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NSW Health reinforces importance of recommended vaccinations for ECEC staff

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Fiona Alston

Feb 05, 2026

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NSW Health is urging educators and staff working in early childhood education and care (ECEC) to stay up to date with recommended vaccinations, as outlined in the Australian Immunisation Handbook and the Staying healthy: Preventing infectious diseases in early childhood education and care services.

Given the close-contact nature of ECEC environments, maintaining protection against vaccine-preventable diseases is a critical part of reducing health risks for children, families and colleagues.

Recommended vaccinations for ECEC staff include:

Measles, mumps and rubella (MMR)
Diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (whooping cough)
Influenza (annually)
Varicella (chickenpox)
Hepatitis A

Educators are advised to speak with their doctor or pharmacist about their immunisation status and any recommended catch-ups.

Approved providers have a duty of care under workplace health and safety (WHS) law to identify and manage risks associated with infectious disease exposure. This includes:

Encouraging or facilitating access to relevant vaccinations
Maintaining accurate staff immunisation records
Ensuring infection control measures align with the Staying healthy guidelines and current public health advice

The 6th edition of Staying healthy: Preventing infectious diseases in early childhood education and care services, published by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), provides evidence-based recommendations for hygiene, illness exclusion, and immunisation in ECEC settings.

The full guidelines are available from the NHMRC website.

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The First Democracy

It’s the start of the year in a kindergarten; a small boy stands at the threshold of a room he has never entered before and performs the oldest human calculation. He doesn’t have the words for it, not yet. He has only a body that tightens and loosens, a hand that searches for something to hold, an instinct that swivels between curiosity and fear. The room is bright and loud in the gentle way early childhood rooms are loud with life. There is the soft thud of blocks, the high astonishment of a laugh, the sudden, theatrical grief of a toy taken and returned. There are photographs on the wall in which children are mid-flight, jumping, running, leaning into each other as if gravity were a negotiable agreement. There is the smell of fruit and sunscreen and disinfectant and paint, a cocktail of care.

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NSW Health reinforces importance of recommended vaccinations for ECEC staff

NSW Health is urging educators and staff working in early childhood education and care (ECEC) to stay up to date with recommended vaccinations, as outlined in the Australian Immunisation Handbook and the Staying healthy: Preventing infectious diseases in early childhood education and care services.

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