August 2024 – Child Care Subsidy News & Updates

Establishing eligibility for ACCS child wellbeing

If you identify a child at risk of serious abuse or neglect at your service, they may be eligible for Additional Child Care Subsidy (ACCS) child wellbeing.

Unlike other subsidies, providers apply on behalf of a family. There are important steps to take to ensure the family can get the subsidy. Families may miss out on payments if they delay claiming CCS or are not aware of the immunisation requirements.

CCS eligibility

Families can only get ACCS child wellbeing once they’ve:

lodged a CCS claim, and
been assessed as CCS eligible.

Services Australia can only backdate payments up to 28 days before the family lodged their successful claim. Families can lodge a CCS claim via their Centrelink online account.

Immunisation requirements

Children must meet immunisation requirements to be eligible for CCS. If a child does not meet the immunisation requirements, the claim will not be approved. The family will need to make a new claim once the child has met the immunisation requirements.

When to use a Provider Eligible Arrangement

In the rare case that you cannot identify a CCS-eligible parent or carer, you – the provider – may be able to get the subsidy on behalf of the child. This is known as a provider eligible arrangement or ‘PEA’. A PEA enables Services Australia to pay the subsidy directly to you. It can only be used in very limited circumstances.

Find detailed guidance about establishing eligibility for ACCS child wellbeing on our website.

Previously, an OSHC service must provide care primarily to school aged children.

From 22 July 2024, OSHC services can also provide care primarily to preschool aged children either side of preschool sessions.

This means families can get CCS for care provided before and after preschool, for children who attend a preschool program. It will provide families with preschool children more options for affordable before-and-after hours care to help meet families’ needs. Preschool programs are delivered to children in the year before they start full-time school.

To be eligible to provide preschool OSHC, the care provided must differ from a preschool service. Some of the key factors we consider include:

Type of care program delivered. An OSHC service should not deliver the same type of educational program to the preschool service.
Hours of operation. Preschool and OSHC services must be separate.
Staffing. Roles and duties performed by staff can be clearly distinguished.

Providers who want to establish a preschool OSHC as will need to:

Obtain approval from their state or territory regulatory authority to operate a Centre Based Day Care service at the preschool premises. This must be a separate approval where the preschool OSHC provider is the same as the preschool provider.
Apply for CCS approval for the new OSHC service.

Find out more and read examples on our website at Outside School Hours Care.