Pre-Program Information

Thank you for booking into the Active Gamers program. We’re looking forward to the new program, but before that, please read these helpful details to ensure a smooth week.

Locations

ACT

Our BRADDON Centre is located at Merici College, Wise Street, Braddon. Our building is located between the tennis courts and the oval. There are car parks on both Wise street and Limestone Avenue, do not enter the main building rather follow the Active Gamers signs which are more .

Our WODEN Centre is located at the AFL Centre at 8 Spoering Street, Phillip on the first level. Parking is available right in front of the building.

Our GUNGAHLIN Centre is located at Gold Creek High School in Nicholls. Parking is available in the school car park.

Our TUGGERANONG Centre is located at Wanniassa High School. Parking is available in the school car park.

OWNA App & Portal

We are now using OWNA as our registration and management platform. After enrolment you will be sent details of how to log into the OWNA app and/or web portal. You can then make casual bookings very easily.

You will be able to check your children in and out of the centre using the app or portal, and see any staff observations over the course of the day. Information regarding payments and CCS will also be available via the app and portal.

Download OWNA for Apple Devices: Click Here
Download OWNA for Android Devices: Click Here
Need help navigating the app? See OWNA’s Parent Cheat Sheet & Parent Resources

Arrival/Departure

Our centres open at 8am and close at 6pm.

You can drop off your child anytime between opening and 9am without them missing any structured activities. You can pick them up anytime between 4:00pm and close without disrupting any structured activities. If you need to pick up earlier than 4:00pm, please let us know in advance if possible. Please pick up your child prior to closing time. Your child must be signed in and out upon arrival and departure.

Late Pickup

Pickups after 6pm require at least 2 of our staff to work overtime resulting in higher costs for the service, and staff in turn are often unable to meet any after-hours commitments. A charge of $20 per 15 mins or part thereof, may be imposed on families who pick up children after 6pm. The childcare subsidy would not apply to this charge.

Groups

We arrange children into groups of 11-15 children. Whenever possible, we aim to place friends, siblings and similar ages into the same group. This is done in the morning when the Active Gamers first arrive at the program. If you would like input into the group placement, please speak with our centre staff on the day.

Daily Timetable

There will be two sports sessions each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. In the ACT these may be run by our friends at AFL and ACT Cricket, or by our own staff. At our Woden centre, one of the sessions is usually hosted at the nearby Squash centre.

Additionally, there will be a daily team-building session using a different cooperative video game each day, plus some time for video game free play.

Catering

Our lunches are provided by local caterers and vary each day. These are prepared on the morning of service and cater to dietary restrictions, if requested in advance.

Healthy snacks, such as fresh fruit and muesli bars, are available throughout the day in the main room. There is no need to bring additional food, but if you wish to, it must be nut-free. Water is always available.

Regular Outings (when available)

At our Woden centre (ACT), participants will visit the nearby Squash centre each morning for around 45 minutes, as authorised in the registration form. There will be a range of squash centric activities available there, providing a fun break from screens. Groups of up to 11 children per educator will walk to the Squash centre (100 meters away), and a risk assessment for this regular outing is available upon request.

What to Bring

Your child should wear clothing appropriate for exercise and, during sunny months, a wide brimmed hat. If your child wants to bring their own gaming equipment (headphones, controllers, etc.), they may do so at their own risk. We suggest labelling them clearly with a name to avoid misplacement or loss. Water is readily available, but we recommend packing a water bottle. We do our best to return lost property but between programs it can be difficult items that have been placed in storage.

What Not to Bring

Please do not bring any foods containing nuts.

In line with national requirements, we now have a policy around staff and children’s personal electronic devices (phones, cameras). Children should not use these devices at the program.

Medical Conditions

If your active gamers has a medical condition, we will need to hold a current Medical Plan on file prior to
attending the program. This is in addition to any notes you may have submitted on the enrolment
form. If you haven’t already, please can you submit this Medical Management and Communications
form.

If your active gamers will need to take any medication, with or without our help, you will need to submit
this Medical Administration form prior to attendance.

Childcare Subsidy and payments

We receive lots of queries around the Childcare subsidy. Please see our handy guide for some general information. https://activegamers.com.au/childcare-subsidy-information/

The best way to track the status of payments with relation to your booking is to use the OWNA App. It will also show invoices. Go to Family Menu (top left icon) > Statements/Invoices > View Statement of Entitlements.

Also remember to check for emails from Centrelink alerting you to any subsidy enrolment confirmation through your MyGov account.

We require a payment method to be included with your booking, but payments are not taken from your bank account until after the program has completed, or the week after the week of care in the longer summer break.  This allows for childcare subsidy payments to reconcile and avoids unnecessary refunds or forward payments.

Lost property

If you have any lost property, please contact the centre or come into the centre before the last day of the program to find it. After that it may be locked up for 3 months with our equipment and eventually passed on to a charity.

Absences/Cancellations  

Our policy on absences and cancellations can be found HERE.

Game Content

Online games are extremely popular with primary aged children. We are very aware of the potential issues with cyber safety and bad actors. Please read our Game Selection Policy for more detail.

Policies and Procedures

We take our responsibilities seriously, and the full version of our Policies and Procedures Document can be found here. We welcome feedback from parents regarding the formulation of our policies, procedures, and practices. If you would like to provide feedback or make a contribution, please fill out our Families Feedback Form.