Education and Care Services National Law (WA)

approval in principle means an approval in principle granted under section 110 for a proposed education and care service premises;

approval in principle criteria means, of the national regulations that regulate the education and care service premises, those which are prescribed to be the approval in principle criteria;

approval in principle holder means —

approved education and care service means an education and care service for which a service approval exists;

approved family day care service means an approved education and care service that is a family day care service;

approved family day care venue means a place (other than a residence) approved under section 50A or 54(8A) as a family day care venue for an approved family day care service;

approved learning framework means a learning framework approved by the Ministerial Council;

approved provider means a person who holds a provider approval;

associated children’s service means a children’s service that is operated or intended to be operated by an approved provider at the same place as an approved education and care service;

Australian Accounting Standards means the standards issued or pronounced by the Australian Accounting Standards Board;

authorised officer means a person authorised to be an authorised officer under Part 9;

Authority Fund means the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority Fund established under section 274;

Board means the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority Board established under this Law;

chief executive officer means the chief executive officer of the National Authority appointed under this Law;

children’s service means a service providing or intended to provide education and care on a regular basis to children under 13 years of age that is primarily regulated under a children’s services law of a participating jurisdiction and is not an education and care service;

children’s services law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be a children’s services law for the purposes of this Law;

children’s services regulator, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a person declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be the children’s services regulator for the purposes of this Law;

Commonwealth Minister means the Minister of the Commonwealth who is responsible for policies and programs relating to education and care services;

community kindergarten means a kindergarten registered under the School Education Act 1999 Part 5;

compliance direction means a compliance direction under section 176;

compliance notice means a compliance notice under section 177;

disciplinary action means disciplinary action under Part 7 Division 3A;

educational program means an educational programme as defined in the School Education Act 1999 section 4;

education and care service means any service providing or intended to provide education and care on a regular basis to children under 13 years of age other than —

Example

Instruction in a particular activity could be instruction in sport, dance, music, culture or language or religious instruction.

Example

Education and care services to which this Law applies include long day care services, family day care services and outside school hours services, unless expressly excluded.

education and care service premises means —

education law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be an education law for the purposes of this Law;

educator means an individual who provides education and care for children as part of an education and care service;

executor, in relation to an approved provider, includes a person —

eligible association means an association of a prescribed class;

family day care co-ordinator means a person employed or engaged by an approved provider of a family day care service to monitor and support the family day care educators who are part of the service;

family day care educator means an educator engaged by or registered with a family day care service to provide education and care for children in a residence or at an approved family day care venue;

family day care educator assistant means a person engaged by or registered with a family day care service to assist family day care educators;

family day care residence means a residence at which a family day care educator educates and cares for children as part of a family day care service;

family day care service means an education and care service that —

Note

A family day care service that is an approved family day care service may provide education and care to children from a family day care residence or an approved family day care venue.

family member, in relation to a child, means —

former education and care services law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be a former education and care services law for the purposes of this Law;

grade 1, in relation to a school, means the first year of compulsory full-time schooling;

guardian, in relation to a child, means the legal guardian of the child;

infringements law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be an infringements law for the purposes of this Law;

mandatory approval in principle jurisdiction means a Part 4 jurisdiction in which section 49A of this Law applies;

Note

See section 49A.

Ministerial Council means a body (however described) that consists of the Minister of the Commonwealth, and the Minister of each State and Territory, who is responsible, or principally responsible, for matters under this Law;

National Authority means the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority established under this Law;

national education and care services quality framework means —

National Partnership Agreement means the National Partnership Agreement on the National Quality Agenda for Early Childhood and Care entered into by the States and Territories and the Commonwealth on 7 December 2009, as amended from time to time;

National Quality Framework means the national education and care services quality framework;

National Quality Standard means the National Quality Standard prescribed by the national regulations;

national regulations means the regulations made under this Law;

nominated supervisor, in relation to an education and care service, means an individual who —

Note

An individual may be both a nominated supervisor of a family day care service and a family day care co‑ordinator for that service if the individual meets the criteria for each role.

office, in relation to a family day care service, means —

parent, in relation to a child, means a person who at law has responsibility for —

Part 4 building means —

Part 4 building law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by or under a law of that jurisdiction to be a Part 4 building law;

Part 4 jurisdiction means a participating jurisdiction in which Part 4 of this Law applies;

Note

See section 105.

Part 4 planning law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by or under a law of that jurisdiction to be a Part 4 planning law;

participating jurisdiction means a State or Territory in which —

payment, in relation to a prescribed fee, includes payment by electronic or other means;

person means —

person in day-to-day charge, in relation to an education and care service, means a person who is placed in day-to-day charge of the service in accordance with the national regulations;

person with management or control means a person referred to in section 5A;

personal arrangement means education and care provided to a child —

prescribed ineligible person means a person in a class of persons prescribed by the national regulations to be prescribed ineligible persons;

prohibition notice means a prohibition notice given under section 182(1) or 182(3);

protected disclosure — see section 296;

provider approval means a provider approval —

but does not include a provider approval that has been cancelled;

public sector law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be a public sector law for the purposes of this Law;

rating assessment means an assessment or reassessment of an approved education and care service under Part 5;

Ratings Review Panel means a Ratings Review Panel established under section 146;

receiving approved provider has the meaning set out in section 58;

Regulatory Authority means a person declared by a law of a participating jurisdiction to be the Regulatory Authority for that jurisdiction or for a class of education and care services for that jurisdiction;

relevant Commonwealth Department means the government department administered by the Commonwealth Minister;

relevant tribunal or court, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means the tribunal or court declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be the relevant tribunal or court for the purposes of this Law or a provision of this Law;

residence means the habitable areas of a dwelling;

school means —

school children includes students, as defined in the School Education Act 1999 section 4, attending school before grade 1;

serious detrimental action — see section 296;

serious incident means an incident or class of incidents prescribed by the national regulations as a serious incident;

service approval means a service approval —

but does not include a service approval that has been cancelled;

staff member, in relation to an education and care service, means any individual (other than a nominated supervisor or a volunteer) employed, appointed or engaged to work in or as part of an education and care service, whether as family day care co-ordinator, educator or otherwise;

transferring approved provider has the meaning set out in section 58;

working with children card means a card issued to a person under a working with children law of a participating jurisdiction that permits that person to work with children;

working with children check means a notice, certificate or other document granted to, or with respect to, a person under a working with children law to the effect that —

working with children law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be a working with children law for the purposes of this Law;

working with vulnerable people law, in relation to a participating jurisdiction, means a law declared by a law of that jurisdiction to be a working with vulnerable people law for the purposes of this Law.

[Section 5 modified: No. 2 of 2026 (WA) s. 35.]