OSHC Marketing: Filling Before and After School Care Places
Outside school hours care (OSHC) has a different problem from long day care. Most families already know the school, many already know your service, and the number of places isn't the issue. The issue is the sessions that sit half empty: Monday mornings, the Friday after school slot, the second week of the holidays.
This guide covers practical OSHC marketing for Australian providers: how to find the sessions worth filling, how to work with the school, when to promote vacation care, and what you can and can't offer families. It builds on our wider childcare marketing approach, adapted for school-age care.
Start with the sessions, not the service
Before you promote anything, work out where the spare places actually are. Pull attendance for the last term and list it by session:
Before school, each weekday
After school, each weekday
Pupil free days
Each week of the school holidays
You'll usually find two or three sessions that are well under what you can run. Those are your targets. Promoting "our OSHC service" in general spends effort on days that are already full.
Know where staffing steps up
The National Quality Framework counts educators against children across the whole service. For children over preschool age, ACECQA lists a ratio of 1:15 in NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory, 1:11 in the ACT, and a different rule in Western Australia. Check the ratio that applies to you.
That matters because of how rosters work. If a session has room before you'd need to add another educator, each extra child costs you very little to care for. That session is the best place to aim your next newsletter item or holiday campaign. If a session is already at the ratio limit, more enquiries just create a waitlist.
Remember you have two audiences
In OSHC, parents are one audience. The other is the school. Many services operate on school grounds, and the school community can be your best channel or your biggest barrier.
Ask the school before you promote
Signs, newsletter items and links on the school website usually need the school's agreement, and a school may not want to appear to endorse one provider. Ask the principal or business manager what they'll carry each term. Good requests are small and easy to say yes to:
A short newsletter item at the start of each term with hours, how to book and who to contact
A link to your booking page on the school website
A table at new family orientation and kindergarten transition sessions
A one-page term summary for the principal or school council
If your service is run under an agreement with the school, being easy to work with is marketing too.
Reach the kindergarten families early
Families starting school next year are choosing before and after school care months ahead. Orientation sessions and transition visits are the moment to put your hours and booking steps in their hands. Our kindergarten marketing guide covers the school-readiness side of this.
Make the website answer parents' questions
Parents of school-age children usually look for three things: are you open when I need you, how do I book, and what will it cost after subsidy. A short page per school or site beats a general page for the whole business. Include:
The school name, address and pick-up arrangements, including how children get from class to you
Hours for before school, after school, pupil free days and holidays
A clear booking link or form, and what happens after they submit it
What children actually do, with real photos where you have written consent
Fees, so families can see what they'd pay for the sessions they need
Keep the page current. If you list vacancies, update them through the same software you use for bookings.
Explain Child Care Subsidy simply
Many families don't realise subsidy can apply once a child starts school. Services Australia lists outside school hours care, including before, after and vacation care, as approved child care, as long as the service is approved and the family meets the eligibility rules. Add a short plain-English explanation and a link to Services Australia so families can check their own situation. Don't quote subsidy percentages yourself, because they depend on family circumstances and change over time.
Promote vacation care on a schedule
Vacation care is the part of OSHC that behaves most like a product launch. Families plan around school holiday dates, and many wait for the program before they book.
A simple rhythm:
Four to six weeks before holidays: publish the program and open bookings, with a clear close date.
Three weeks before: email current families and the waitlist, then post the highlights on your Facebook page.
One week before: remind families, and promote any days with spare places.
After the holidays: ask families what they'd change and note which days filled.
Lead with the activities and the days, not just "vacation care now open". A day-by-day program is also the content that makes a good email and a good social post. Our email marketing guide for childcare centres covers how to keep a list that parents actually read.
Use local search where it fits
Parents often search for "after school care" or "OSHC" with a suburb or school name. Make sure your Google Business Profile lists the right hours, categories and booking link for each site, and that your website pages use the same suburb and school names parents use. Our local SEO guide for childcare explains the basics.
If you run ads, keep them small and specific. A Facebook ad for next week's holiday program, aimed at the area around the school, is easier to measure than a general awareness campaign.
Know the rules on what you can offer
Whatever you run, stay inside the Department of Education's rules. The Department says providers must not offer inducements such as cash, vouchers, gift cards, devices or other gifts and giveaways. It also says providers can advertise free site visits or trial periods and can offer and advertise discounted or free care, as long as fee discounts are reported correctly when subsidy is claimed. If you're unsure about a promotion, contact the CCS Provider Helpdesk before you launch it.
Track what's working
Pick a few numbers and review them each term:
Enquiries by source (school newsletter, website, Google, word of mouth)
Enquiry-to-booking rate
Attendance by session, compared with last term
Vacation care bookings by day
Our guide to childcare marketing KPIs shows how to set these up with free tools, and our enrolment guide covers the wider picture of turning interest into children on the roll.
FAQ
How do I fill empty OSHC places?
Find the specific sessions that are under-used, then aim your marketing at them. Ask the school for a newsletter item, make booking easy on your website, and promote vacation care days that have space.
Can I advertise OSHC through the school?
Often yes, but you need the school's agreement. Signs, newsletter items and website links usually depend on what the principal or school council is comfortable with, so ask before you print or post anything.
Can families get Child Care Subsidy for OSHC?
Yes, where the service is approved and the family meets the eligibility rules. Services Australia lists before, after and vacation care as approved child care. Point families to Services Australia to check their own situation.
When should I promote vacation care?
Publish the program and open bookings four to six weeks before the holidays, then send reminders as the dates get closer. Families plan around school holiday dates, so earlier is usually better than a last-minute push.
Want your OSHC sessions fuller?
Maximize Marketing helps Australian childcare providers turn quiet sessions into booked ones, with local search, ads and enquiry follow-up that suit school-age care. Learn more about our childcare marketing services or book a free chat and we'll look at which sessions have the most room to grow.
Comments