How after school programs manage split families with comfort, privacy, and security

Every community has families with unique and potentially delicate situations, and these family dynamics can be very personal. As a provider of before and after-school care, it is crucial to treat all family situations with respect, privacy, and care.

School-aged care programs must offer flexible solutions that allow families to seamlessly access and pay for care and enrichment opportunities for their children regardless of the situation. Given the diverse family makeup of many communities, how do these programs ensure no one is missing out on critical programs and services?

Arux builds software that eliminates barriers for after school, community education, and preschool programs — enabling programming to reach all families and community members. This includes specific features that create a seamless experience for split families.

Comfort with payment flexibility

According to OurFamilyWizard, a leading app for more peaceful co-parenting, many split families share child care expenses. These shared-cost calculations are complex and based on many factors, including parenting plans and individual incomes. 

If the parent with a smaller share of parenting time earns significantly less than their co-parent, they might not need to pay additional child support for childcare. Even with 50-50 shared parenting time, child care costs might not be split evenly. It all depends on your specific scenario (and parenting plan).

Multiple payment methods on the same account

In Arux, within a single child care account, there are various ways to divide payments privately and securely within Arux. Individuals can save multiple payment methods on an account and split payments between them. For added security, payers do not have access to payment methods that do not belong to them (or the receipts for payments where they were not the original payer).

Quick Pay

Quick Pay is a feature within Arux allowing users to make a payment on a child care account for another person without being an account owner. Quick Pay works well for split families when a parent doesn't need/isn't allowed to access the actual account or child's information but needs to contribute financially. 

Using Quick Pay does not grant access to the account, and payers cannot view details about the amount that needs to be paid, providing a layer of security to all account owners. Additionally, payers cannot make schedule changes, request drop-in care, or view invoices. To use Quick Pay, individuals only need the following information from the account holder:

• The Arux website URL for the district

• Child care program name

• Child care account number

• Child's last name

Split auto pay (with different allocations if necessary)

Auto pay is among the most common payment options for families within Arux. Program administrators can set up split auto pay for split family situations so each payment method is automatically charged an agreed percentage of the invoice on the due date. This arrangement can be 50-50, 60-40, or whatever the parties agree, including three-way split auto pay. Split auto pay can be configured for multiple payment methods. 

Privacy and security managing accounts

Multiple account owners (with separate logins)

Accounts in Arux can have more than one owner. Each owner on the account has full access to account information and has the same access to manage various account activities, including viewing and requesting schedule changes, drop-in days, non-school days, and viewing invoices. Account owners may also manage authorized pickups and emergency contacts. 

For security, each owner on the account has their login email and password and manages their payment methods. Account owners can confirm that a payment was made but can only click on and view invoices for payments they made.

Separate accounts

If you and the other user responsible for making payments can not be on the same account, two separate accounts for child care can be created. Staff can work with families to get them set up in a way that meets their needs. Once the accounts are set up, you and the other user can manage them separately. 

Regardless, Arux automates annual tax statements for each unique payer, making tax season a breeze for you and your families.

Software for your entire community

Arux is a platform that helps teams build programs that represent their community. Split families can be a significant aspect of that community, and such situations can be very personal and private matters. Therefore, offering features that create flexibility around registering and paying for care can only help community members navigate these dynamics. By doing so, your program is taking care of your community, which should be your ultimate goal.