As per the provisions laid down by the family law, a Family Child Care Association is an association chartered by parents for the education and upbringing of their children. The association is responsible for the maintenance of a child either within the family or outside it and in this connection, it may include vocational care, educational care or special needs care. The provision of services is done through one or more affiliated organizations which are commonly known as childcare institutions. The associations are governed by a volunteer board consisting of members who have the responsibility of keeping an eye on the activities of the organization and its auxiliaries. Apart from being the controller of the affairs, the board also has other important appointments like that of the directors, officers, secretariats, secretary, treasurer, receptionists, finance officer, technical expert, a legal expert and the board members themselves.
The next AGM date for the Family Child Care Association of South Africa is scheduled to be held in June, thereby after two and a half months we should expect another revision to the present governance arrangements. If you wish to be a part of the governing body, then you need to approach FCA now for the necessary formalities and application form. Once you fill in the application form and send it on certified mail with your agency address as the return address, then it will be evaluated for acceptance and you will receive a confirmation call from FCA with the details about your registration. You need to return to the FCA office together with the confirmation call to register for the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in June.
There is another important function performed by the FCA apart from overseeing the association, which is in charge of preparing the annual, consolidated accounts. This task is being performed by the FCA in consultation with the provincial government to get the report on family child care programs and services updated at the end of the current financial year. It is expected from the association that they would compile and prepare the reports based on their experience, latest researches and review with the concerned department or agencies. The Family Child Care Association is also expected to develop an operating model for the next years where new strategies are being considered along with the evaluation results to evaluate if the strategies are effective. The model is expected to be accepted by the provincial government and eventually implemented for the upcoming year.
It is the responsibility of FCA to inform the community about the latest updates and information on the latest activities. The association is also responsible for the monitoring of the programs and developments to keep the community informed. The FCA should inform the community about the new programs and services being introduced or for the upcoming year. The FCA should conduct a community meeting at least once every four months to update the members on the latest happenings of the association. For example, in February the FCA holds the FCA council meeting and in June the FCA council meeting is conducted exclusively for the community.
The FCA council is responsible for choosing the family child care providers who will participate in the FCA program. The process involves screening and evaluating the potential candidates. Once the assessment process is complete then the selected provider can apply for acceptance into the program. Once accepted the FCA staff will provide training to the prospective caregivers. The training may include giving the training on the latest methods that can be used to prevent the early childhood conditions from developing. The training also includes educating the caregivers about the social safety net services that they can avail and provide assistance to the families especially during periods of unemployment.
As part of the FCA program, the FCA is also responsible for providing technical assistance to the child care providers and the parents. They conduct training sessions and conduct a literature survey to find out the needs and problems of the families. The FCA team would then develop a plan to meet these needs. The FCA is also responsible for developing and implementing policies that will help the families and the child care providers to successfully implement the child care programs. One of the policies that is implemented is the minimum educational requirements that the child care providers and the families have to comply with in order to ensure that they are able to operate the child care programs.