“It’s our polite nudge in the ribs to help you and your team stay organised and on task.”
This week’s subject is Child protection
Element 2.2.3: Management, educators and staff are aware of their roles and responsibilities to identify and respond to every child at risk of abuse or neglect.
Are you a Service operating in NSW? If so, you must comply with the new mandates aimed to strengthen child safety and wellbeing.
The NSW Government’s recent amendments to the Children (Education and Care Services National Law Application) Act 2025 are now in force. Approved providers should review and amend their policies, procedures and practices to ensure they align with the new requirements. The amendments aim to strengthen child safety and wellbeing and enhance transparency for families.
Some of the key changes now in effect include:
-
- Services must now prominently display their compliance and quality history: under Section 172(3) and (4) of the National Law NSW, all ECEC services must now prominently display their compliance and quality history alongside their quality rating at their service. Services must use the Regulatory Authority’s short-form compliance and quality history template, which includes the current and previous quality ratings, any serious breaches in the past two years (or from the date the service was approved or transferred to the current approved provider), and any prosecutions where there is a plea of guilt, finding of guilt or conviction.
- Offence to subject a child to inappropriate conduct: Section 166A makes it an offence for anyone involved in the provision of education and care to subject a child to inappropriate conduct. This law is in addition to Section 166- Offence to use inappropriate discipline. Section 5AA defines inappropriate conduct as conduct a reasonable person would consider to be inappropriate in an education and care service. Conduct that breaches professional boundaries or may cause harm to a child’s safety and wellbeing, including emotional, psychological or physical harm is considered inappropriate. Examples include; Inappropriate physical contact, grooming behaviours, ill treatment that is not disciplinary in nature and unprofessional communication. Services must also have clear and accessible reporting policies and procedures and child-focused complaint handling processes in place so that any concerns about inappropriate conduct can be promptly and effectively identified, reported to and addressed by management, and notified to the Regulatory Authority and other relevant authorities. Reporting incidents and concerns.
- Prohibition of the use of personal devices while working directly with children and requirements for the use of service-supplied devices in centre-based services and service-authorised or service-supplied devices in family day care services: On November 6th the Acting Minister for Education and Early Learning issued a Ministerial Direction prohibiting the use of personal devices while working directly with children in Centre-based services, including outside of school hours care. This direction strengthens the ban of personal mobile and digital devices announced by the Education Ministers in August and enforced in September 2025. The direction sets out the specific requirements for how digital devices (capable of taking, storing or transmitting images and videos) can be used in ECEC services, including Family Day Care services.
- Expanding the number of penalty infringement notice offences and increasing maximum penalty fines.
- Strengthening whistleblower protections: Services must have a Protected Disclosures (Whistleblower) Policy to support staff who raise concerns.
- Introducing Ministerial and regulatory directions powers.
- Introducing mandatory Working with Children Check notice requirements: Educators and staff will be required to notify the approved provider in writing of any negative notice in relation to the educator or staff member’s Working with Children Check clearance or a change in relation to the educator’s accreditation or registration as a teacher.
- Expanding the limitation period for the commencement of legal proceedings empowering the regulatory authority to suspend service quality ratings during investigations, Section 138A.
- Enabling the Regulatory Authority to deem providers to be related providers where they share Persons of Management or Control in common, Section 5B.
- Removing NCAT appeals for certain decisions that are made based on an unacceptable risk to children, Section 192 (2).
- Prohibiting waivers for the design and maintenance of the service premises: This prevents a service waiver from being sought in relation to the obligation of approved providers to ensure that premises are designed to facilitate the supervision of children in accordance with r115.
Resources:
Children (Education and Care Services National Law Application) Amendment Act 2025
Child safety reforms pass the NSW Parliament
Displaying compliance and quality history
New child safety requirements
Offence to subject child to inappropriate conduct
Within System7 go to Quality Area 2/ Modules 31- 34 to submit self-assessment notes and if required, open a QIP issue to create new tasks to action.
The Childcare Centre Desktop has a range of resources to assist services with child protection and the new child safety requirements. These include Child Protection Policy, Child Safe Environment Policy, Mobile Device Policy, Safe Use of Digital Technologies and Online Environments Policy and Procedure, Digital Technologies and Online Environments Risk Assessment, Electronic Device Register, Electronic Device Exemption, Electronic Service Supplied Device Form, Electronic Service Authorised Device Form (FDC only) and much more. We’re currently reviewing all amendments to the National Law and Regulations and updating and creating new resources and policies (including Protected Disclosures Policy) to help services stay informed and compliant.
Resources, NQS Element, Regulation and System7 links:
Childcare Centre Desktop – Childcare Centre Desktop
National Quality Standard – QA2/ 2.2.3- Child protection
National Regulations – 41, 84, 85, 86, 168, 173, 173A, 174
System7 Module – QA2/ Modules 31- 34
If you have any questions, send us a note via the Contact page here!
