Family day care services: child safety and personal electronic devices

Children are entitled to a safe environment for learning and care, including when it comes to how digital images and videos are taken and stored. It’s essential we are prioritising children’s safety and wellbeing in all education and care programs.

The Victorian Government has announced important measures to improve child safety in early childhood education and care (ECEC) services. There will be restrictions on the use of personal electronic devices for anyone providing early childhood education and care or working with children in ECEC settings in Victoria.

Key changes

Approved providers of family day care services must have policies and procedures that align in part with the National Model Code for Taking Images or Videos of Children while Providing Early Childhood Education and Care. This includes implementing restrictions on personal electronic devices.

This means that you:

• can only use service-issued devices to take images or videos of children
• must follow strict rules for how photos and videos of children are stored and how long they are kept.

Family day care educators can take images or videos using a device if:

• that device is only used for providing education and care (and not personal use)
• it is registered with the approved provider.

This is considered a ‘service-issued’ device.

All family day care educators should know what the restrictions in the National Model Code are and follow the policies and procedures put in place by their approved provider.

Reasons for the change

All Victorian children and families deserve access to safe and secure early childhood education and care. It is critical to prioritise children’s safety and wellbeing when it comes to any images and videos taken in services.

Managing and monitoring any images or videos of children, and controlling how these are shared, is difficult when personal devices are used.

Consequences of failing to comply

Approved providers that fail to put appropriate mechanisms in place to establish child safe practices for the use of electronic devices in education and care services, such that children are at risk of harm, may be failing to comply with the conditions of service approval.

Penalties for any approved provider found to have failed to comply with the conditions of their service approval include fines of up to $57,400, as well as a suspension or cancellation of their service approval.

More information

For more information, including the Regulatory Authority’s Statement of Regulatory Expectations – National Model Code and guidance for approved providers and services, refer to Child safe practices for digital technologies and personal electronic devices.

Download factsheet (PDF, 78KB)