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Who Needs to Apply

Under the Working with Children Act 2005, only people engaging in ‘child-related work’ must apply for and pass the Working with Children (WWC) Check. Not everyone whose work brings them into contact with children will need to apply for a WWC Check.

You need to apply for and pass the WWC Check if you meet all of the following criteria:

• your work or volunteer role involves contact with children in connection with one of the 20 listed child-related occupational fields
• you volunteer or do this work on a regular basis
• you have direct contact with children under 18 years of age and are not directly supervised
• you do not qualify for an exemption from the need for a WWC Check.

Is your work or volunteer work included in the WWC Check?

Your work is included in the WWC Check if you are:

• a volunteer (this does not include unpaid work done for a private or domestic purpose, such as driving a neighbour’s children to school)
• performing unpaid community work under a court order
• an employee or an independent contractor (self-employed person)
• a minister of religion or performing duties of a religious vocation
• an officer of a body corporate
• a member of a committee of management (unincorporated body or association) or partnership
• a person doing practical training as part of an educational or vocational course, for example, a student teacher.

Your work is not included in the WWC Check if you are only:

• participating in an activity with a child on the same basis as a child, or
• supervising a work experience arrangement organised by an educational institution or a structured workplace learning arrangement as part of a course at school, TAFE or universities with TAFE divisions.

Does your work or volunteering usually (or is likely to) involve regular, direct contact with a child where that contact is not directly supervised?

To help you answer this question, you should discuss the nature of your role with your employer, agency or volunteer organisation.

‘Direct contact’ is any contact with a child that involves any of the following:

• physical contact
• talking face-to-face
• physically being in view – this means you can see them.

Direct contact does not include telephone, email or internet contact with a child.

To be considered ‘directly supervised’, your supervision must be:

• undertaken by a person who has the role of supervising your ‘child-related work’
• immediate and personal.

Direct supervision does not require constant physical presence. For example, a person who is directly supervising a worker may leave the room in which they are engaging in the work to make a phone call.