Do You Need a Working With Children Check to Work as a Private Nanny in Australia?

One of the most common questions from people looking for in-home childcare work in Australia is whether a Working With Children Check applies to private arrangements. The short answer is yes. The longer answer depends on your state, but across every jurisdiction in Australia, paid direct contact work with children requires the appropriate screening.

What a Working With Children Check covers

A Working With Children Check is a screening process that involves a nationally coordinated criminal history check and an assessment of relevant professional conduct findings. The outcome is either a clearance to work with children or a prohibition. In Victoria, the check is valid for five years and is issued by the Department of Justice and Community Safety. In New South Wales the equivalent is also five years. Queensland uses the Blue Card system with a three-year validity. Western Australia, South Australia and the ACT each run their own schemes with varying validity periods.

Does a nanny or in-home carer legally need one?

In Victoria, the Working with Children Act 2005 defines child-related work to include commercial childminding services, which covers babysitters, nannies and in-home carers. Paid work involving direct contact with children is caught by the legislation. Working without a valid check is a criminal offence carrying penalties of up to 240 penalty units — currently exceeding 43,000 dollars — or two years imprisonment.

State by state — what the check is called and how long it lasts

• Victoria: Working With Children Check, 5 years, issued by Department of Justice
• New South Wales: Working With Children Check, 5 years, issued by NSW Office of the Children's Guardian
• Queensland: Blue Card, 3 years, issued by Blue Card Services
• Western Australia: Working With Children Check, 3 years, issued by the Department of Communities
• South Australia: Working With Children Check, 5 years, issued by Department of Human Services
• Tasmania: Registration to Work with Vulnerable People, 3 years
• ACT: Working With Vulnerable People Registration, 3 years
• Northern Territory: Ochre Card, 2 years

Important: checks are not transferable between states

A Victorian Working With Children Check is not valid for work in New South Wales or Queensland. If you work across state borders you are required to hold the appropriate check for each state where you perform child-related work. Limited mutual recognition exists for very short engagements, but for ongoing work the receiving state's check is required.

How Nest and Nurture Little Ones handles verification

Every carer on the Nest and Nurture Little Ones platform is required to upload a current and valid Working With Children Check for the state in which they intend to work before their profile is approved. Expired checks result in the profile being paused. Families can see the compliance status of every carer before requesting an interview.