New reforms boost quality of children’s services for Victorian families
News bulletin: 21 May 2009
The first review of Victorian children’s services regulations in a decade has attracted widespread support for the sweeping reforms to improve the quality and safety of services for Victorian families.
The new Children’s Services Regulations 2009 come into effect on Monday 25 May 2009, with the main provisions phased in over the next five years.
Key changes to the regulations are:
- regulating outside school hours care and family day care for the first time to ensure a minimum standard of quality care
- improving the ratio of staff to children under three from 1:5 to 1:4 in standard children’s services; and improving the ratio of diploma qualified staff to children from 1:15 to 1:12
- qualified teachers to be employed at all standard services, including long day care
- increasing the qualifications for all staff and carers to a minimum Certificate III level
- ensuring all staff and carers have current first aid training – currently the regulations required one staff member on duty to have first aid training.
Victorian children’s services will be assisted with training, resources and grants to meet the requirements of the new regulations.
Almost 3,000 childhood professionals, childcare centre owners, educators and parents contributed their views on the draft regulations released in January.
“We have listened to the needs of the community and will ensure that every Victorian family has access to high-quality education and care services for their children,” the Premier John Brumby said.
“These regulations strike the right balance between improving standards and maintaining affordability for families and services.”
“Research shows that the most rapid period of a person’s brain development occurs in the first few years of life,” Minister for Children and Early Childhood Development, Hon Maxine Morand said. “So providing good quality early years’ education and care services have a profound impact on our children’s future.”
“We want to help our children develop their talents, skills and abilities to reach their full potential.”
More information
To read the new regulations and the current act, see: