Scottish Out of School Care Network
Supporting children's rights to play, care and learning
Useful Guides
Practice Focus
2024
October
Experiences for Older Children
September
Communication and Engagement with Parents and Carers
May
Snack Time
22/05/2024
practice-focus-snack-time-may-24.pdf
1 MB
April
Health and Safety
17/04/2024
practice-focus-health-and-safety-apr-24.pdf
1 MB
February
Medication Management
05/02/2024
practice-focus-medication-management-feb-24.pdf
2 MB
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OSC A to Z
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Children's participation - UNCRC
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Contracts, costs, fees and cancellations
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Health and safety and insurance
Illness, infection and medication
K - Pa
Parental rights and involvement
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The Scottish Out of School Care Network is a Scottish registered charity, established in 1991 and is the national infrastructure umbrella organisation providing support, mentoring, training, information and resources to the nearly 1,000 school-aged childcare services in Scotland, which provide childcare, play and learning to over 50,000 children.
All of our work is underpinned by a commitment to supporting and promoting the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC), in particular Articles 31; the right to culture leisure, rest and play; Article 12, the right to consultation and Article 18; states parties to develop appropriate services to support families, including assistance with childcare for working parents. We also have a particular focus on children in need or on poverty (Article 22) and support the provision of care for children with disabilities (article 23).
We are also committed to promoting and delivering the outcomes of Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC) and the Playwork Principles. We also engage strategically at national and local levels to assist in the development and delivery of policies relating to childcare, children's rights and family support.
What is School Age Childcare?
Daycare of children is defined by the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 as a service that provides care for children on non-domestic premises for a total of more than two hours a day and on at least six days per year.
The school age care childcare sector is the largest provider of play, care, and informal learning opportunities for school-aged children. There are nearly 1000 registered school age childcare services in Scotland, 588 breakfast clubs and 482 holiday services. More than 50,000 children of school age are registered in childcare. (Care Inspectorate, 2021).