How to Enrol

Then – Prepare for Enrolment 

Here’s a helpful checklist to help you prepare to enrolment and the steps towards starting care, starting with your Child Care Subsidy approval process.

1. Research Child Care Subsidy

Child Care Subsidy (CCS) is the payment made by Government to assist families with the costs of child care. It is paid directly to the service and passed on to families as a fee reduction.

• Will you be claiming CCS to help offset childcare fees? Check your eligibility by Making a Claim as soon as possible, as Services Australia can take up to 6 weeks to confirm CCS to Providers (OAC).
• When enrolling, you will be asked to provide a Centrelink Reference Number (CRN) for the CCS Claimant (Primary Carer) and the enrolling child. Here’s some help to Find CRNs
• The Only About Children CCS calculator will help you estimate how your entitlements may offset fees.
• Refer to the Only About Children website containing useful CCS information and links here.
• Go to Services Australia for help with CCS, or contact the Centrelink Families line 136 150. Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm

2. Complete Your Enrolment Form

To secure your enrolment, you will need to complete the childcare enrolment forms online and provide the mandatory documentation. Our Enrolments Team will send an email called ‘Here are your Enrolment Forms’. Within the email there’s a green button which will take you to the digital Enrolment Form. The form takes under 15 minutes to complete if the documents are ready to upload and the form can be saved and returned to if needed.

Our dedicated Enrolments Team are here to support and assist you during your enrolment process, please contact the team on 138 622 if you need help with completing the form.

• Please submit the enrolment form only once per enrolling child.

You will need to prepare a scan or good quality photo of the below documents to complete the enrolment form:

• Your child’s Birth Certificate (in English)
• Please ensure that Parent 1 is also the CCS Claimant.
• All parents on the birth certificate must complete the enrolment form unless court orders or parenting orders are in place.
• All parents on the birth certificate must provide clear Photo ID (Drivers Licence or Passport) to help us identify you.
• Your child’s up to date Australian immunisation history statement record is a requirement to enrol and to receive CCS. This can be downloaded from your Medicare online account through myGov. Or using the Medicare mobile app. Blue books are not an acceptable form of record
• Copies of your child’s health record/s should there be any medical, allergy, asthma, disability or anaphylaxis conditions.
• Copy of any court orders or parenting orders in place.
• A Direct Debit form is required for all new families. This is the last page of the enrolment form and can take up to 20 seconds to appear, please wait for it before entering your Direct Debit details. Transactions for bank account direct debit are free. Credit cards attract a fee of Mastercard/Visa 1.5%. Amex 3.5%

NB. Your child’s enrolment is not confirmed until Only About Children have received all required documents and processed your enrolment.  You will receive an email confirming when your enrolment has been processed.

3. Next steps once your Enrolment Form has been submitted

• If there’s any further information we will need from you once you’ve submitted your enrolment form, the Family Support Team will be in contact by email.
• You will receive a confirmation in writing once your Enrolment is complete and processed. The email contains

• • Confirmation of your booking and start date
  • Campus details including the landline and door code to save into your phone
  • Child Care Subsidy information. See the CCS section below for more information on how to get your entitlements in place.
  • Account and billing information
  • The Parent Handbook
  • Getting to Know your Child form to complete before Orientation. You will be asked to upload a photo of your child and family for the campus.

• Parents will receive an individual Xplor Home app link sent from [email protected]. Follow the link to set up your personal Xplor Home app account and then download the Xplor Home app.
• A Family Support Team member will call you in the weeks before Orientation to support you through the final steps towards commencement.
• If you need any help along the way, contact Family Support on 138 622 during business hours or email [email protected]

4. Child Care Subsidy next steps

Your enrolment confirmation there will be steps to sign your Agreement and approve CCS for your enrolment. Ensure you follow the steps to confirm CCS entitlements.

1. The Primary Parent (CCS Claimant) must consent to their Complying Written Agreement (CWA)
2. The Primary Parent (CCS Claimant) should then log into myGov and approve Only About Children as their Provider to confirm CCS.

If you haven’t already provided us with CRNs for the CCS Claimant and the enrolling child, we will be reaching out to request this.

Not claiming or not eligible for CCS? We will issue a Relevant Agreement instead of a Complying Written Agreement (CWA). Children are required to have one of the two Agreements in place before starting care.

5. Book in Your Orientation

• Orientation will be organised by your Campus Director within two weeks of commencing care.
• Complete the ‘Getting to Know your Child’ form via the link found in your Enrolment Confirmation from the Family Support Team
• You will be provided StoryPark access at Orientation
• Bring medicines and discuss any medical and routine information the campus needs to be aware of.
• Your Director will complete an Orientation checklist with you to prepare you for your child’s first day.
• Note your campus landline and door code.
• Book additional days (casual days) through the Xplor Home app or by contacting your campus.
• If in future you wish to change your days of care, please contact your Director.

Contact Family Support on 138 622 during business hours or email [email protected] for assistance with your Only About Children account.

Finding your CRN 

A CRN is a Centrelink Customer Reference number provided when you receive payments from them. Centrelink uses a CRN to identify your personal record. A CRN is 9 numbers and ends with a letter. For example: 123 456 789A.  

You will be asked to provide your own CRN as the Guardian 1 on your account, as well as your child’s CRN during the enrolment process (two different CRNs). You can find more information about CRN numbers and where to locate them here.  

Please note that both CRNS will be required to complete the enrolment and to be eligible for the Child Care Subsidy (CCS).

Immunisation

It is a regulatory requirement to obtain the immunisation status of each child.

The following documents will be accepted by Only About Children (Oac) to show a child’s immunisation status:

• AIR Immunisation History Statement – those that are fully immunised for their age
• AIR Immunisation Medical Exemption Form – those that have a medical reason not to be vaccinated, or
• AIR Immunisation History Form – those that are on a recognised catch-up schedule

No other documents will be accepted, and the enrolment cannot be confirmed without one of these.

A copy of your child’s immunisation details can be obtained at any time by:

• using their Medicare online account through MyGov
• using the Medicare Express Plus App
• calling the Australian Immunisations Register (AIR) General Enquiries Line on 1800 653 809

Parents should automatically receive their child’s AIR Immunisation History Statement in the mail after they complete their immunisation schedule (sometime after 4 years of age).

Please visit the Department of Health’s National Immunisation Program Schedule which outlines the vaccinations and when they are due.