CELA has been actively advocating for state and federal governments to prioritise the evidence-based reforms that will help our sector drive an urgent uplift in child safety.
Changes to ‘under the roofline’ ratios
We were pleased to see the Federal Government has accepted all recommendations in ACECQA’s rapid assessment of child safety practices featuring key reforms that CELA advocated for including:
- removing “across the service” commonly known as “under the roof” from the law, closing the loophole created in 2014
- clearly defining the meaning of “adequate supervision”.
ACECQA will issue clear advice to all services on compliant practices while changes are made to National Law.
Rollout of National Child Safety Reforms
From 27 February 2026, key Federal Government child safety reforms commence including:
- the safety, rights and best interests of children must be the paramount consideration in the operation and delivery of education and care services to children
- staff will be required to complete mandatory child safety training within six months, with paid time to undertake this
- only service-supplied devices or service-authorised devices can be used to capture, store or transmit images of children while being educated or cared for
- personal devices cannot be in the possession of any person while working directly with children in centred based services
- a new ‘inappropriate conduct’ offence provision has been introduced for all staff and volunteers
- all early childhood education and care services will be required to provide workforce information to the new National Early Childhood Worker Register
- a new National Model Code on Recruitment in ECEC has been released, reminding approved providers of their existing obligations under the National Law for child-safe recruitment.
ACECQA will issue clear advice to all services on compliant practices while changes are made to National Law.
CELA’s number one priority is to help our members confidently navigate these necessarily urgent changes through our dedicated hotline, expert support, resources and training packages.
How CELA can support you to implement these changes
CELA is here to support you to implement these changes, including providing phone support, training and member resources.
Phone support: Call our sector specialists on 1800 157 818
Member resources: Head to our member hub for updated policies.
Note: We are preparing a new child safety law changes checklist that will be available to members late next week.
Training
Explore our training related to child safety and the recent changes including:
Major changes to service fees – have your say
State and federal education ministers have announced significant increases to service fees, which CELA views as excessive and without adequate time for the sector to prepare. CELA’s CEO Michele Carnegie has written to ministers to advocate for urgent changes to protect the viability of community and small providers including a 12 month waiver and exemptions for very small operators.
We are keen to hear what this cost increase will mean for your services and the families you support, including the budget cuts that you’ll need to make to accommodate this. Send your stories to michelecarnegie@cela.org.au so we can highlight the very real impact of this decision to education ministers.
CELA’s advocacy on behalf of community and small providers
CELA remains laser focused on the core reason why these reforms are so important. We must prioritise children’s safety above all else.
However, we are seeing the very real impact that the pace and scale of reform is having on community and small providers. Everyone needs to feel confident in implementing what is required. We are working to ensure our members have access to the support they need to navigate these complex reforms, so they are not doing it alone.
We are advocating intensively for the federal government to expand this support to all small providers, so they can access the same tailored guidance to step through significant reforms and ease the pressure that comes with so much change happening at once.
About CELA
Community Early Learning Australia is a not for profit organisation with a focus on amplifying the value of early learning for every child across Australia - representing our members and uniting our sector as a force for quality education and care.