Dedicated In-Home Care for Children in Kempsey, Port Macquarie & Surrounding Areas

Kempsey Family Day Care's In-Home Care (IHC) is available to families in Kempsey and surrounding areas. In-Home Care is a childcare service aimed at families with exceptional circumstances that prevent them from utilising standard childcare services. 

What is In-Home Care?

IHC is an approved childcare service delivered by qualified educators in the family home for children from the same family. Our educators provide the same care and development opportunities in your home that children would otherwise receive in our regular family daycare program. Our service can also support educators and families in the Coffs Harbour, Taree, Wingham and Forster areas. 


In-Home Care Services are supported by the In-Home Care Support Agency, funded by the Australian Government's Department of Education and Training.

The In-Home Care Support Agency's role is to:

  • Determine which families are eligible for In-Home Care
  • Match families to service providers that have educators available
  • Advocate for families
  • Develop Family Management Plans and review them each quarter
  • Work with services to ensure In-Home Care is high quality and monitor it to ensure it is focused on educating and caring for children
  • Provide professional development and support for educators
  • Promote the In-Home Care program so that families that need it know about it.

Who Can Benefit from In-Home Care?

IHC Services are required to provide subsidised sessions of care only for children in families eligible for the Child Care Subsidy (CCS), which can demonstrate that the other types of approved childcare are not suitable or available, and where one or more of the following criteria apply:

  • Parents or carers are working non-standard or variable hours outside normal childcare service hours
  • Parents or carers are geographically isolated from other types of approved childcare, particularly in rural or remote locations
  • The family has challenging or complex needs, including where families are experiencing challenging situations and other approved childcare services cannot meet the needs of the child or the family.

Families accessing IHC due to challenging or complex needs may have circumstances that include one or more of the following:

  • A child with additional needs or a disability whose early childhood education and care requirements cannot be catered for in another approved childcare setting or through other government-funded or community-based services
  • A family where a parent is undergoing treatment for a serious illness
  • Other complex family situations that prevent families from accessing other approved childcare types.

How Kempsey Family Day Care Helps

Our co-ordination unit oversees the In-Home Care process to ensure local, eligible families can receive the childcare they need from one of our qualified educators.

The role of the Co-ordination Unit is to:

  • Register Educators and families
  • Conduct visits to the family's homes. The Co-ordination Unit will have regular contact with the Educator by phone, face-to-face contact in the office and by email
  • Be available to offer support and advice to families and Educators
  • Monitor Educators and ensure they are providing children with the best opportunities to achieve learning outcomes
  • Provide access to resources
  • Providing Professional Training opportunities

More Information about In-Home Care

  • How much will it cost?

    Educators charge a fee, and the service charges an administration levy which is calculated per hour per child.


    Service joining fees and Administration Levies are reviewed each financial year. For more information on fees, please contact our office.


    Child Care Subsidy (CCS)

    Kempsey In-Home Care is an approved child care service, and eligible families can apply to Centrelink for Child Care Subsidy to assist with the cost of child care. The family's rate of subsidy is determined by their income.


    Service Joining Fee

    Kempsey In-Home Care charges new families an enrolment fee when registering.


    Re-Registration Fee

    Families are charged a re-registration fee each financial year.


    Educator Fees

    Educators are self-employed and can set their own fees (charged at an hourly rate). Additional fees may be incurred if transport, food or excursions are involved. This will be discussed between the Educator and the family. These additional fees are not covered by Child Care Subsidy.


    Administration Levy

    An Administration Levy is charged to families and payable to the service. This is calculated per hour per child.

  • Schemes Policies and Procedures

    All Educators have access to the scheme's Policies and Procedures.

    Parents can ask the Educator to view these policies at any time.

    All In-Home Care Educators are guided by the 'In-Home Care Handbook, Guidelines and the schemes, Policies and Procedures.

  • Home Visits

    For home visits to be successful, clear, open and honest communication is required between the family, Educator and our service. If you are experiencing difficulty, we can help to identify and discuss possible solutions.


    During home visits, Co-ordinators will:


    • Monitor the quality of care by looking at the interactions between the educator and children, hygiene and safety risks, behaviour management and experiences offered to children
    • Observe the children and assess their developmental needs and experiences to ensure children are reaching and working towards learning outcomes
    • Support the Educator by discussing any issues and suggesting ideas and resources
    • Ensure appropriate records are being maintained and
    • Exchange resources from the toy and resource library
    • Co-ordinators supporting Educators are qualified staff and have an understanding of In-Home Care.

  • Enrolment Process

    Once approved by the In-Home Care Support Agency, families can contact our service to register for IHC and begin the enrolment process. (This is subject to educator availability )

    Our In-Home Care Co-ordinator will visit your home to conduct a Home Safety Check.


    Before commencing In-Home Care, families will need to complete an enrolment form and pay the joining fee. You will also need to provide the service with copies of your child/ren's:


    • Birth certificate
    • Immunisation History Statement issued by Medicare (Blue Book cannot be accepted).
    • You can access the statement by contacting the Australian Immunisation Register on 1800 653 809, by visiting Medicare Online Services (www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/online), by emailing acir@medicareaustralia.gov.au or visiting your local Department of Human Services Centre, Medicare or Centrelink office.
    • Current Medical Management Plan (if your child has been diagnosed with any medical condition, e.g. Asthma, Anaphylaxis, Diabetes, Epilepsy).

To enquire about vacancies with our in-home care services, please contact our Co-ordination Unit on 02 6562 6387, or enquire online.