In home-based care, your Educator sets their own hours and fees, and you agree together on what works best for your whānau. Bright Futures provides the licensing, guidance and support behind the scenes.
Fees
Educator fees
Educators are independent contractors registered under Bright Futures. That means that you, as the family needing care and education for your child/ren, will agree with them directly what your requirements are. This will be documented in in an Educator Conditions of Service agreement. This details the hours of care, rates and any other payments or care requirements you both agree to. Generally, Educators charge between $6 and $9 per hour, per child. This can differ from Educator to Educator, and they will discuss this with you when going through their Conditions of Service. This rate then forms part of an Enrolment Agreement you have with Bright Futures, as the licensed ECE Service Provider.
Our fees
As the licensed ECE Service Provider, Bright Futures acts as an agent to administer all subsidies on behalf of the family and Educator. We receive subsidies or payments directly and administer these consistent with the applicable regulatory frameworks and Educator Conditions of Service. As part of this service, we charge a small weekly fee. This is detailed in the Administration Services Agreement and will be discussed with you when you enrol your child/children.
Subsidies
20 Hours ECE
If your child is 3, 4 or 5 years old, you will be eligible to enrol your child to receive a 20 Hours Early Childhood Education (ECE) subsidy. This is a universal funding subsidy provided by the Ministry of Education. This means that the cost of care can be funded for up to 6 hours a day and up to 20 hours a week. Our Enrolment Agreement includes an attestation where you write and sign for the days and hours you are claiming as 20 Hours ECE. The subsidy is paid directly to Bright Futures, and we pass this through to your Educator for the days and hours attested by you on the Enrolment Agreement.
As an Agent, we pass through $5 per hour to the Educator for each 20 Hours ECE hour (up to 6 hours a day and up to 20 hours a week). However, some Educator’s charge more than this as part of their hourly rate. Given this, some Educators may ask for a top-up payment/fee for hours attested to for 20 Hours ECE. Parents agree to this payment as part of the Educator Conditions of Service and your Enrolment Agreement with Bright Futures. Once agreed to, the payment is enforceable as a compulsory payment by Bright Futures as an Agent.
For example, an Educator charges $8 per child per hour, Bright Futures passes through $5 per hour for each child eligible for 20 Hours ECE funding. The Educator can then require parents of these eligible children to pay the difference of $3 per hour. Parents who are eligible for childcare assistance subsidies (such as WINZ) can use these subsidies to pay for Educator top-up payments.
You can read more about 20 Hours ECE from the Ministry of Education here: 20 hours funding for early childhood education - Ministry of Education.
There’s a lot to take in - we’ll also discuss this with you as part of the enrolment process.
Work and Income Childcare Subsidy
Bright Futures is a Work and Income approved early childhood education provider. If your family is on a low or middle income, you may be eligible for a childcare subsidy, which is a payment that families can apply for to help with the cost of childcare. This payment is received by us as an Agent and passed through to your Educator. You can find out more about this subsidy and other available home help payments by visiting the Work and Income website. We request that WINZ subsides are organised before your child starts in care, as you will be responsible for paying the Educator fees until the childcare subsidy is approved by WINZ.
FamilyBoost Refund
FamilyBoost is a childcare payment (refund) to help eligible households pay for the cost of ECE. Whether you can claim FamilyBoost depends on your household income and type of childcare you pay for. You need to register through myIR before you can make a claim, and you need to submit claims directly through myIR. If you’re eligible you will be able to claim a percentage of your weekly childcare fees, up to a maximum amount every three months. You need to claim quarterly after the quarter has ended by providing copies of invoices or statements from your ECE provider. If eligible, payments will be made directly to families and us. You can find out more about FamilyBoost payments from the IRD website.