Out-of-home care strengthened by amendments to legislative regulations
From 7 September 2026, requirements for probity checking and recording of information about people who provide out-of-home care (OOHC) in private and professional capacities will be strengthened by amendments to legislative regulations that govern registers and checks.
The Child Protection Legislation Amendment (Registers and Checks) Regulation 2026 amends the Children’s Guardian Regulation 2022, the Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Regulation 2022 and Child Protection (Working with Children) Regulation 2013.
The amendments will require earlier checking of the Working with Children Check (WWCC) status of applicants to be authorised carers, broaden the information to be flagged on the Carers Register, extend the requirement to record relevant information to adults who reside on the same property as an authorised carer, and mandate information sharing between the Carers Register and the Residential Care Worker Register.
Probity checks for workers providing OOHC for children with high support needs will also be aligned with those needed for residential care workers, and information about these workers will be recorded on the Residential Care Worker Register.
The amendments coincide with the launch of the new Carers Register, which will improve how information is shared across the OOHC sector.
