Dear colleagues
We begin this month’s edition by acknowledging all the finalists for the Victorian Early Years Awards, which took place last week, and congratulating the winners. You should all be proud of your professionalism and the impact you have on your colleagues, peers, and the children and families you work with. Thank you for all the work you do. This year marked the 20th anniversary of the awards which is a remarkable achievement. Over the past 20 years, we’ve celebrated more than 200 finalists and 120 winners, each making an incredible difference to the lives of children, families and communities across Victoria.
Child safety updates
This is a landmark month for child safety reform in our state. The Victorian Government has introduced legislation to make changes to the Education and Care Services National Law. This includes: mandatory training, enhanced regulatory tools and increased penalties.
Legislation has already been introduced to establish a new independent early childhood regulator. The Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA) will commence operation on Thursday 1 January 2026. As part of the Rapid Child Safety Review recommendations, this underpins the work of strengthening child safety safeguards.
Once established, VECRA will work with the sector, providers, services, staff and families to improve the safety and quality of services and help rebuild community confidence.
As part of the reforms, Quality Assessment and Regulation Division (QARD) will transition to the new independent regulator. Ahead of these changes, QARD will continue to assess, monitor and undertake compliance checks as normal. All work currently with QARD, such as proposed visits and assessments, will transition over to VECRA at the start of 2026.
The Victorian Government has also introduced legislation to strengthen the Working with Children Check (WWCC) scheme and the Social Services Regulator.
The WWCC, Reportable Conduct Scheme and Child Safe Standards will be brought into the Social Services Regulator. Mandatory child safety training and testing will also be introduced for all WWCC applicants, along with a new complaints function to give families a clear pathway to raise concerns.
We will share more information once the Bills pass Parliament, along with a clear roadmap of the next steps. We’re committed to keeping you updated as we implement these important reforms. Thank you for your ongoing commitment to child safety.
Other important information
Meanwhile, the 2025 Early Childhood Education and Care Staff Survey is open until Monday 15 December. Educators, teachers, managers and directors are encouraged to take part. It takes about 10 minutes and will help shape the future of the workforce.
We recently celebrated World Teachers’ Day by recognising the dedication, skill and care early childhood professionals bring to shaping children’s futures. We hope you were able to take some time to reflect and celebrate the occasion with your colleagues.
Bronwen FitzGerald
Deputy Secretary
Early Childhood Education
Updated