The Australian Government funds Illawarra Children's Services to be the Inclusion Support Agency (ISA) to deliver the Inclusion Support Program to eligible child care services in the Illawarra and NSW South East regions. The provision of support is through a network of Inclusion Support Facilitators (ISFs) based in local areas.

The objective of ISAs is to assist child care services to build the knowledge and confidence they need to be able to offer a quality, inclusive child care environment to children with additional needs. This will enable children with additional needs to participate in the activities available in child care services and have the same opportunities as others to participate, belong, develop and succeed.

Support to child care services

Illawarra Children's Services is responsible for the provision of support to child care services. This includes practical advice and access to a range of supports designed to strengthen the service's ability to create a quality care environment inclusive of all children. These supports include, but are not limited to, providing onsite assistance with developing Service Support Plans, facilitating access to Specialist Equipment, General Resources Library, professional support, funding through Flexible Support Funding or Inclusion Support Subsidy, and Bicultural Support.

Eligible Children's Services

Eligible children's services, as defined in the IPSP Guidelines as eligible children's services for support under this program, are:

Child care services approved for Child Care Benefit (CCB):

• long day care services
• outside school hours care (including vacation care)
• family day care
• occasional care
• in-home care services

Child care services funded under the Budget Based Funding Program:

• flexible/innovative services
• mobile child care services
• Multifunctional Aboriginal Children's Services
• Indigenous playgroups
• Indigenous outside school hours care and enrichment programs;
• Creches
• innovative child care service centres

Priority Groups

Children with additional needs are those from the following priority groups:

• children with a disability, including children with high support needs
• children from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds
• children with a refugee or humanitarian intervention background who have been subjected to torture and trauma, either in their country of origin or during their refugee experience
• Indigenous children

Contact details

Check the team contact list to locate your service's Inclusion Support Facilitator (Illawarra and NSW South East regions), and find details of each region's office locations.

Flexible Support Funding (FSF)

Flexible Support Funding (FSF) is funding that enables a service to receive immediate short-term support to meet their inclusion needs, such as:

• assistance with settling a refugee child into care
• when a child with ongoing high support needs transfers to another room in a long day care centre
• when a school child does not access ISS but extra support is required for activities such as excursions during vacation care
• where it is unclear if an additional worker is required on an ongoing basis.

The following forms are available for services to assist with submitting claims for payment:

Professional Support Coordinator (PSC)

The Professional Support Coordinator (PSC) provides professional development and support to child care workers by subcontracting Professional Support Service Providers (PSSPs). The PSC also provides the Bicultural Support program, resource libraries and specialist equipment.

The PSC will respond to current and emerging professional development and support needs in the child care sector. The PSC will work closely with PSSPs, ISAs and the IPSUs to meet the professional development and support needs of all eligible child care services and in particular, work with IPSU to support eligible Indigenous child care services.

Children's Services Central is the provider of professional development and inclusion support and training to eligible child care services in NSW.

For further information, visit www.cscentral.org.au.

Indigenous Professional Support Unit

The Indigenous Professional Support Unit (IPSU) provide professional development and support to eligible Indigenous child care services to enable them to provide quality child care. The IPSU is managed by Lady Gowrie Child Centre, Sydney.

For further information, visit www.ipsunswact.com.au.

Bicultural Support Pool

Bicultural support provides additional resources to eligible childcare services to assist with the inclusion of children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds (CALD), refugee children, and Indigenous children. The bicultural support program engages a worker to offer time-limited support from either off-site consultants or an on-site casual bilingual or bicultural worker. This support can be provided when a CALD, Indigenous, or refugee child is enrolled at the child care service. Access to bicultural support is provided to eligible child care services free of charge.

For further information, visit www.cscentral.org.au/support/bicultural-support-pool.html.

The General Resource Library

The General Resource Library will provide up-to-date information and resources on child care practice and research findings and assist in meeting the inclusion and professional support needs of eligible child care services. General resources are provided on loan to eligible child care services after becoming a library member.

Lady Gowrie Child Centre manages the General Resource Library for children's services on behalf of Children's Services Central.

For further information, visit www.cscentral.org.au/support/general-resource-library.html.

Specialist Equipment Pool

Specialist Equipment is available on loan from the Specialist Equipment provider to eligible child care services (excluding In Home care) to assist the inclusion of a child who has demonstrated ongoing high support needs in a child care environment.

Lady Gowrie Child Centre manages the specialist equipment pool for children's services on behalf of Children's Services Central.

For further information, visit www.cscentral.org.au/support/specialist-equipment.html.

Inclusion Support Subsidy (ISS)

The Inclusion Support Subsidy (ISS) is paid to child care services to support the inclusion of a child or children with ongoing high support needs.

The ISS is a contribution towards the costs associated with employing an additional child care worker. In Family Day Care and In Home Care the ISS can also be used as a payment in recognition of the impact on the carer of the additional care and attention required by children with ongoing high support needs.

The ISS is limited to a flat hourly rate, which is determined by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) and is indexed annually.

Children with ongoing high support needs include those with a diagnosed disability, children undergoing continuing assessment for a disability and humanitarian refugee children.

KU Children's Services is the National Provider of the Inclusion Support Subsidy (ISS) Program. For further information, visit www.ku.com.au.

Publications

Professional Practice Packages

Newsletters

Feedback

If you would like to provide feedback about the program and our service delivery, please

Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) website

For more information regarding the Inclusion and Professional Support Program, visit the DEEWR website.

Illawarra Inclusion Support and NSW South East Inclusion Support are initiatives of the Inclusion and Professional Support Program, funded by the Australian Government.

For more information on the Inclusion and Professional Support Program, contact:

Gloria Dalla Valle
Inclusion Support Coordinator
Phone: (02) 4283 9935
Email: