duration	Location	In-takes
Workplace Based	Self Paced – Average 18 months	In your workplace – Vic, SA, Qld	Start at any time
Traineeship	Self Paced	In your workplace – Vic	Start at any time
Distance	Self Paced – Average 24 months	Available Nationally	Start at any time
Recognition RPL	Self Paced – Average 9 months	In your workplace – Vic, Qld, SA	Start at any time

For further information such as prices, delivery options and units included in the course offered in your state, select the course details from the course search function on this website or call your nearest office on 1300 364 383.