“It’s our polite nudge in the ribs to help you and your team stay organised and on task.”
This week’s subject is Communication with families
Element 6.1.3: Current information is available to families about the service and relevant community services and resources to support parenting and family wellbeing.
How does your service continually support families in their parenting roles?
What methods of communication does your service implement and do these methods meet the range of individual needs of families across the service?
Element 6.1.3 focuses on supporting families in their parenting roles by providing them with a variety of relevant information, communicated in various ways that foster two-way, open and collaborative communication. Educators should be responsive to family’s needs and continually work to nurture and build relationships through consistent, collaborative interactions and communication.
As your service assesses the various ways in which you support families, consider how this can be improved on. What strategies can be implemented to better support families in their parenting roles? Services can adopt a number of tools and systems to better support and meet the diverse needs of their families, nurturing collaborative relationships, leading to better outcomes for children.
Ensure that information is readily available and accessible to all families and promote the availability of information providing families with specific details of how and where to access information:
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- Ensure service information is readily available at the time of enrolment e.g., family handbook, relevant policies and procedures, Child Care Subsidy information etc.
- Service information is available at all times and at parent’s request
- Policies, procedures and other Service information are accessible online
- Information about community services is regularly shared with families and available in areas regularly used and easily accessible to families
- There is opportunity for information about community services and resources to be accessed in confidence
- Relevant information about the service and community services is available in languages represented at the service and within the local community
- Families are provided with the opportunity to access relevant information in their own time e.g., online through the Service website, information sharing apps or email correspondence
- Educators are readily available to engage in formal and informal discussions with parents/guardians at mutually convenient times
- Educators consistently follow-up on parent’s requests, fostering collaborative, trusting and respectful relationships
- Educators keep up to date about community services, events and support services to ensure knowledge and information is readily available for parents/guardians upon request
- Educators ensure thorough and confidential exchange of information regarding children’s individual needs, between learning environments and across the service
- Provide access to and request involvement in the review process for Service policies, philosophy and Quality Improvement Plan. Ensure a diverse range of methods for family input/involvement in review processes
- Nominate one or rotate staff as the Service’s Community/Family Liaison Officer to oversee and facilitate communication with families to support collaborative partnerships and continual improvement
- Conduct surveys with families throughout the year to gain insights into their perspectives on the service and provide opportunities for feedback, enabling management to better understand and address the unique needs of each family.
Resources:
Guide to the NQF: Standard 6.1: Supportive relationships with families
Guide to the NQF- Element 6.1.3: Families are supported
Amplify- Navigate your way to better parent communication
Early Education Show podcast- Element 6.1.3
We Hear You: Supporting Diverse Family Structures
Standard 6.1 Supportive relationships with families – Case study 1
Within System7 go to QA 6/ Module 10 to submit self-assessment notes and if required, open a QIP issue if you identify any areas of improvement.
The Childcare Centre Desktop has a range of resources to assist services with supporting families. These include monthly Newsletter templates, Family Handbook template, Family Input Form, Connecting and Communicating with Families Guide, Family Committee Meetings-Procedure and Guide, Orientation Checklist, Philosophy Development and Review Procedure, family surveys and much more.
Resources, NQS Element, Regulation and System7 links:
Childcare Centre Desktop – Childcare Centre Desktop
National Quality Standard – Element 6.1.3: Families are supported
National Regulations – 168, 169, 171
System7 Module – QA 6/ Module 10
If you have any questions send us a note via the Contact page here!
