Some people who are disqualified from holding a working with children check clearance are eligible to apply to the Children’s Guardian for a reassessment of that disqualification. This is called a disqualification reassessment.
About the Disqualification Reassessment process
A disqualification reassessment is a process where a person who has been refused a Working with Children Check (WWCC) or had their WWCC cancelled due to being a disqualified person can apply for a reassessment.
You are a disqualified person if you have been convicted of offences specified in Schedule 2 of the Working with Children (WWC) Act (disqualifying offences), or proceedings for any such offence have been commenced against you, if the offences were committed as an adult.
In these circumstances, the Children’s Guardian does not carry out a risk assessment and must disqualify the person from holding a WWCC.
Changes to the law in September 2025 mean you can no longer appeal this WWCC decision at NCAT. The WWC Act enables some people who are disqualified from holding a WWCC clearance to apply to the Children’s Guardian for a reassessment of that disqualification.
If you have been interim barred for more than six months, refused a clearance, or had your existing clearance cancelled following a risk assessment you should apply for an internal review of that decision.
You may apply for a disqualification reassessment if:
- you have been refused a working with children check clearance because you are a disqualified person
- your working with children check clearance has been cancelled because you are a disqualified person.
You will not be entitled to apply for a reassessment of your disqualification if you have been convicted of certain of the disqualifying offences set out in section 27 of the Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012, and:
- you received a sentence of full-time custody for the offence; or
- you are subject to certain sentencing orders which are still in force; or
- you are subject to a prohibition order under the Child Protection (Offenders Prohibition Orders) Act 2004 which is still in force.
If you have pending charges, you are ineligible to apply for a disqualification reassessment. You must wait for your charges to be finalised.
If the charges are withdrawn or dismissed, or you are found not guilty, you may request an early application under section 13A(2)(a) of Act. To check if you are eligible, contact CHECK@ocg.nsw.gov.au with details of the outcome.
If the charges result in conviction, you may be eligible to seek a reassessment, depending on the penalty the court imposes.
If you are unsure whether you are eligible to apply for a disqualification reassessment, we encourage you to contact the Internal Review team via review@ocg.nsw.gov.au.
The original decision will remain in place while the decision is reviewed or reassessed. This means that you must not engage in child-related work while the internal review decision is pending.
If you are a disqualified person it is presumed, unless you prove to the contrary, that you pose a risk to the safety of children. We must assess any potential risk you might pose to children. Following a disqualification reassessment, we will make a decision to either:
- confirm that you continue to be a disqualified person and must not be granted a working with children check clearance; or
- decide that you are no longer a disqualified person and grant you a working with children check clearance.
When you apply to have a disqualification reassessed, we'll review the information you give us and decide if we need more information to make a decision.
If we need more information, we will send you a notice. This notice will list what we need and give you at least 28 days to provide it.
If you don't provide the information within the time limit, we can terminate your application for a disqualification reassessment.
We may also ask for more information from other sources, such as the police, the Department of Communities and Justice, courts, and your previous employers, as well as seek opinions from experts and suitably qualified persons. We do this to assess any potential risk you might pose to children.
During the disqualification reassessment, the OCG will comply with the principles of procedural fairness. This includes:
- giving you the opportunity to provide any further information or documents to be considered as part of the review or reassessment
- ensuring the decision-making is evidence-based and free of bias
- providing you with the reasons for the decision in simple and clear terms; and
- communicating with you clearly and in a form that is easy to understand.
How to apply for a Disqualification Reassessment
To apply, you must fill out the application form (PDF, 207.68KB) available on the OCG website.
Please answer all the questions. If you do not provide the information we ask for, your application may be delayed.
An application fee of $214 is required when applying for a disqualification reassessment. This fee must be paid by electronic funds transfer (EFT), and the payment details are included in the application form. Your application won’t be accepted until the payment has been received.
Applications can be sent by email or post:
Disqualification Reassessment
Office of the Children's Guardian
Locked Bag 5100
Strawberry Hills, NSW, 2012
You must apply within 28 days from the date of decision on your notice. We may accept late applications, but you must provide a valid reason for the delay.
Need more information?
You can read the full Disqualification Reassessment Policy (PDF, 150.86KB) for more information about Disqualification Reassessment.
Questions about the Internal Review or Disqualification Reassessment process, including whether you are eligible to apply, can be sent to our Internal Review team via review@ocg.nsw.gov.au.
You may also be able to obtain free legal help from Law Access (1300 888 529) or Aboriginal Legal Services (1800 733 233).
If you are not satisfied with the outcome
The decision made following the disqualification reassessment is final and there is no further review available.
If you are not satisfied with how your disqualification reassessment was conducted, you may make a complaint to the Children’s Guardian by emailing ocg@ocg.nsw.gov.au.
You may also contact the NSW Ombudsman. You have a right to complain to the NSW Ombudsman if you have concerns about how we conducted the reassessment. However, please be aware the NSW Ombudsman cannot review or overturn the decision made by the Children's Guardian. To contact the NSW Ombudsman, you can:
- visit in person at Level 24, 580 George Street Sydney NSW 2000
- call toll free 1800 451 524 (Australia wide) or (02) 9286 1000
- submit a complaint online.
