Fostering a safe reporting culture in ECEC: new CELA guidance for leaders

Leaders in early childhood education and care (ECEC) play a pivotal role in creating environments where children are not only safe but feel safe. A key part of this is fostering a culture where concerns about children’s wellbeing or professional conduct are raised early, responded to appropriately, and embedded in everyday practice, not just policy.

To support this, Community Early Learning Australia (CELA) has launched a new leadership resource designed to help ECEC leaders strengthen their service’s culture of reporting. The guidance offers practical, evidence-informed strategies that align with the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations and the National Quality Framework.

This new resource is a timely call to action for leaders looking to move beyond compliance and actively shape child-safe cultures that are visible in practice.

Research continues to show that educators may hesitate to report concerns due to fear, uncertainty, or lack of confidence. CELA’s guidance recognises these barriers and focuses on the leadership behaviours and systems that help overcome them.

Building a culture where reporting is expected, not avoided, starts with leaders who:

• Model ethical and professional conduct
• Create psychologically safe teams
• Provide clear and practical pathways for reporting

CELA’s resource outlines five core strategies leaders can implement immediately:

1. Model ethical practice and boundaries
2. Normalise conversations about concerns
3. Use supervision to support reflective practice
4. Clarify reporting steps and revisit regularly
5. Support, don’t scrutinise, when concerns are raised

These approaches are designed to be integrated into everyday leadership, making reporting a shared, safe, and proactive responsibility across the service.

This resource encourages leaders to bring policies to life through active leadership, strong relationships, and consistent practice.

Whether you are an experienced leader or new to your role, CELA’s new guidance provides a clear, accessible foundation for strengthening child-safe practices in your team.

CELA’s new child-safe leadership resource is now available for free download. It’s suitable for centre managers, educational leaders, and approved providers looking to foster a stronger culture of reporting.

Access the resource here.