Using Personal Devices To Take Photos Of Children For Documentation Purposes In Early Childhood Settings

Educators should never use a personal electronic device to photograph children, or record audio or visual images of children for any purpose, including to document children’s learning. The following article provides information on The National Model Code which addresses the use of service-issued electronic devices and personal electronic devices while providing children’s education and care, including taking images or videos of children.

The National Model Code

The National Model Code provides comprehensive guidelines for the use of electronic devices in early childhood education and care settings. Here’s a summary of the key points to help approved providers and their services incorporate these guidelines into their policies, procedures, and everyday practices:

National Model Code, Part 1

Only service-issued electronic devices should be used when taking images or videos of children while providing education and care. The appropriate use of service-issued electronic devices for taking, sending and storing images or videos of children should be clearly outlined in policies and procedures.

National Model Code, Part 2

Personal electronic devices that can take images or videos (such as tablets, phones, digital cameras, smart watches) and personal storage and file transfer media (such as SD cards, USB drives, hard drives and cloud storage) should not be in the possession of any person while providing education and care and working directly with children. Any exceptions to this should be for limited, essential purposes that are authorised in writing (or through another means if written authorisation is not reasonably practicable) by the approved provider at the service, and where that access does not impede the active supervision2 of children

National Model Code, Part 3

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

communication in an emergency situation involving a lost child, injury to child or staff member, or other serious incident, or in the case of a lockdown or evacuation of the service premises
personal health requirements, e.g. heart or blood sugar level monitoring
disability, e.g. where a personal electronic device is an essential means of communication for an educator or other staff member
family necessity, e.g. a worker with an ill or dying family member
technology failure, e.g. when a temporary outage of service-issued electronic devices has occurred
local emergency event occurring, to receive emergency notifications through government warning systems, for example, bushfire evacuation text notification

National Model Code, Part 4

Approved providers and their services should have strict controls in place for the appropriate storage and retention of images and videos of children

Oversight, Control, and Access to Images

Approved providers need to be vigilant and have oversight and control of who has access to images of children. This includes:

Accessing Images and Videos: Control access within the service, including staff accessing digital and hardcopy files, and the movement of these onto unapproved or unmonitored devices and platforms.
Online Posting: Monitor images, videos, and content posted online, whether through applications for sharing with families or for promotional purposes.
Inappropriate Sharing: Ensure images, videos, or content are not inappropriately posted online or shared through other applications not intended for sharing with families.
Regular Monitoring: Regularly monitor the use of service-issued electronic devices to ensure they are being used appropriately.
Device Monitoring: Implement procedures to monitor the use of devices at the service, ensuring educators do not use personal electronic devices for taking images or recording videos and communicating with families and carers.

Implementing the National Model Code

Service-Issued Devices: Ensure only service-issued devices are used for taking images or videos of children.
Policies and Procedures: Develop and implement clear policies and procedures regarding the use of service-issued devices.
Oversight and Control: Maintain strict oversight and control over who has access to images and videos of children.
Regular Monitoring: Regularly monitor the use of service-issued devices to ensure compliance with policies and procedures.

By following these guidelines, approved providers can ensure the safety, privacy, and security of children while effectively documenting their learning and development