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Terms and Conditions
Upon engaging the services of Ladybirds & Dragonflies Childminding Service you agree to abide by the following terms and conditions of service:
 
Making a Booking
When making a booking please provide details of the address, date and time required, the number of children requiring care together with their ages and any special requirements. Upon requesting LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE to appoint a carer you agree to undertake to pay LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE the non-refundable booking fee upon successful appointment.

Once a staff carer has been confirmed you will receive a call from LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE informing you that a staff carer is either available or unavailable to meet your requirements. You will then be required to pay the non-refundable booking fee in the event of successful placement and your details will be forwarded onto your appointed carer to make contact with you.

Upfront payment of all booked hours is require. Bookings made two or more weeks in advance will require a minimum payment of 50% deposit upfront with the remainder of payment to be paid 48 hours prior to the booking taking place. If payment is not received prior to the appointed booking time your carer will be notified and you will forfeit the booking.

Variations to a booking are to be received by the office no later than 24 hours prior to the booking taking place.

If a booking is cancelled with less than 24 hours notice you will be required to pay the minimum three hours with the remainder of any fees paid refunded to you. (Under certain circumstances this may be negotiable however proof of cancellation will be required).

If a booking is cancelled with more than 24 hours notice you will be required to pay a cancellation fee of $25.00 with the remainder of the fees paid refunded to you.
LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE prohibits clients from making private care arrangements with our staff carers. Staff carers will inform the office of these requests and clients will have their membership (if applicable) suspended and access to future services denied.

You are not to contact staff carers outside of their appointed booked hours. If you have any concerns or problems regarding a booking or wish to contact your staff carer prior to the occurrence of a booking, calls can be directed through the LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE office.
 

During a Booking
At all bookings you must request to see your staff carers ID card before allowing them access to your premises. This ensures that the person you are allowing to care for your children is in fact a representative of LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE. In the event that you have failed to ask for staff carers ID and an unauthorised person accesses your premises, LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE will not be held responsible.

A staff carer has the right to request written permission for any activity they feel poses a potential risk to your child. If your staff carer is expected to take your child swimming, leave the premise during the booking or transport your child they will require signed written permission from you outlining these activities. Your staff carer will forward any written permissions to the office which will be kept in your family file.

If you require your staff carer to travel more than 10km from the premise as part of their booking duties (e.g school drop off/pick up, sports training etc) a fuel surcharge of 74c per km will be payable in addition to the hourly fee. This is to be paid in cash to the staff carer with details recorded on your staff carers timesheet.
 

Medication & Incident Reports
Medication can only be administered by your staff carer after receiving written or verbal consent from you. It is a requirement that you complete and sign the Administration of Medication Form prior to or returning from your engagement. If you are aware prior to leaving the premise that your child will require medication during the booking, you must provide your staff carer with written consent on the ‘permission to administer medication’ form before your departure. Your staff carer will have you view and sign ‘the permission to administer medication’ form at the completion of the booking so that you are aware of when you child last received medication to avoid an accidental overdose. If your child becomes unwell and requires medication while being cared for by one of our staff carers, they are required to contact you to gain verbal consent before administering any medication.

Under no circumstance can a staff carer give medication to your child that has been pre-mixed. A staff carer has the right to ask you to prepare the medication again while in their presence.

If an incident or accident occurs to your child whilst being cared for, these details will be recorded on an ‘incident report’ form. Your staff carer will have you view and sign this form prior to them leaving the premise.  It is your responsibility to ensure the documentation provides a detailed account of the injury/accident that has occurred.

Your staff carer will forward completed ‘permission to administer medication’ and/or ‘incident report’ forms to the office. In accordance with the Child Care Act, LADYBIRDS & DRAGONFLIES CHILDMINDING SERVICE will store a copy of these forms in your family file until your child reaches the age of 18years. A copy of the documentation can also be forwarded to you for your own records upon request.

Under no circumstance is a staff carer able to enforce any physical punishment on your child for any reason.

In accordance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act all carers have the right to feel safe If upon arrival to or during a booking your staff carer feels that their health and/or life is at risk by completing the booking, they will notify the office immediately. We will attempt to rectify the situation between both yourself and your staff carer before sending a replacement staff carer (if possible) to complete the booking. On some occasions we may request that you return to the premise.

Any report of abuse or sexual harassment of a staff carer while attending a booking will be investigated and if necessary be reported to authorities.
 

In-Home Childminding Service & Accommodation Childminding Service
Before leaving your staff carer with your child, it is a requirement that you provide them with various contact numbers (mobile, venue and emergency contact details) and confirm the time you expect to return. If while out you feel you will not return by this time we ask that you make a courtesy call to your staff carer informing them of your delay. Charges will apply for additional hours and be paid via the office within 24 hours of the completed booking.

If you know in advance that your staff carer is to relinquish responsibility of your child to an adult other than yourself, you must provide written consent detailing the name of the person who will be taking responsibility of your child from our staff carer.
If circumstances change while you are out and your staff carer is to relinquish responsibility of your child to an adult other than yourself, you must provide verbal consent providing details of the person’s name.

If at any time your staff carer is to relinquish responsibility of your child to another adult they will request identifying documentation confirming the adult’s identity prior to leaving your child in their care. Your staff carer will also phone you once the transition has taken place.

If your staff carer notices your child to be uncomfortable with their presence they will contact you immediately. If your child’s behaviour becomes uncontrollable; to the extent that your child or your staff carer is at risk of harm, your staff carer has the right to request you return to the premise.
 

Accommodation Childminding Service
If paid parking facilities are the only option available to your staff carer when attending a booking, you are required to pay in cash to them an additional fee to cover their parking costs.

Your staff carer is unable to order room service or offer any food or drink from the mini bar to your child without prior written consent from you.
 

Private Event, Corporate & Wedding Childminding Service
Information regarding private event, corporate care and wedding childminding services must be documented on an official booking form (available on request, and sent during initial correspondence). It is a requirement that this form be completed and signed prior to the allocation of staff. This document is used to enable us to apply for insurance to cover your event or function.
 

Any questions please contact us 
- Management