Quality Area 2 – Children's health and safety
Introduction
The aim of Quality Area 2 under the National Quality Standard is to safeguard and promote children’s health and safety, minimise risks and protect children from harm, injury and infection.
All children have the right to experience quality education and care in an environment that provides for their physical and psychological wellbeing and provides support for each child’s growing competence, confidence and independence.
Children’s health and safety | ||
|---|---|---|
| Standard 2.1 | Health | Each child’s health and physical activity is supported and promoted. |
| Element 2.1.1 | Wellbeing and comfort | Each child’s wellbeing and comfort is provided for, including appropriate opportunities to meet each child’s need for sleep, rest and relaxation. |
| Element 2.1.2 | Health practices and procedures | Effective illness and injury management and hygiene practices are promoted and implemented. |
| Element 2.1.3 | Healthy lifestyle | Healthy eating and physical activity are promoted and appropriate for each child. |
| Standard 2.2 | Safety | Each child is protected. |
| Element 2.2.1 | Supervision | At all times, reasonable precautions and adequate supervision ensure children are protected from harm and hazard |
| Element 2.2.2 | Incident and emergency management | Plans to effectively manage incidents and emergencies are developed in consultation with relevant authorities, practised and implemented |
| Element 2.2.3 | Child protection | Management, educators and staff are aware of their roles and responsibilities to identify and respond to every child at risk of abuse or neglect. |
Health
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander resources: Which way / Deadly nutrition – Metro South Health, Queensland Government
Executive function: Skills for life and learning – Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University
Get Up & Grow: Healthy eating and physical activity for early childhood – Cooking for children book – Australian Government Department of Health
Get Up & Grow: Healthy eating and physical activity for early childhood – Directors/coordinators book – Australian Government Department of Health
Get Up & Grow: Healthy eating and physical activity for early childhood – Family book – Australian Government Department of Health
Get Up & Grow: Healthy eating and physical activity for early childhood – Staff/carers book – Australian Government Department of Health
Healthy Eating – Getting Started – Healthy Eating Advisory Service
Healthy eating in the National Quality Standard: A guide for education and care services – Healthy Eating Advisory Service
Healthy Jarjums resources – Inala Indigenous Health Service, Queensland Government
How brains are built: The core story of brain development – Alberta Family Wellness
Information sheet: Quality Area 2 – Toileting and nappy changing principles and practice – ACECQA
Munch & Move: Publications – Munch & Move / NSW Health
Munch & Move: Resources – Munch & Move / NSW Health
Staying Healthy in Child Care: Preventing infectious diseases in child care – NHMRC
Victorian menu planning guidelines for early childhood – Healthy Eating Advisory Service
Yulunga: Traditional indigenous games – Australian Sports Commission
Reflecting on common OSHC supervision areas - eLearning module
Safety
A guide for creating a child safe organisation – Commission for Children and Young People
Back care in early childhood settings – Gowrie Professional Support Coordinator
Birdie’s tree: Growing together through natural disasters – Children’s Health Queensland Hospital and Health Service
Challenges for young children during the pandemic – Early Childhood Australia
Child development and trauma guide – Department of Communities, Western Australia
Child protection in Australia – Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Child protection legislation – Australian Institute of Family Studies
Child safe organisations – Australian Human Rights Commission
Child Safe Organisations: Child safety and wellbeing links and resources – Australian Human Rights Commission
Child Safe Organisations: Guide for parents and carers – Australian Human Rights Commission
Child Safe Organisations: Practical tools for implementing the National Principles – Australian Human Rights Commission
Child Safe Organisations: Training resources – Australian Human Rights Commission
Children as bushfire educators – NCSS International Assembly
Children’s books about bushfire – NSW Rural Fire Service Library
Community factsheets: Bushfires – Vic Health, Department of Health & Human Services, Victoria
Community trauma toolkit – Emerging Minds
ECRH Newsletter: Trauma-informed practice – Commonwealth of Australia
Fire: Are you ready? – Early Childhood Australia
Good teaching: Trauma informed practice – Department of Education, Tasmania
How to create a learning environment – Early Childhood Australia
Information sheet: Quality Area 2 – Active supervision: Ensuring safety and promoting learning – ACECQA
Keeping children safe – Australian Childhood Foundation
Kids and Traffic: Resources – NSW Government
Literature review: A trauma-sensitive approach for children aged 0-8 years – Women’s Health Goulburn North East
Minimising the risk of children being mistakenly locked in or out of service premises - ACECQA
National Child Protection Week – NAPCAN
National Principles for Child Safe Organisations – Australian Human Rights Commission
Online safety – Australian Institute of Family Studies
Privacy and your child – eSafety Commissioner
Resources for teachers – Australian Red Cross
Resources for teachers: School recovery toolkit – Australian Child & Adolescent Trauma, Loss & Grief Network
Risk assessment and risk management in family day care – Lady Gowrie Tasmania
Reflecting on common OSHC supervision areas - eLearning module
Safe and Supported: the National Framework for Protecting Australia's Children 2021-2031 - Department of Social Services, Australian Government
Safe sleep and rest practices – ACECQA
Talking to children about bushfires – Better Health
Trauma: supporting your child in the days and weeks after – Raising Children
Work health and safety in education and care services – Child Australia
The Risk Assessment and Management Tool aims to help children’s education and care service approved providers, leaders, educators, teachers and staff to understand the importance of assessing and managing risk as an embedded part of quality practice and improvement.
This tool is suitable for:
- Long day care
- Preschool/kindergarten
- Family day care
- Outside school hours care.
The tool can assist in identifying, assessing and managing the risk of harm to anticipate the likelihood and consequence of an incident. Working to reduce the risk of harm will help ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of children, families, staff and community members within your service.
This tool and the templates in it are intended as a starting point. They are designed to be adapted to meet the needs of your service. You are encouraged to adjust the templates to suit the context of your service, when new hazards are identified or as circumstances change.
Templates
- Safe transportation of children safety checklist and regular transportation record form
- Risk assessment and management template – Excursions
- Risk assessment and management – Indoor and outdoor learning environment safety checklist
- Risk assessment and management – Learning experience plan – Educators/Teachers
- Risk Assessment and Management Template - Transporting children (other than as part of an excursion)
- Sleep and rest risk assessment template
