National Child Safety Reform and Regulatory Changes

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National Reforms

Australian governments have agreed to major reforms to strengthen child safety in early childhood education and care. These reforms respond to clear community expectations for safer, more transparent and accountable services. They also support a stronger regulatory framework and a more capable workforce.

Following extensive consultation, Education Ministers have endorsed a package of changes to the National Law and Regulations. These changes are informed by the Decision Regulation Impact Statement (DRIS) and have been implemented in stages from December 2025 to February 2026.

What is changing and why

The reforms further embed child safety across the sector by:

increasing provider accountability
improving information sharing
expanding regulatory powers
strengthening safeguards such as Working with Children Checks (WWCC)
building workforce capability through mandatory child protection and child safety training
establishing a National Early Childhood Worker Register.

The changes aim to deter non-compliance, prevent unsuitable people from working with children, and create more consistent national expectations.

Key dates

From 10 December 2025:

extension of the limitation period for prosecuting offences, with a new ‘stop the clock’ provision
improved information-sharing powers for regulatory authorities, including access to information from recruitment agencies.

From 2 January 2026:

tripled maximum penalties for offences under the National Law and Regulations
expanded use of infringement notices
four existing regulations becoming offences.

From 27 February 2026:

introduction of a new paramount consideration requiring all staff, volunteers and providers to prioritise children’s safety, rights and best interests in every decision
new rules for the use of digital devices in services, with limits on personal devices
mandatory child protection and nationally consistent child safety training for all workers and volunteers
new offences for inappropriate conduct
expanded powers for regulatory authorities to respond to misconduct, including suspensions and training directions
strengthened WWCC requirements (varying by jurisdiction)
removal of ongoing waivers for premises design requirements related to supervision
new powers to identify and monitor related providers
expanded inspection powers for family day care premises
establishment of the National Early Childhood Worker Register.

Additional measures for Family Day Care

Additional reforms specific to Family Day Care (FDC) services include:

require the approved provider of a FDC to formally approve the areas of the residence that are suitable to be used to provide education and care to children
require the approved provider of a FDC service to conduct a risk assessment of areas outside but near a FDC residence premises and an approved FDC venue that are accessible to children.

Further information on these reforms and their implementation timelines are provided by ACECQA, as well as throughout the Guide to the National Quality Framework.

National Early Childhood Worker Register

A National Early Childhood Worker Register commenced nationally from 27 February 2026.

The Register will better support the existing role of regulatory authorities to monitor, identify and respond to risk with respect to persons working in children’s education and care.

The Register is hosted by ACECQA within the National Quality Agenda IT system (NQAITS).

Further information about the type of information stored within the Register and FAQ’s can be found on the ACECQA website.

Who must be included in the Worker Register?

The Worker Register applies to all people employed or engaged at NQF regulated services either directly or indirectly. Approved providers must ensure everyone who works with or around, cares for, or supports children in any capacity is included in the Worker Register. This includes:

educators (permanent, fixed term, casual or agency)
early childhood teachers, including provisionally registered, graduate teacher and unregistered teachers
volunteers regardless of how often or how long they attend
student or trainees completing placements, practicum, or vocational training
non-educator staff, such as cooks, cleaners, maintenance staff, administrative staff and bus drivers
nominated Supervisors
coordinators (centre-based or family day care)
contractors and external service providers who attend the service (e.g. inclusion support workers, allied health professionals)
family day care educators and family day care educator assistants, including those working from residences or approved venues.

Anyone involved in educating or caring for children—whether paid or unpaid, permanent or temporary—must be included in the Worker Register. People who attend the service outside operating hours do not need to be entered into the Worker Register.

Approved providers are best placed to use their professional judgement consistent with their obligations under the National Law, National Regulations, and child safety requirements, to determine which workers should be added to the Worker Register.

The purpose of the register is to ensure full visibility of the workforce and support stronger national child‑safety outcomes.

Does this include non-educator staff, such as maintenance and administrative staff?

Yes. Non‑educator staff such as maintenance workers, administrative staff, cooks, cleaners, and other support roles must be included in the Worker Register. The Register applies to everyone employed or engaged at an NQF regulated service who works with or around children in any capacity.

Staff who do not work at the service or have direct contact with children, for example: head office or corporate staff, are not required to be included on the Register.

Approved providers are best placed to exercise their professional judgement, consistent with their obligations under the National Law, National Regulations, and child safety requirements, to determine which workers should be added to the Worker Register.

Who does not need to be added to the Worker Register?

Adult residents living at the family day care home – they must be recorded on the Family Day Care Register
Staff who do not work directly with children (e.g. head office or corporate staff)
Visitors

Examples of visitors:

emergency tradesperson (e.g. plumbers or electricians)
policy or regulatory staff (e.g. from the Regulatory authority, ACECQA, relevant government department or agency staff)
police or fire personnel (or community members) who attend and/or are invited to speak at the service
prospective families who tour the service during operating hours while children are in care
family members of educators or staff members who drop in to see or pick up an educator or staff member during operating hours.

It is best practice that approved providers:

require all visitors to sign a visitor register that includes their name, date, arrival and departure times, and reasons for the visits
ensure they are supervised at all times and are never left alone with children or counted in educator-to-child ratios.

Can employers use the Worker Register to see my work history?

No. They can only see the information for their own service.

Do educators need to register themselves?

No. Approved providers will enter and update your information in the Register on your behalf.

If I change employers, will the Worker Register show this?

Yes. Your old employer will record your end date with them, and your new employer will record your start date with their service.

If I am an educator, can I access, check, or correct information held about me in the Register? 

Your service can tell you what information is recorded, and you can ask them to update or correct it. The Register contains the same details your employer already keeps in staffing and educator records.

Is my personal information secure in the Worker Register?

Yes. Only a small number of authorised users can access the information in the Worker Register.

Your information is also protected by the National Law, the Privacy Act 1988, and the Australian Privacy Principles. The Worker Register is part of ACECQA’s secure NQA ITS which uses safeguards like controlled access, encryption, multi-factor authentication and ongoing cyber-security monitoring. For more information you can read ACECQA’s Privacy Policy or email privacy@acecqa.gov.au.

How is the Register managed for staff who work across multiple services?

If a person works across several services run by the same approved provider, their details must be added to each service. The system will pre-fill existing details when the approved provider enters the person’s name and date of birth into the Register.

How should casual and agency staff be recorded in the Worker Register?

Record the start date and final end date of the arrangement. You do not need to record every shift.

When adding relief/agency educators to the Worker Register, do I need to personally sight their original documents, or can I rely on the information provided by the agency?

It is ultimately the service provider’s responsibility to ensure compliance even when an individual will be working with children for only a short period, such as a one‑day relief shift. For temporary staff, approved providers must check their identity, any relevant qualifications and training, and Working With Children Checks (WWCC), Working With Vulnerable People (WWVP) or teacher registration details before they start. Third party organisations can collect this information for the approved provider if requested.

Which educator qualifications and mandatory documents must I personally verify before allowing a relief or agency educator to work in the service?

All relevant qualifications must be sighted, and the corresponding dates recorded in the register. For guidance, refer to the ACECQA bulk upload template, which outlines which fields are mandatory and which are optional.

Is the need to sight qualifications for the register just for teachers/educators, or do we also have to sight them from people like allied health professionals?

Service providers are responsible for ensuring that everyone who works with or around, cares for, or supports children in any capacity is included in the Worker Register; and the mandatory fields are completed. For guidance, refer to the ACECQA bulk upload template, which outlines which fields are mandatory and which are optional.

How should early childhood education and care services that are located on school sites (including those operating alongside outside school hours care or vacation care programs) implement and maintain required safety principles, including those set out in the National Code?

While some services operate on school sites, the education and care service has separate approvals to operate granted by the regulatory authority.

Only workers who are engaged by the education and care service, and who are present on the service premises while children are being educated and cared for, must be included in the Worker Register.

This includes:

educators
volunteers
student working at the service (including those on placement)
non-educator staff such as cooks, drivers, and administration staff
teachers who work at the service (regardless of teacher registration or accreditation status)
nominated supervisors and coordinators
temporary, agency, or labour-hire staff.

People who work at the school but are not engaged in work at the education and care service do not need to be entered into the Worker Register.

Where can I find further information on the National Early Childhood Worker Register?

The ACECQA provides detailed guidance on the register, including how to enter and maintain information. You can find more information on their website here.

Working with Children Checks (WWCC)

All individuals engaged by the service must now hold a valid WWCC before commencing work in an education and care service. Staff are also required to notify their approved provider immediately if there is any change to their WWCC status. Approved providers must then report this information to the Education Standards Board to ensure ongoing compliance.

Mandatory Child Safety Training

National child safety training is mandatory for everybody working or volunteering in an Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) service regulated under the NQF. The training is available only through Geccko – the Australian Government’s online learning platform for the ECEC sector.

The new national training will support everyone working in ECEC to meet their legal child safety obligations, strengthen safeguarding practices, and reduce the risk of harm to children. It includes two components:

foundation training, available now
advanced training, available July 2026.

The training has been developed by the Australian Centre for Child Protection (ACCP) in partnership with the Queensland Government, on behalf of all Australian states and territories and the Australian Government.

You will need a Geccko account to access and complete the training.

The training is free to complete, and providers can access support to help their staff complete it:

child Care Subsidy approved providers may close services early to support staff to complete the training
small to medium providers may access wage subsidy grants. More information will be shared as it becomes available.

Visit the National Child Safety Training website for more information about the training.

Find out more and register for Geccko.

Who needs to complete the new child safety training?

The new child safety training is mandatory for all people involved in providing education and care regulated under the National Quality Framework (NQF), whether or not they work directly with children. The training includes Foundation and Advanced modules. 

You will need to complete Foundation child safety training if you are a: 

person with management or control of a service 
nominated supervisor of a service 
person in day-to-day charge of a service  
staff member of the service, including Family Day Care coordinators, educators and educator assistants
volunteer at the service, including if you are a student.

You will also need to complete Advanced child safety training if you are a: 

person with management or control of a service 
nominated supervisor of a service 
person in day-to-day charge of a service  
staff member of the service who works directly with children, including Family Day Care coordinators, educators and educator assistants.

Where can I sign up or access the training?

The new child safety training must be completed in Geccko – the Australian Government Department of Education’s online learning platform for the ECEC sector. You will need your own Geccko account so completions can be tracked correctly. Visit the Geccko registration page and follow the prompts to create your account.

How much time do I have to complete the training?

There is a six-month transition period (to 27 August 2026) to complete the Foundation child safety training. From 14 August 2026, Foundation child safety training needs to be completed within 14 days of being employed, engaged or appointed at the service or before you start working directly with children at the service (whichever is earlier). It must be completed every 2 years.

If a person required to complete the Advanced child safety training was employed, engaged or appointed immediately before the date on which the training is published, they must complete it within 6 months of this publication date. Otherwise, Advanced child safety training needs to be completed by the relevant people within 3 months of the person being employed, engaged or appointed at the service. More information will be made available closer to the publication date for the Advanced child safety training (estimated July 2026).

I have finished the Geccko training. Do I still have to complete RRHAN-EC or Safe Environments child protection training? 

In South Australia, completion of the mandated national child safety training Geccko will be sufficient to meet the requirements of both Regulations 162A and 162B under the National Law.

However, other child safe training such as Responding to Risks of Harm, Abuse and Neglect – Education and Care (RRHAN-EC) and DHS Safe Environments: Through their Eyes training may be required for individual services – you must check with your approved provider.

What will happen if I don’t complete the child safety training by the specified date? 

You will need to complete the child safety training within the specified timeframe to be able to work in a service and to ensure compliance with the legislation. Governments are developing guidance for the sector to support compliance with these new requirements.  

Personal Device Restrictions

From 27 February 2026, changes to the National Law restrict the use of digital devices in children’s education and care services including prohibiting the use of personal devices (with some exceptions) and limiting devices that can be used to capture, store or transmit images of children. These amendments build upon the child-safe practices of the National Model Code for Taking Images of Children in Early Childhood Education and Care and its Guidelines.

Personal electronic devices capable of taking images or videos (such as tablets, phones, digital cameras, and smart watches), as well as personal storage or file‑transfer media (including SD cards, USB drives, hard drives, and cloud‑based storage), should not be in the possession of any person while providing education and care and working directly with children.

Any exceptions should be limited to essential purposes only, authorised in writing (or through another reasonable method if written authorisation is not practicable) by the approved provider, and permitted only when such access does not impede the active supervision of children.

Essential purposes for which the use and/or possession of a personal electronic device may be authorised—other than for taking images or recording videos of children—include:

communication during an emergency situation involving a lost child, an injury to a child or staff member, another serious incident, or during a lockdown or evacuation of the service premises
personal health requirements, such as heart‑monitoring or blood‑sugar‑monitoring devices
disability‑related needs, where a personal electronic device is an essential means of communication for an educator or other staff member
family necessity, for example when a worker has an ill or dying family member
technology failure, such as a temporary outage affecting service‑issued electronic devices
receiving emergency notifications during a local emergency event, such as government‑issued bushfire evacuation alerts.

Policies and procedures should clearly outline the appropriate use of these devices for taking, sending, and storing images or videos of children.
Approved providers and their services should have strict controls in place for the appropriate storage and retention of images and videos of children.

Who do the restrictions apply to?

The restrictions apply to every person who provides education and care in a centre‑based service, regardless of their role or employment status. This includes:

all paid staff members
volunteers
students on placement or work experience
any other person engaged, employed, or appointed to work with children.

If someone is physically present with children, they are considered to be working directly with children and cannot use or possess personal devices unless a specific exception applies and authorisation has been granted by the approved provider.

When a person is on a break and not physically with children, they are not considered to be working directly with children and may use their personal device during that time.

Service‑supplied devices are still allowed when used appropriately to support education and care.

For further guidance see the ACECQA information sheet on using digital devices in centre-based education and care services.

When are personal device restrictions not in effect?

Device restrictions do not apply when a person is not working directly with children. This includes situations where:

the person is on a short break and not physically present with children
a person on site who is not involved in providing education and care, and who is not physically present with children, such as administrative, maintenance, or cleaning staff
external visitors or professionals are not engaged in education and care activities
an approved provider has given written authorisation for personal device use
a person is using a service‑supplied device for legitimate education and care purposes.

Are service-supplied or service authorised devices allowed to be used for personal use?

Service-supplied and service-authorised devices may only be used to provide education and care to children in a service and cannot be used for any other purpose, for example, for personal use.

What specific rules do Family Day Care services have regarding the use of personal and service‑supplied devices when capturing, storing, or sharing images of children?

Family Day Care services operate under additional and more specific requirements regarding the use of personal and service‑supplied devices, including rules for capturing, storing, and transmitting images of children. ACECQA’s information sheet on the use of digital devices in family day care services clearly outlines these obligations and should be read alongside your service’s policies.

What responsibilities do approved providers and nominated supervisors in Family Day Care have regarding educators’ use of personal and service‑supplied devices

Approved providers and nominated supervisors are responsible for making sure educators:

use only service-supplied and service authorised devices when capturing, storing and transmitting images of children
do not use service-supplied and service authorised devices for personal purposes
understand that personal devices must not be used to capture, store or transmit images of children, even though personal devices are permitted to be used at the service.

Approved providers should also consider how they can support educators to meet these requirements, such as supplying appropriate devices, authorising devices and making sure educators are made aware of these changes.

Approved providers should also ensure staff are aware of appropriate use of service-supplied devices which must not be used for any personal purposes, including logging into personal accounts.

Are smart watches that cannot take images and videos still not to be used?

Smart watches that cannot store or transmit images—such as basic Fitbits or step counters—may be used. The key consideration is whether the device is capable of receiving or retaining images or videos. Even if image‑related settings are disabled, any device that can physically receive images cannot be used without an exemption.

What are the rules for people who need to wear smart watches for health reasons?

As outlined in the National Model Code, personal electronic devices capable of taking images or videos, as well as personal storage or file‑transfer media, must not be in the possession of any person while providing education and care or working directly with children, unless required for authorised essential purposes such as emergencies, health needs, or family matters.

Can I do mandatory training using a personal device?

Yes personal devices can be used to complete mandatory training as long as the person completing the training is not working directly with children at the time of completing the training.

Can individuals who are not employed or engaged by the approved provider, including parents, carers, allied health professionals, tradespeople and other visitors, use their personal devices while at the service?

Under the National Law, people who are not employed, engaged or appointed by the approved provider at a service are able to use their personal devices while at the service. However, it is never ok for images or recordings of children to be captured, stored or transmitted by a personal device.

Approved providers should review service policies and procedures to ensure child safety remains a priority and that risks of harm to children are minimised while visitor are present at the service.

Approved providers may choose to adopt and enforce a policy and procedure that parents, carers and visitors to the service are to refrain from using personal devices while at the service.

Third party professionals can use a device that is issued by their business or institution that is used only for work purposes (not personal use). Services should consider ways to manage third party professionals through their own policy, procedures and risk management processes.

Where can I find the ACECQA exemption template for the use of personal devices?

The exemption form can be found through the ACECQA website or downloaded here.

Updates to the National Quality Standard

From 1 January 2026, minor refinements, sharpening the focus on child safety, took effect:

Quality Area 2: Children’s Health and Safety

Element 2.2.3 will be renamed Child Safety and protection, emphasising the need for educators to identify and respond to children at risk of abuse or neglect.

Quality Area 7: Governance and Leadership

Quality Area 7 including Standard 7.1 and Element 7.1.2 will explicitly reference and support the operation of child safe services.

For more information visit the ACECQA website.

Additional Changes to the National Quality Framework

New policy and procedures: Safe use of digital technologies and online environments at the service (Regulation 168)

Changes to the Education and Care Services National Regulations commenced on 1 September 2025 requiring services to implement a policy and procedure to ensure children’s safety when using digital technologies and online environments addressing:

taking, use, storage and destruction of images and videos of children being educated and cared for
parental authorisation for taking, using and storing images and videos
use of any optical surveillance devices (e.g. CCTV)
use of any digital device issued by the service
use of digital devices by children while at the service.

The National Model Code: Taking images in early childhood education and care and accompanying guidelines can assist in developing or updating your policies.

Notification timeframes for allegations or incidents of physical or sexual abuse

The timeframe for notifying the Education Standards Board of allegations or incidents of physical or sexual abuse reduced from 7 days to 24 hours from 1 September 2025.

Services to be free from vaping substances and vaping devices

While service environments must already be free from the use of tobacco, illicit drugs and alcohol, from 1 September 2025 they also need to be free from the use of vaping substances and vaping devices.

Support for approved providers and services

The following support is available to help approved providers and their services prepare for these changes:

NQF Child Safety Guides: Newly developed Child Safe Culture Guide and Online Safety Guides are now available.

ACECQA: Child Safety – What is changing?

ACECQA: Child Safety

Helpful links

Australian Government Department for Education – Quality and Safety

For any other questions you can contact the Education Standards Board via phone 1800 882 413 or email educationstandardsboard@sa.gov.au