A call to action for Early Childhood: Accountability and transparency in the National Strategy to prevent child abuse annual report 2025

The release of the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse 2021–2030: Third Annual Reportreinforces the Australian Government’s commitment to building a safer future for children. For the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector, it also delivers a clear message: child safeguarding is not optional, it is a national priority requiring full and urgent implementation.

Led by the National Office for Child Safety within the Attorney-General’s Department, the strategy responds to recommendations from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. The third annual report, published in December 2025, tracks progress on 62 key actions under the First National and Commonwealth Action Plans, many of which directly impact early learning providers, educators, and sector leaders.

The National Strategy Advisory Group acknowledged that Australia had “witnessed the horrors of child sexual abuse in early childcare centres” during 2025, a sobering reference to recent events that profoundly shook the early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector. Their conclusion is unequivocal: the time for action is now.

The report calls for greater urgency in embedding the National Principles for Child Safe Organisations across all settings that work with children, including early learning. These principles, which draw directly from the Royal Commission’s Child Safe Standards, are designed to help build cultures where children’s rights, voices and safety are central.

Key Developments Affecting the ECEC Sector

1. National Working with Children Check Reform

Major progress was made in 2025 to strengthen and harmonise Working with Children Check (WWCC) systems across states and territories. In November, the Standing Council of Attorneys-General endorsed a national reform agreement that will deliver:

• Mutual recognition of negative notices, ensuring individuals barred in one state cannot work in another.
• Consistency in exclusion criteria and risk assessment frameworks.
• A National Continuous Checking Capability, a new secure platform that flags new criminal history information. The Federal Government has allocated $37 million over five years for this initiative.

These reforms will reduce the risk of individuals with concerning histories moving undetected between jurisdictions, a key finding from the Royal Commission and a critical priority for early learning settings.

2. Sector-wide Accountability and Reporting

The report also outlines the development of a national child safety reporting framework, designed to support organisations in tracking their implementation of child safe measures. ECEC services were included in consultation for this framework, which will be piloted in 2026.

This work builds on efforts to improve transparency and embed continuous improvement, particularly in sectors such as early learning where staff work closely with young children every day.

3. Awareness, Language and Capability Tools

To support cultural change, the report highlights several resources that educators, providers and community organisations can access:

• The “One Talk at a Time” campaign promotes everyday conversations between adults and children to prevent abuse.
• The National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse released the Reshaping the Conversation language guide and continued to deliver trauma-informed education and workforce training.
• Minimum Practice Standards tools were published to support safe, evidence-based services for children and families impacted by abuse.

As 2026 approaches, the message from government and advisory bodies is clear: early childhood services must not wait. Child safe culture is not a compliance exercise, it is a core part of delivering quality education and care. Embedding the National Principles, improving staff knowledge, and participating in reforms like WWCC harmonisation are now essential.

Read the full report and access supporting materials on the National Office for Child Safety website.