Family Day Care educators open their homes to children, balancing care, learning, and hygiene in a smaller, more personal environment than centres. With the release of the Biological Hazards Code of Practice in March 2026, childcare is formally recognised as a biohazard‑exposed workplace.

On 3 March 2026, Safe Work Australia released the Biological Hazards Code of Practice. For the first time, early childhood settings, is explicitly recognised as a workplace exposed to predictable biological hazards, things like bodily fluids, vomit, faecal matter, respiratory droplets, and high‑touch contamination cycles. Learn how it works alongside Staying Healthy in Childcare, with practical examples, incident response steps, and compliance paperwork explained clearly.

Here’s a concise compliance cheat sheet for Quality Area 1 (Educational Program and Practice) under the National Quality NQS. It highlights the essential elements, documentation requirements, and reflective practices you need to demonstrate compliance while maintaining authentic pedagogy.

Join Dr. Mary Anne Hall, from EPEC Education, for a FREE webinar as she breaks down the new inappropriate conduct offense. Exploring how this requirement can be embedded in your workplace and be used as a tool to protect children from harm, abuse, and neglect.

Educators in Australia must conduct at least one emergency evacuation drill per year under AS 3745-2010, with best practice being every six months. Fire drills are directly linked to the Education and Care Services National Regulations and Quality Area 2 of the National Quality Standard (NQS), ensuring children’s safety and wellbeing.

Duty of care is more than a legal obligation—it is the foundation of safe, ethical, and professional practice. In education, healthcare, and community services, it means ensuring that every decision, action, and environment prioritizes the wellbeing of those in our care. Compliance is not about ticking boxes; it is about embedding responsibility into everyday routines.

Spot checks are unannounced, in-person visits conducted by authorised officers and will continue in 2026. Their purpose is to ensure services are meeting their legal obligations and correctly managing the CCS. These checks are part of strengthening compliance and safeguarding children’s well-being.

The government has made National Child Safety Training mandatory for everyone working in early childhood education and care (ECEC). This training is free to complete, but it takes time—and that’s where the subsidy comes in.

National child safety training is now mandatory for everybody working or volunteering in an ECEC service regulated under the NQF. Foundation training is the first stage of national child safety training and is available now. Foundation training is mandatory for any person who works or volunteers in an ECEC service regulated under the NQF.

As of today, February 27th, 2026, all ECE services are required to provide workforce information to the Register. Approved providers must now enter who is working in their services and keep it up to date.