Regulating the Child Safe Standards in early childhood services

All early childhood services (services) must comply with the Child Safe Standards (Standards).

Read our information and guidance about how to comply with the Standards

Regulatory roles

QARD is the integrated sector regulator of the Standards in the early childhood sector. We:

• use our powers under the Education and Care Services National Law (National Law) and the Children’s Services Act 1996 to monitor and enforce compliance with the Standards
• monitor compliance with the Standards as an integrated part of our regulatory approach
• collaborate with the Commission for Children and Young People (CCYP) and other sector regulators where organisations operate in more than one sector.

CCYP:

• oversees the whole system for regulating the Standards
• provides general guidance for all organisations about complying with the Standards.
• is sole regulator of the Reportable Conduct Scheme.

Read more about how QARD will monitors compliance with the Standards.

Where an organisation operates in more than one sector

Every organisation that must comply with the Standards has a ‘sector regulator’:

• QARD for all early childhood services
• Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) for schools (government and independent) and registered training organisations (RTOs)
• the Department of Health for Maternal and Child Health services.

CCYP is the regulator of the Standards for organisations where there is no specified sector regulator.

Example 1: A non-government school operates an Early Learning Centre (ELC)

• QARD regulates compliance with the Standards by the ELC as an approved education and care service under the National Law
• VRQA regulates compliance with the Standards by the school

QARD collaborates with VRQA in monitoring and enforcing compliance with the Standards by the ELC.

Example 2: A local Council operates different services for children and adults at a recreation complex, including:

• a swimming pool which provides swimming lessons for children
• a gym for adults
• an approved children’s service that offers occasional care for children while their parent uses the pool or gym.

The Council has child safety policies that apply to all services operating from the Council complex

• QARD regulates compliance with the Standards by the occasional care service
• CCYP regulates compliance by the other services provided by the Council.

QARD collaborates with CCYP in monitoring and enforcing compliance with the Standards.

Read how we will monitor compliance with the Child Safe Standards in early childhood services.