Safe practice with children
QA2, QA4, QA6, and QA7
Students, Volunteers, Contractors, Visitors, And External Providers
Children’s safety remains paramount when any adult attends a NERPSA service. Every adult needs a clear purpose, appropriate checks, clear boundaries, and appropriate supervision.
External Adults
Every Adult At The Service Needs A Clear Role
NERPSA services may have students, volunteers, family members, contractors, allied health professionals, photographers, maintenance workers, delivery drivers, community visitors, or other adults attend for approved reasons.
Adults who are not NERPSA staff must be managed in a way that protects children’s safety, privacy, dignity, and wellbeing. This includes checking their purpose for attending, following sign-in and sign-out procedures, confirming any required WWCC or VIT details, and ensuring appropriate supervision.
Purpose
Know Why They Are There
Students, volunteers, visitors, contractors, and external providers should have a clear, approved reason for attending the service.
Checks
Check Requirements
Required WWCC or VIT details must be checked before a person starts where this applies to their role, attendance, or access.
Supervision
Do Not Assume
External adults do not replace safe staffing. Their role, access, and supervision must be checked through the Staff Resources website, Students and Volunteers App, relevant NERPSA policy, service leader, Education Manager, HR, or NERPSA Manager before allowing access, participation, photography, records access, or ratio counting.
Before, During, And After Attendance
Before They Participate, Check:
- Who is the person?
- Why are they attending?
- Has their attendance been approved?
- Have they signed in?
- Has any required WWCC or VIT information been checked?
- Do they understand relevant service expectations?
- Who is supervising, supporting, or managing their attendance?
While They Are At The Service, Remember:
- Children’s safety and privacy remain paramount.
- Students and volunteers are supervised, not counted in ratios, and not left alone with children.
- Service staff remain responsible for supervision and child safety.
- External adults must follow NERPSA conduct, privacy, child safety, and digital technology expectations.
- If an adult’s role, access, behaviour, or boundaries are unclear, check before continuing.
- Concerns about conduct, boundaries, privacy, or supervision must be raised promptly.
Students And Volunteers
Supervised Participation
Students And Volunteers Support The Service, But They Are Not NERPSA Staff
Students and volunteers may participate in the service where this has been approved and where the correct checks, records, orientation, and supervision arrangements are in place.
Non-employee students and volunteers are supervised, are not counted in ratios, and are not left alone with children. Their participation should be guided by educators and kept within their approved role, capability, and supervision arrangements.
Students and volunteers must follow NERPSA expectations, including child safety, privacy, supervision, conduct, digital technology, confidentiality, and service procedures.
Clear Roles Support Safe Participation
Adults Participate Safely When Roles And Boundaries Are Clear
Students, volunteers, visitors, contractors, and external providers may support service life, but children’s safety depends on approved purpose, sign-in and sign-out, role clarity, active supervision, privacy protection, and clear access limits.
Sign In And Out
Students, volunteers, visitors, and external adults must follow service sign-in and sign-out processes on arrival and departure.
Stay Within Role
Students and volunteers should participate only in tasks and experiences that are appropriate to their approved role and supervision arrangements.
Protect Privacy
Students, volunteers, and visitors must not access, photograph, record, discuss, or share information about children or families outside approved service processes.
Raise Concerns
If an adult’s role, behaviour, supervision, device use, privacy practice, or interaction with children does not seem right, raise it promptly.
NERPSA Employees Completing Placement
Internal Placement
Staff Placements Need Approval Before They Begin
A NERPSA employee who is completing study and needs practicum or placement hours must have the placement approved by Head Office Human Resources and the relevant Education Manager before any placement arrangement is confirmed or begins.
NERPSA is the Approved Provider and, for placements at NERPSA services, is also the host organisation. Placement paperwork must be reviewed and signed off by NERPSA before the placement commences.
Current NERPSA practice allows staff to complete up to two approved practicum placements at their primary service. Further placements may require another NERPSA service or an external service, depending on study requirements, supervision needs, service capacity, and approval.
Paid Rostered Hours
Sign In As Staff
If an approved placement occurs during rostered paid work hours, the person signs in as staff, is paid, and is counted in ratios because they are working as an employee during that time.
Outside Rostered Hours
Sign In As Student
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.
Visitors, Contractors, And External Providers
External Adults
External Providers Must Follow NERPSA Expectations
Contractors, allied health professionals, photographers, maintenance workers, delivery people, community visitors, family members, and other external adults may attend for approved service purposes.
Their attendance must be managed in line with NERPSA procedures. This may include prior approval, sign-in and sign-out, WWCC or VIT checks where required, supervision, confidentiality, safe conduct, and limits on access to children, records, devices, and service spaces.
Do not provide unsupervised access to children unless the Staff Resources website, relevant NERPSA policy, service leader, Education Manager, HR, or NERPSA Manager confirms this is permitted for that person’s approved role and all required checks and arrangements are in place.
Supervision And Ratios
Do Not Assume
External Adults Do Not Replace Safe Staffing
Staff must not assume that a student, volunteer, visitor, contractor, family member, allied health professional, photographer, or external provider can be used to meet supervision or staffing requirements.
Non-employee students and volunteers are not counted in ratios. If there is uncertainty about whether someone can be counted, what they can do, or how they must be supervised, staff should check the Staff Resources website, Students and Volunteers App, relevant NERPSA policy, service leader, Education Manager, HR, or NERPSA Manager before relying on that person in any way.
Clear Limits
External Adults Have Clear Limits
External adults may only participate in the service for the purpose approved by NERPSA or the service.
This includes students, volunteers, contractors, allied health professionals, photographers, maintenance workers, visitors, family members, and other external providers.
If an external adult’s role, checks, supervision requirements, or access limits are unclear, staff must pause and seek guidance before allowing participation.
External Adult Limits
Staff Must Not Allow An External Adult To:
- access children outside their approved role;
- be alone with children unless this has been approved and all required arrangements are in place;
- access child records unless authorised;
- take photos, videos, or recordings of children unless this is specifically approved and all required agreements, checks, and permissions are in place;
- use personal devices for child images or service documentation;
- remove a child from the group or service unless authorised;
- be counted in ratios unless they are employed, rostered, approved, and working directly with children in a role that can be counted.
Before Allowing Participation, Check:
- the person’s approved purpose;
- required checks, agreements, or permissions;
- supervision arrangements;
- access limits;
- whether records, photography, devices, or child information are involved;
- whether the person can be counted in ratio.
External Adults Do Not Replace Safe Staffing.
When in doubt, check before allowing access, participation, photography, records access, or ratio counting.
NERPSA Policies Connected To This Section
Policy Connection
Policies That Support Safe Adult Participation
Key connected policies include Participation of Volunteers and Students, Code of Conduct, Child Safe Environment and Wellbeing, Supervision of Children, Staffing, Privacy and Confidentiality, Safe Use of Digital Technologies and Online Environments, Delivery and Collection of Children, Excursions and Service Events, and Compliments and Complaints.
Useful Resources
Students And Volunteers App
Use the Student and Volunteers App for student and volunteer induction, forms, and related resources.
Open AppParticipation Of Volunteers And Students
Current NERPSA policy for students and volunteers.
Open PolicyNERPSA Code Of Conduct
Conduct expectations for staff, students, volunteers, contractors, families, and visitors.
Open PolicyVictorian WWCC Guidance
Victorian guidance on WWCC and VIT checking requirements for early childhood services.
Open Resource
Required Induction Activity
Think About An Adult Attending The Service
Think about one adult who may attend your service, such as a student, volunteer, contractor, photographer, allied health professional, external provider, family member, or visitor.
Consider what should happen before they participate, how they should sign in, how they should be supervised, whether they can be counted in ratios, and what you would do if something did not seem right.
Clear Roles Help Keep Children Safe
Students, volunteers, visitors, contractors, and external adults can support service life, but children’s safety, supervision, privacy, dignity, and wellbeing remain paramount at all times.