About the Reportable Conduct Scheme

The Victorian Reportable Conduct Scheme (the Scheme) seeks to improve organisations’ responses to allegations of child abuse and neglect by their workers and volunteers¹.

The Social Services Regulator (SSR) is responsible for administering the Scheme. Our role includes:

supporting and guiding organisations that receive allegations in order to promote fair, effective, timely and appropriate responses
independently overseeing, monitoring and, where appropriate, making recommendations to improve the responses of those organisations.

The Scheme has been designed to ensure that the SSR will be aware of every allegation of certain types of misconduct involving children in relevant organisations that exercise care, supervision and authority over children.

A child is anyone who is under 18 years of age.

The SSR can also share information where appropriate, including with Working with Children (WWC) Check Victoria, relevant regulators, such as the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT), Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA) and Victoria Police, to better prevent and protect children from abuse.

Importantly, all reportable conduct allegations and all findings are shared with WWC Check. This will be used to assess if a person should hold a WWC Clearance.

A substantiated finding that a person has engaged in reportable conduct triggers an assessment of whether that person is suitable to continue to work or volunteer with children. An assessment may also take place where WWC Check is made aware of child safety risk information like serious allegations of abuse that are under investigation. This may lead to the suspension or revocation of a person’s WWC Clearance.

Heads of organisations

The Scheme places obligations on heads of organisations that are covered by the Scheme. This includes requirements to:
- ensure that the SSR is notified about allegations of child abuse and given updates on the organisation’s response
- have systems in place to prevent child abuse and, if child abuse is alleged, to ensure allegations can be brought to the attention of appropriate persons for investigation and response.
- The Scheme does not replace the need to report allegations of child abuse, including criminal conduct and family violence to Victoria Police.

A snapshot of a head of organisation’s responsibilities under the Reportable Conduct Scheme

Allegations under the Reportable Conduct Scheme

The SSR will carefully consider each allegation that it receives under the Scheme. Based on the information available, the SSR may decide to:
- provide the organisation responding to the allegation support and guidance
- check that the organisation is handling the allegation in an appropriate and timely manner
- share allegations, findings and other information with relevant regulators such as WWC Check Victoria , the VIT, VECRA or other professional accreditation bodies. This may result in the suspension of the worker or volunteer’s WWCC or other action by another a regulator.
A reportable allegation can be made about certain workers or volunteers over 18 years of age who are or were:
- an employee of an organisation covered by the Scheme
- a minister of religion, religious leader or officer of a religious body, a foster or kinship carer
- a volunteer, contractor, office holder, officer or other position directly engaged to provide services by an organisation covered by the Scheme
- workers or volunteers provided by labour hire agencies or other providers
- secondees
- company directors
- individuals who carry on a business.
Further information about some of these types of workers and volunteers can be found at Information sheet 19: New types of workers and volunteers covered by the Reportable Conduct Scheme.
The SSR will carefully consider each allegation that it receives under the Scheme. Based on the information available, the SSR may decide to:
- provide the organisation responding to the allegation support and guidance
- check that the organisation is handling the allegation in an appropriate and timely manner
- share allegations, findings and other information with relevant regulators such as WWC Check Victoria , the VIT, VECRA or other professional accreditation bodies. This may result in the suspension of the worker or volunteer’s WWCC or other action by another regulator.
A reportable allegation can be made about certain workers or volunteers over 18 years of age who are or were:
- an employee of an organisation covered by the Scheme
- a minister of religion, religious leader or officer of a religious body, a foster or kinship carer
- a volunteer, contractor, office holder, officer or other position directly engaged to provide services by an organisation covered by the Scheme
- workers or volunteers provided by labour hire agencies or other providers
- secondees
- company directors
- individuals who carry on a business.
Further information about some of these types of workers and volunteers can be found at Information sheet 19: New types of workers and volunteers covered by the Reportable Conduct Scheme.
A reportable allegation can be made against a volunteer if they have been engaged by an organisation covered by the Scheme or, provided under an arrangement between the volunteer and a provider to an organisation subject to the Scheme (for further information about arrangements with providers, see Information sheet 19: New types of workers and volunteers covered by the Reportable Conduct Scheme).
To ‘engage’ a volunteer means to enter into an agreement, either verbally or in writing, for a person to provide a service without that person (the volunteer) receiving financial gain. There is no minimum period for the engagement. For example, the following would be considered volunteers under the Scheme:
- a community member who volunteers at a hospital for half a day each week, after applying to the hospital, passing the screening requirements and undertaking an induction
- a parent who volunteers in a school canteen at lunch time once a month for a term, after responding to an email from the school calling out for helpers
- a university foreign language student who volunteers from time to time for a student exchange program by completing a monthly roster prepared and collected by the provider
- a parishioner who volunteers by assisting with one Sunday school activity at their church, after verbally offering the priest their help.
It’s also helpful to consider how a volunteer is engaged to understand when they would be considered volunteers under the Scheme. For example, did the volunteer and the organisation reach an agreement that the volunteer would:
- perform services regularly for a year (in which case the volunteer would be ‘engaged’ for 12 months), or
- perform services for one day (in which case the volunteer would only be ‘engaged’ for that day).
An organisation is not required to notify the SSR about an allegation involving a volunteer who performed services without the organisation’s knowledge.
If you are unclear whether a reportable allegation can be made about a person, please contact the SSR for guidance.
The head of an organisation covered by the Scheme must report to the SSR any reportable allegations made against their workers or volunteers within three business days of becoming aware of the allegation. Further information on reporting to the SSR can be found at Information sheet 7: Reporting to the Social Services Regulator.
Allegations about the conduct of workers and volunteers must be reported, even if:
- they do not have direct contact with children in their role at the organisation
- the conduct occurred outside of their work.
Allegations about the conduct of workers or volunteers may need to be reported to the SSR under the Scheme even when the alleged conduct happened before they started working for the organisation or when the allegation is raised after they have left the organisation.
Further information on reporting historical allegations can be found at Information sheet 12: Reportable Conduct Scheme – Historical allegations.

Organisations covered by the Reportable Conduct Scheme

Organisations became covered by the Scheme in four phases that commenced from 1 July 2017. The whole of the organisation is covered by the Scheme, not just those parts that provide services to children and young people. You must notify the SSR and investigate reportable allegations across your whole organisation.
If you are unsure about whether or when your organisation is covered by the Scheme, you can call or email us for further advice.

Contact us

For further information about the Reportable Conduct Scheme, to talk through issues of concern, or to make a notification, contact SSR by phone on 1300 310 778 or via email at contact@ssr.vic.gov.au.

For all WWC Check queries contact 1300 652 879.

If you need an interpreter, please call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 13 14 50 and ask them to contact the Social Services Regulator on 1300 310 778.

If you are deaf, or have a hearing or speech impairment, contact us through the National Relay Service. For more information, visit: https://www.accesshub.gov.au/about-the-nrs.

[1] The Scheme is established by the Child Wellbeing and Safety Act 2005 (the Act).

Download this information sheet

Information sheet 1 - About the Reportable Conduct Scheme

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Updated 28 September 2026

Notify	You must notify the SSR within 3 business days of becoming aware of a reportable allegation.
Investigate	You must investigate an allegation – subject to police clearance on criminal matters or matters involving family violence. You must advise the SSR who is undertaking the investigation. You must manage the risks to children.
Update	Within 30 calendar days you must provide the SSR detailed information about the reportable allegation and any action you have taken.
Outcomes	You must notify the SSR of the investigation findings and any disciplinary action the head of the entity has taken (or the reasons no action was taken).