Safe practice with children
QA2, QA4, QA5, and QA7
Supervision, Ratios, And Responsible Person
Safe supervision is active, intentional, and responsive. It protects children from harm and supports children’s learning, wellbeing, dignity, and participation.
Core Responsibility
Supervision Is More Than Watching
Supervision is one of the most important child safety responsibilities in an education and care service. It includes knowing where children are, what they are doing, who they are with, what risks are present, and what support or intervention may be needed.
Active supervision is not passive. It requires staff to position themselves well, scan the environment, listen, anticipate risk, stay engaged with children, respond to changing needs, communicate with the team, and speak up early when staffing, routines, environments, or transitions affect safe supervision.
Active
Be Present
Supervision requires attention, movement, communication, and professional judgement. It cannot happen effectively if staff are distracted, clustered together, or disconnected from children.
Intentional
Know The Risk
Supervision changes depending on children’s ages, abilities, relationships, activities, environments, routines, weather, transitions, and individual needs.
Shared
Communicate
Staff need to communicate clearly about supervision zones, transitions, breaks, toileting, movement between spaces, and children who need closer support.
Supervision, Ratios, And Responsible Person At A Glance
Active Supervision
How staff actively keep children safe through positioning, scanning, listening, anticipating risk, communicating, staying engaged, and responding.
Educator-To-Child Ratios
The minimum number of educators required for the number and ages of children being educated and cared for.
Responsible Person
The person who is legally recognised as responsible at the service while education and care is being provided.
Professional Judgement
Meeting ratios does not automatically mean supervision is adequate. Staff still need to consider risk, environment, routines, children’s needs, and what is happening in the moment.
Active Supervision In Practice
Positioning
Place yourself where you can see and hear children, support play, respond quickly, and reduce blind spots.
Scanning
Regularly scan the full environment, not just the group or child directly in front of you.
Listening
Listen for changes in noise, tone, movement, silence, distress, conflict, or sounds from areas that are harder to see.
Knowing Children
Use knowledge of children’s ages, abilities, interests, relationships, communication, health, trauma history, and support needs.
Anticipating Risk
Think ahead during transitions, toileting, rest times, outdoor play, water play, climbing, excursions, arrivals, and departures.
Responding Early
Step in early when supervision, behaviour, environment, staffing, or routines create risk or uncertainty.
Active Supervision Is Engaged
Staff Need To Be Present, Positioned, And Responsive
Active supervision happens during everyday play and learning. Staff need to position themselves well, scan the environment, listen, stay connected with children, communicate with colleagues, and respond early when risk or uncertainty appears.
Educator-To-Child Ratios
Minimum Requirements
Ratios Support Safety, But They Are Not The Whole Picture
Educator-to-child ratios set the minimum number of educators required for the number and ages of children being educated and cared for. Ratios need to be maintained whenever education and care is being provided, including during transitions, breaks, routines, indoor and outdoor play, excursions, and other program activities.
To be included in ratios, an educator must be physically present, directly involved in the education and care of children, and hold the relevant qualification.
Victorian Ratios
Victorian Educator-To-Child Ratios
In Victoria, the centre-based educator-to-child ratios are:
| Age Of Children | Minimum Educator-To-Child Ratio |
|---|---|
| Birth to 24 months | 1 educator to 4 children |
| Over 24 months and less than 36 months | 1 educator to 4 children |
| Children up to and including preschool age | 1 educator to 11 children |
| Children over preschool age | 1 educator to 15 children |
For most NERPSA kindergarten programs, the ratio staff will commonly use is 1 educator to 11 children for children up to and including preschool age.
Where younger children, occasional care, long day care, or mixed-age groups are involved, the applicable ratio must be checked for the age of the children attending.
Ratios Are Minimum Requirements
Educator-to-child ratios are minimum legal requirements. They do not replace active supervision, professional judgement, or the need to adjust supervision when children, staffing, routines, environments, or risks change.
Staff must still consider children’s ages, individual needs, medical conditions, communication, behaviour, trauma history, support plans, the layout of the environment, visibility, blind spots, transitions, toileting, sleep and rest, mealtimes, outdoor play, water play, excursions, breaks, and changes to the usual roster.
If ratio requirements are technically met but supervision does not feel safe, staff must speak up immediately.
Additional Staffing Supports Quality, But Should Not Be Relied On As The Plan
NERPSA does its best to overstaff services where possible. Additional staffing can support safer supervision, smoother routines, staff breaks, transitions, children’s individual needs, and the overall quality of the program.
However, additional staffing should not be relied upon as the built-in plan for routine practice. Rosters, routines, transitions, breaks, and supervision arrangements still need to be planned so the service can operate safely if additional staffing changes, a staff member is absent, or staff need to be moved to respond to service needs.
If additional staffing changes and this affects supervision, ratios, breaks, routines, or children’s safety, staff must speak up early so the service can adjust the plan.
Staff Breaks
Breaks Need Planning
Breaks, lunches, planning time, meetings, administration, or other time away from direct work with children need to be managed so ratios and supervision remain safe.
Staff should follow the roster, communicate before leaving an area, and make sure supervision is clearly handed over.
Movement
Transitions Need Attention
Supervision can change quickly during arrivals, departures, toileting, indoor-outdoor movement, sleep and rest routines, packing up, group transitions, and changes to the usual program.
These are times to slow down, communicate clearly, and check where every child is.
Counting In Ratio
Who Can Be Counted In Ratios
To be counted in educator-to-child ratios, a person must be employed, rostered, approved, working directly with children, and able to perform the educator role safely and appropriately.
Staff should not assume another adult can be counted in ratios. Non-employee students, volunteers, visitors, family members, contractors, allied health professionals, photographers, maintenance workers, delivery people, external providers, and staff who are on a break or not working directly with children should not be counted.
If a NERPSA employee is completing an approved placement during rostered paid work hours, they sign in as staff, are paid, and may be counted in ratios because they are working as an employee during that time. If an approved placement occurs outside rostered hours or on a day off, the person signs in as a student, is unpaid for that placement time, and is not counted in ratios for that placement time.
Responsible Person
Shared Responsibility
Responsible Person Does Not Replace Everyone’s Responsibility
A Responsible Person must be present whenever education and care is being provided. The Responsible Person supports safe service operation, decision-making, incident response, staffing arrangements, and escalation.
Every staff member must still actively supervise children, follow NERPSA policies and procedures, communicate clearly, and speak up if something is unsafe or unclear.
Staff should know who the Responsible Person is during their shift and where this is displayed or recorded at the service.
Service Level
Know Who Is Responsible
Staff should know who the Responsible Person is during their shift. If the Responsible Person changes during the day, the handover should be clear and recorded according to service procedure.
Speak Up
Raise Gaps Immediately
If you are unsure who the Responsible Person is, or if staffing, ratios, supervision, or a transition does not feel safe, speak up immediately through the service pathway.
When Supervision Needs Extra Attention
Higher-Risk Moments
Some Times Need Closer Planning
Some routines, environments, and activities need closer supervision because risks can change quickly. Staff should plan, communicate, and adjust supervision during:
- arrivals and departures;
- toileting, nappy changing, personal care, sleep, and rest routines;
- transitions between indoor and outdoor spaces;
- water play, climbing, outdoor play, messy play, and loose parts play;
- mealtimes and food-related routines;
- excursions, regular outings, and visitors attending the service;
- staff breaks, lunches, meetings, and changes to the usual roster;
- times when a child needs additional support, closer supervision, or a risk management response.
Transitions Need Extra Attention
Arrivals, Departures, And Movement Need Clear Supervision
Supervision can change quickly during arrival, departure, indoor-outdoor movement, toileting, rest routines, and staff breaks. Staff need to slow down, communicate clearly, count children, and check that every child remains supervised.
Mapping Supervision Risk
Look For Blind Spots
Check corners, bathrooms, gates, climbing areas, cubbies, quieter spaces, and places where children can move out of view.
Plan Educator Positioning
Think about where educators should stand, move, scan, listen, and communicate so all children remain supervised.
What Staff Are Expected To Do
Be Engaged
Stay Connected To Children
Supervision works best when staff are engaged with children, aware of the environment, and actively supporting play and learning.
Communicate
Use Clear Handover
Let colleagues know before moving away, supporting a child elsewhere, taking a break, changing areas, or adjusting supervision responsibilities.
Speak Up
Raise Concerns Early
If supervision, ratios, staffing, behaviour, environment, or routines create concern, speak up promptly. Do not wait for the situation to become unsafe.
NERPSA Policies Connected To This Section
Policy Connection
Policies That Support Safe Supervision
Key connected policies include Supervision of Children, Determining Responsible Person, Child Safe Environment and Wellbeing, Code of Conduct, Incident, Injury, Trauma and Illness, Excursions and Service Events, Sleep and Rest, Nutrition and Active Play, Safe Use of Digital Technologies and Online Environments, Staffing, and Participation of Volunteers and Students.
Use current NERPSA policies and service procedures when making decisions about supervision, educator-to-child ratios, Responsible Person arrangements, staffing, incidents, excursions, personal care, sleep and rest, visitors, students, volunteers, and child safety concerns.
Useful Resources
Victorian Ratios
Victorian Government information about educator-to-child ratios in early childhood services.
Open ResourceResponsible Person Guidance
ACECQA information sheet on Responsible Person requirements.
Open Resource
Required Induction Activity
Connect Supervision To Your Service
Choose one routine or transition where supervision may become more difficult, such as arrival, departure, toileting, indoor-outdoor movement, mealtimes, sleep/rest, outdoor play, packing up, or staff breaks.
Think about where you would position yourself, what you would scan and listen for, how you would communicate with the team, and when you would speak up if supervision, ratios, staffing, or the environment did not feel safe.
Supervision Is Active Child Safety Practice
Safe supervision is built through positioning, scanning, listening, communication, knowing children, anticipating risk, maintaining ratios, planning for staffing changes, understanding Responsible Person arrangements, and speaking up when something does not feel safe.