Before and after school care (outside school hours care)
Before and after school care, also called outside school hours care, is supervised care for primary school children before the school day and after the final bell, usually at the school. 6,120 approved services offer it. Typical sessions run 6:45am to 8:45am and 3:00pm to 6:00pm, at an average $10.05 an hour before the Child Care Subsidy.
What before and after school care is
Outside school hours care (OSHC) is childcare for school-age children outside normal school hours: before school, after school, on pupil-free days and in the school holidays (Department of Education). The school holiday part is vacation care. In New South Wales the same service is usually called OOSH, out of school hours care. OSHC on this page does not mean Overseas Student Health Cover, the health insurance for international students.
Every OSHC service is approved as centre-based care under the National Law, so it is regulated and rated against the National Quality Standard like a long day care centre. Of the 6,120 services: 5,533 run before school care, 6,097 run after school care, and 5,510 run both. 4,882 also run vacation care, and 1,129 are services that offer long day care as well.
Ages
Before and after school care takes children from the first year of school to the end of primary school. Some services also take preschool children on the days they attend preschool. The Child Care Subsidy covers children who are not yet at secondary school. A child at secondary school can still be covered when they need supervision and are 13 or under, or 14 to 18 with a disability (Services Australia).
Where it runs
Most before and after school care runs on a school site and takes that school's students. At Victorian government schools the school council decides whether to run the service itself or to choose a third-party provider through an expression of interest and license it to use the school (Department of Education, Victoria). In New South Wales the Department of Education sets up OOSH across government schools, and the providers that run it often open on pupil-free days too (NSW Department of Education).
Before and after school care hours
A before school session typically runs from 6:45am until 8:45am, and an after school session from 3:00pm until 6:00pm. These are the middle values across the term-time hours of 5,294 services on the national register. Check the exact times with your service, because they follow the school's bell times.
| Session | Typical opening | Typical closing | Typical length | Sessions counted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before school | 6:45am | 8:45am | 2 hours | 4,626 |
| After school | 3:00pm | 6:00pm | 3 hours | 5,095 |
95% of before school sessions open by 7:00am, and 97% of after school sessions run until 6:00pm or later.
Fees and the Child Care Subsidy
Outside school hours care averaged $10.05 an hour in the June quarter 2026, below long day care at $14.60 and family day care at $13.95 (Department of Education). The Child Care Subsidy pays a share of the fee up to the hourly rate cap. From 6 July 2026 the cap for outside school hours care is $13.30 an hour for a school-age child and $15.19 for a child below school age (Services Australia). The subsidy is worked out per session hour: a service that charges a flat session fee divides it by the hours in the session, which may be longer than the time your child actually attends.
| Booking | Fee | Subsidy | You pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| One before school session (2 hours) | $20.10 | $16.88 | $3.22 |
| One after school session (3 hours) | $30.15 | $25.33 | $4.82 |
| Five mornings and five afternoons (25 hours) | $251.25 | $211.05 | $40.20 |
A full week of both sessions uses 50 hours a fortnight, inside the 72 subsidised hours every eligible child gets under the 3 Day Guarantee. The same child in vacation care uses far more hours per day, which matters in the school holidays. Work out your own gap with the CCS calculator, read how the Child Care Subsidy works, or compare childcare fees by care type.
Before and after school care by state
Live counts of approved services offering before or after school care, and how many of them run vacation care too. Each state links to its directory, where you can filter by suburb.
| State or territory | Before or after school care | Also run vacation care |
|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 1,807 | 1,430 (79%) |
| Victoria | 1,699 | 1,161 (68%) |
| Queensland | 1,094 | 1,036 (95%) |
| Western Australia | 760 | 629 (83%) |
| South Australia | 434 | 385 (89%) |
| Tasmania | 157 | 112 (71%) |
| Australian Capital Territory | 110 | 81 (74%) |
| Northern Territory | 58 | 48 (83%) |
| Australia | 6,120 | 4,882 (80%) |
Quality ratings for before and after school care
6% of rated before and after school care services are rated Exceeding the National Quality Standard or Excellent, against 18% of all rated childcare services. Most outside school hours care is rated Meeting the NQS (85%). 284 services have no rating yet.
| Rating | Before and after school care | Share | All childcare services |
|---|---|---|---|
| Excellent | 3 | under 1% | under 1% |
| Exceeding the NQS | 360 | 6% | 18% |
| Meeting the NQS | 4,954 | 85% | 75% |
| Working Towards the NQS | 517 | 9% | 7% |
| Significant Improvement Required | 2 | under 1% | under 1% |
Look up any service's rating in each of the 7 quality areas on its page in the finder, and see how ratings work. Educator to child ratios for school-age children vary by state: see childcare ratios.
How to enrol in before and after school care
- Find out who runs care at your school. Ask the school office or check the school website, or use the finder above. The service name is often the provider's name, not the school's.
- Enrol with that service. This is a separate enrolment from your child's school enrolment. Places are limited by the service's approved places, so enrol early and ask about a waitlist. Getting a place.
- Claim the Child Care Subsidy through your Centrelink online account in myGov. You can claim up to 6 months before care starts (Services Australia).
- Confirm the enrolment in your Centrelink online account once the service submits it. The subsidy is paid only when the enrolment is current and confirmed.
- Book your sessions on the days you need, and ask how to add or cancel a session and what notice the service needs.
What to ask a before and after school care service
- What are the session times, and how many hours does each session fee cover? The hours charged decide the subsidy, not the hours attended.
- Is breakfast served in the morning session, and is afternoon tea included after school?
- What happens on pupil-free days, and is there a separate fee?
- How are children walked from class to the service, and who checks that every child has arrived?
- What is the cancellation policy, and is there a fee for late pick-up after closing time?
- Is there time and space for homework, and what activities run each afternoon?
- How are allergies, medication and additional needs managed?
Frequently asked questions
What is before and after school care?
Before and after school care is supervised care for primary school children before school starts and after it finishes, usually on the school grounds. It is also called outside school hours care (OSHC), or OOSH in New South Wales. 6,120 approved services in Australia offer it.
What time does before and after school care start and finish?
The typical before school session runs from 6:45am to 8:45am, and the typical after school session from 3:00pm to 6:00pm. 95% of before school sessions open by 7:00am and 97% of after school sessions run until 6:00pm or later.
How much does before and after school care cost?
Outside school hours care averaged $10.05 an hour in the June quarter 2026. At that fee a 3-hour after school session costs $30.15 before the Child Care Subsidy, and a family earning $120,000 pays $4.82 of it.
Is before and after school care covered by the Child Care Subsidy?
Yes. Before school, after school and vacation care are all outside school hours care for the Child Care Subsidy. The 2026-27 hourly rate cap for school-age children is $13.30. Your child must not be attending secondary school, unless an exemption applies.
What age is before and after school care for?
Before and after school care is for children at primary school, from the first year of school to the last year of primary school. Some services also take preschool children before and after their preschool day.
Does OSHC mean health insurance?
Not on this page. OSHC here means outside school hours care, the childcare for school-age children. Overseas Student Health Cover, the health insurance for international students, shares the abbreviation and is a different thing.
Do I enrol in before and after school care through the school?
You enrol with the service that runs the care, separately from your child’s school enrolment. At many government schools that service is a provider the school or department has licensed to use the school site, so ask the school office which provider it uses.
Related
Service counts, ratings and term-time hours: ACECQA National Registers, export of 29 October 2026; typical hours are medians of each service's listed sessions. Fees: Department of Education, Child Care Subsidy data report, June quarter 2026. Hourly rate caps and eligibility: Services Australia and Department of Education, 2026-27 (from 6 July 2026). Definition of outside school hours care: Department of Education, service types. Running OSHC at schools: NSW Department of Education (page updated 5 March 2026) and Department of Education, Victoria, Policy and Advisory Library. Claims and enrolment confirmation: Services Australia, 30 March 2026.