Everybody working or volunteering in an early childhood education and care (ECEC) service regulated under the National Quality Framework (NQF) must complete national child safety training.
On this page:
About the training
Ensuring the safety and wellbeing of every child in ECEC is a shared national priority.
National child safety training is now mandatory for everybody working or volunteering in an ECEC service regulated under the NQF.
The new national training will support all people involved in ECEC to meet their legal child safety obligations, strengthen safeguarding practice, and reduce harm to children. There are 2 components:
- foundation training, available now
- advanced training, available from July 2026.
The training has been developed by the Australian Centre for Child Protection (ACCP) in partnership with the Queensland Government, on behalf of all Australian states and territories and the Australian Government.
The training is available through Geccko – the Australian Government’s online learning platform for the ECEC sector.
The training is free and providers can access support to help staff to complete it.
This is a National Child Safety Reform initiative. All Education Ministers agreed to new mandatory national child safety training at a special purpose meeting in August 2025.
Foundation training
Foundation training is the first stage of national child safety training. It is available now.
Who needs to complete foundation training
Foundation training is mandatory for any person who works or volunteers in an ECEC service regulated under the NQF. This includes:
- the approved provider of the service
- each person with management or control of the service
- each nominated supervisor of the service
- each person in day-to-day charge of the service
- each Family Day Care educator employed or engaged by the service
- each staff member of the service
- each volunteer at the service
- each student who participates in the service.
This applies even to staff who do not work directly with children.
The requirement applies across all NQF-regulated service types, including:
- Centre Based Day Care
- Family Day Care
- Outside School Hours Care
- preschools and kindergartens
- occasional care.
While In Home Care and some Community Child Care Fund Restricted services are not regulated under the NQF, we encourage all staff to complete the training.
Training structure and duration
Foundation training consists of 2 courses:
- understanding child safety
- understanding and identifying child abuse and neglect.
You must complete both courses to complete foundation training. It is estimated to take approximately 2 hours to complete, although this will vary from learner to learner.
When to complete foundation training
All existing staff must complete foundation training by 27 August 2026. Staff entering the sector from 14 August 2026 must complete foundation training by whichever occurs earlier:
- 27 August 2026, or
- 14 days from when they are employed by the service, or
- before they work directly with children.
Ongoing, staff must complete foundation training once every 2 years.
How to access foundation training
You can access foundation training by logging in to Geccko and selecting national child safety training from the homepage.
Training must be completed in Geccko, the Australian Government’s official training platform for the sector. Child safety training delivered through other platforms or providers does not meet the mandatory requirement.
Evidence of completion
After completing both courses of foundation training, you can download a completion certificate from Geccko. Providers should ask staff to share their certificate as evidence of completion. Each certificate includes a unique certificate number.
For instructions on downloading your completion certificate, see ‘how do I get my foundation completion certificate’ below.
Advanced training
Certain people must also complete advanced training. Advanced training will be available from July 2026.
We will provide information about advanced training ahead of its release.
Companion materials
National child safety training is accompanied by companion materials in a range of downloadable formats, like videos, booklets and information sheets. These materials are designed to help services develop on-the-ground Communities of Practice material. They are not part of the mandatory training requirement.
Access the companion materials on the ACCP website.
Training support
Child Care Subsidy (CCS) approved providers can access support to help staff complete training.
You can only claim one type of support for the same hours of mandatory training. This means you cannot claim both CCS for a service closure and the professional development subsidy for individual staff to complete the training.
Some jurisdictions may also offer training support. Contact your regulatory authority for more information.
Service closures
Providers can claim CCS for up to 5 hours each year, after 5 pm, while they close to complete national child safety training. Providers will have record keeping obligations.
Centre Based Day Care and Outside School Hours Care
Services can close for part of the day from 5 pm onwards, for up to 5 hours per calendar year.
The closure must finish by the service’s normal closing time.
Family Day Care and In Home Care
The 5-hour annual cap applies per individual educator.
Each educator can be unavailable between 5 pm and normal closing time (no later than midnight), for up to 5 hours per calendar year.
Find out more about service closures to support national child safety training.
Professional development subsidy
Providers can soon apply for a professional development subsidy to help cover the cost of wages while staff complete national child safety training.
Find out more about the professional development subsidy to support national child safety training.
Reporting and compliance
Providers are responsible for ensuring their staff complete national child safety training.
Due to privacy protections:
- we cannot share training records directly with providers
- providers should ask staff to share their completion certificates as evidence.
Legal requirement
The National Law and Regulations have now been updated to mandate national child safety training.
State and territory regulatory authorities, supported by ACECQA, oversee compliance with National Law requirements, including national child safety training.
Find out more about National Law training requirements, including whether you also need to complete child protection training, on ACECQA’s website. For jurisdiction specific requirements, contact your regulatory authority.
How to register
Registering for national child safety training in Geccko is easy.
Visit the Geccko registration page and follow the prompts to create your account.
If you already have a Geccko account, log in and update your details to access national child safety training.
To ensure personal training completions can be tracked and reported correctly, all users must have an individual Geccko account using a personal email. Generic or shared emails are not permitted.
If you use a shared Geccko account, you must re-register using a personal email address.
Need more help? Choose the pathway that applies to you:
I don’t have a Geccko account (new user)
Create a Geccko account:
- Go to the registration page.
- Create a new account using a personal email address (an email only you can access).
- Complete the account verification process and log in.
I have my own Geccko account
Update your account details:
- Log in to Geccko.
- After logging in, you will be directed to update your account details.
- Follow the prompts to update your details. Make sure your details are current and accurate, and your account is not shared with anyone else.
I use a shared Geccko account
Re-register using your personal email address:
- Go to the registration page.
- Create a new account using a personal email address (an email only you can access).
- Complete the account verification process and log in.
Transfer past course completions (optional):
- From the Geccko Home Page, click on ‘Request Account Merge’ in the footer.
- From the Request Account Merge page, enter and confirm your previous email address (group or shared-access email).
- Click on ‘Request Account Merge’ button.
- We will verify and approve your account merge request within 5 to 7 business days.
- After your request is approved, your previous course completions will appear in your new account.
- If you need technical help, contact us at Geccko@education.gov.au.
Details you’ll be asked for
When creating or updating your account, have the following details ready. The Geccko privacy statement outlines how we collect, hold and use your information.
Once registered, you can update some account details by going to the ‘My Learning’ tab and selecting the ‘View More’ button under your name.
| Information | How to enter |
|---|---|
| Given name | Enter your given name |
| Family name | Enter your family name. If you do not have a family name, enter a single dot (.) |
| Email address | Enter a personal email address that only you can access. For example, your.name@workplace.com or your.name@personal.com. Do not use a group or shared email such as admin@workplace.com or info@service.org |
| Mobile number | Enter your personal mobile number. The mobile number must be a valid international mobile number, an example being +61 4XX XXX XXX. Do not use a landline or shared phone. |
| Password | Create a password that meets the following requirements:
|
| Date of birth | Enter in the format DD/MM/YYYY |
| Unique Student Identifier (USI) | Enter your 10-character USI. If you don’t have one, you can create it at usi.gov.au. |
| Service ID | Search for your service from the dropdown menu. If you cannot find your service ID, check the national register or ask your provider. If you work in more than one service, select the one in which you spend the most time. If you do not work at a service/provider, type 'not applicable'. |
| State/territory where you work | Select the state or territory where you work from the dropdown menu. |
| Role | Select your primary role from the dropdown menu. If your role is not covered, select other. If you do not work at a service/provider, select not applicable. |
| Service type | Select an option from the dropdown menu. If you work in more than one service type, select the one in which you spend the most time. If you do not work at a service/provider, select not applicable. |
Questions & troubleshooting
I made an error typing in my email address – what should I do?
Simply complete your registration again with your correct email address. There is no need to contact us.
I didn’t receive a verification email – what should I do?
Check your spam or junk folder. If you still can’t find it, contact Geccko@education.gov.au.
What if I forgot my password?
Go to the Geccko login page, click ‘Forgot password?’ and follow the prompts to reset your password.
My service isn’t listed on the registration form or national register. How can I register?
Services in scope of the National Quality Framework are listed on the registration form. If your service is not in scope of the National Quality Framework or does not appear in the registration form, please type 'Not applicable' in the Service ID field.
Do I need a Unique Student Identifier (USI) to register?
No, you don’t need a USI to create a Geccko account. If you have a USI, we encourage you to include it to help identify you as the account owner. You can also add your USI to your Geccko account at any time. Check the Geccko Support page for instructions on updating your information. Learn more at usi.gov.au.
How do I know if my account uses a group or shared-access email?
If your login email is something generic (like admin@workplace.com) or is used by multiple people at your service, it is a shared account. Anyone who uses this account must re-register with a personal email address.
A personal email address is one that only you can access. This could be your individual work email (your.name@workplace.com) or a personal email (your.name@mail.com).
If you work across multiple services, or expect to change employers in the future, you may prefer to use a personal (non-work) email address. This helps ensure you can continue accessing Geccko even if your work email changes or is deactivated. Two-factor verification is required to log in. By default, the verification code is sent to the email address registered on your account. If you lose access to that email (for example, when changing jobs), you may not be able to log in. You can also choose to receive your two-factor verification code by SMS instead of email.
How should agency and relief staff register?
Staff who move between services can either select the service type they work at most often or select 'Not applicable' in the service ID field. Each staff member must register with a personal email address. They will be able to access and complete national child safety training without issue.
How can providers verify that staff have completed the training?
Learners can print or save their completion certificate from Geccko. Each certificate includes a unique certificate number. We cannot share staff training records with providers due to privacy protections. Providers should ask staff to present their completion certificates.
How do I get my foundation completion certificate?
Once you have completed both courses of foundation training, your certificate will be available to download. To access your certificate:
- Make sure you have completed both courses of foundation training.
- At the end of the second course, select Exit course.
- Close the course tab or window.
- Return to the training page and select Continue when prompted.
- When your completion is confirmed, select Download certificate.
Your completion certificate will open on screen and can be saved or printed for your records. If you do not see the download option, check that all courses have been completed before exiting the training.
You can return to the training page at any time to download your certificate again.
Can tertiary institutions receive completion reports from Geccko?
At this time, we are not able to provide completion reports or notifications to tertiary institutions. The responsibility for verifying completion rests with ECEC providers. Tertiary institutions may request that students provide their certificate of completion where this is required for placement or assurance processes.
While the training is mandatory, it is not an accredited unit of study. We are examining how national child safety training may intersect with formal, accredited training in the future.
Can Geccko send completion data directly to our dashboards?
No, this is not currently available. We are considering this option and will update the sector if this changes.
Can providers host the training in their own learning management system?
No, not at this time. All ECEC staff must register and complete national child safety training in Geccko.
I can't see the videos in the training - what should I do?
Some videos are hosted on YouTube. Transcripts are available if you cannot see the video.
Privacy and security
We are bound by the Privacy Act 1988 and the Australian Privacy Principles (APPs). These require us to:
- collect only the information we need
- inform you about how it will be used
- ensure it is stored securely.
Read more about how the department handles personal information.
Read the Geccko privacy statement.
The Australian Government also has strict security requirements for all IT systems that handle personal information. Under the Protective Security Policy Framework:
- agencies must protect government information and minimise security risks
- systems must align with the Australian Signals Directorate’s Information Security Manual (ISM), which sets out cybersecurity controls to protect data from cyber threats.
We have ensured that Geccko meets these requirements. The platform provider, Acorn:
- complies with recognised industry security standards
- follows strong security practices to safeguard sensitive information.
Read more about Acorn’s security standards on their Trust Centre page.
More information and help
Access the training
To access and complete national child safety training, register or log in to Geccko.
There is a support page in Geccko with guidance on how to access and complete training. If you need technical help with your Geccko account, contact us at Geccko@education.gov.au.
Training requirements
For more information about training requirements and how they apply in your state or territory, visit the ACECQA website or contact your regulatory authority.
Training contents and development
To learn more about how the training was developed, visit the Australian Centre for Child Protection website.
Help spread the word
Use our communication toolkit to support registration and completion of national child safety training.