Heron School Aged Care

Our Out-Of-School Care programs can accept children Kindergarten aged (must have started to attend Kindergarten already) through to grade 7, although we primarily focus on offering care to K - Grade 4.

The out of school care program at Heron offers care from 2:45 - 7:00.

All Mitchell Elementary early dismissal dates are included.

Professional Day care, winter daycamps, spring daycamps and summer daycamps require additional registration and operate 8:00 - 4:00.

Our early dismissal dates, professional day closures and holiday closures are available to view in our annual calendar:

2025/2026 Calendar

2026/2027 Calendar

We offer care for Kindergarten gradual entry - please contact the program manager to discuss your child’s individual gradual entry schedule.

There are no parent participation or volunteering requirements for this program.

All children need some extra help or support some of the time; but if your child requires 1:1 or 1:2 support most of the time, there are a few options to explore.  Unfortunately, funding options are limited, but applying to all possible options and, if possible, accessing AFU funding for support can create a network of supports so your child can thrive in a social environment.

1) Apply to Supported Child Care for support funding.  Our Inclusion Coordinator can help you with this application - please note the SCD prioritizes children who are 4 and graduating to Kindergarten.

2) If your child has an autism diagnosis, SSOCC is an approved AFU provider, and we can work with your family to either hire a support aide on your behalf or to hire one of your BI’s already on your team.  We can bill AFU directly for funding; your BI can work to support your child 1:1 as well as support your child in social play.  The important work your child’s team does with your child - be it SLP, OT, RCC, BCBA or other professionals - often focuses on individual development, but within the classroom environment, a BI / classroom aide is able to focus specifically on Kindergarten readiness and social development.

3) The PACE program offers short term support through a support aide who will assess the program and your child within the program, making recommendations for teachers to better support your child.  This is usually restricted to 6 weeks, one visit per week, but can be invaluable information to understanding your child’s needs within a group environment.

4) Our program accepts ACCB as well as the special needs child care subsidy, to reduce tuition fees as much as possible.  If your child has a diagnosis, you may be eligible for the special needs child care subsidy (150.00/month)

Heron will visit the Mitchell Elementary park and playground during school days; we will occasionally visit King George Park.

On professional development days and daycamps, our program will visit any number of parks, pools an other recreational facilities. We use public transport for these trips.

Yes, Sandpiper OSC is a licensed group school aged child care program with Vancouver Coastal Health.

The ratio for Sandpiper OSC is one teacher for 12 children and two teachers for 24 children.

All of our educators are required to have a criminal record check and valid first aid.

While no specific qualifications are required for school-aged educators, our OSC staff have a range of school-based and recreational experience with children grades K - 7.

All SSOCC educators additionally participate in a minimum of 32 professional development hours per year.

Please refer to our health and wellness policy in our parent handbook.