What is family day care? A guide for Victorian parents

What family day care is

Family day care is approved early childhood education and care provided in a registered educator's own home. Each educator cares for a small group of children, usually a mix of ages, and plans a learning program for them.

Every educator must belong to an approved family day care service, like Five Stars Learning. The service registers the educator, assesses their home, checks their qualifications and clearances, visits regularly, supports their program, and is accountable to the regulator for the quality and safety of care.

It's a formal part of the Australian early learning system, not informal babysitting. It's covered by the same national law as childcare centres and preschools, and families can receive the Child Care Subsidy.

How it's regulated

Family day care is regulated under the Education and Care Services National Law and National Regulations, and assessed against the National Quality Standard. In Victoria, the regulator is the Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA). Services must also meet Victoria's 11 Child Safe Standards.

The most important rule for parents is group size. An educator can care for no more than seven children at a time, and no more than four of them can be under school age. The educator's own children count towards those numbers if they're under 13 and not being cared for by someone else.

You can look up any approved service, including its quality rating, on the national register run by ACECQA or on the government's Starting Blocks website.

Who the educators are

Family day care educators must hold, or be actively working towards, at least an approved Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care. Before they can care for children, they also need:

• a current Working with Children Check
• current first aid, CPR, anaphylaxis and asthma management training
• a home that has passed the service's safety assessment
• registration with an approved family day care service

Many educators have worked in childcare centres before and moved to family day care to run their own small service from home.

Family day care vs a childcare centre

Both are regulated, both follow the national learning frameworks, and both attract the Child Care Subsidy. The differences are mostly about scale and setting.

Families who choose family day care often mention the small group, one consistent carer for a baby or toddler, flexible hours, and keeping siblings together. Families who choose a centre often value a larger social group and guaranteed cover when individual staff are away. Neither is better for every child.

What it costs

Each educator sets their own fee, usually as an hourly rate. The Child Care Subsidy then reduces what you pay. For 2026–27:

• The government's hourly rate cap for family day care is $14.08 an hour, for all ages. The subsidy is worked out on the educator's rate or the cap, whichever is lower.
• Families earning up to $88,520 receive 90% of that amount. The percentage drops by 1% for every $5,000 of income above that.
• Under the 3 Day Guarantee, every eligible family gets at least 72 subsidised hours a fortnight per child, regardless of work or study hours.

Because family day care is charged by the hour, you only pay for the hours you book. Our Child Care Subsidy calculator estimates your weekly out-of-pocket cost.

Choosing an educator: what to ask

Visit the educator's home before you enrol. Along with getting a feel for the space and how your child responds, it's worth asking:

• What does a typical day look like, and how do you plan activities?
• How many children are here on the days we need, and how old are they?
• How do you handle sleep, meals and nappy changes?
• How will you tell me about my child's day and learning?
• What happens when you're sick or on holiday?
• What's the outdoor area like, and how often are children outside?
• What are your fees, and what's included?
• How does the service support you, and how do I contact the service directly?

A good service will be happy to answer all of these, and to put you in touch with its coordinators as well as the educator.