Every incident, injury, trauma or illness involving a child at the service goes in the incident, injury, trauma and illness record (regulation 87) within 24 hours, with the contents the regulation lists. The parent is told as soon as practicable and within 24 hours (regulation 86, penalty $6,600). If it is a serious incident as defined in regulation 12 (death; serious injury, trauma or illness needing urgent medical attention or hospital; emergency services attending; a child missing, taken, or locked in or out), the approved provider notifies the regulatory authority within 24 hours (section 174(2)(a), regulation 176). Incidents believed or alleged to involve physical or sexual abuse are notified within 24 hours; circumstances posing a risk to children’s health, safety or wellbeing within 7 days (regulation 175(2), 176). The record is kept until the child turns 25 (regulation 183).
An incident report in childcare is three things at once: the regulation 87 record, the parent notification under regulation 86, and, when the incident is serious, the notification to the regulatory authority through the NQA IT System. This page gives the required contents of the record field by field, the definition of a serious incident, the notification timeframes in one table, retention, and the mistakes that turn a well-handled incident into a compliance finding.
| Field | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Child | Name and age. |
| Incident, injury or trauma | The circumstances leading to it; the time and date it occurred. |
| Illness | The circumstances surrounding the child becoming ill and any apparent symptoms; the time and date of the apparent onset. |
| Action taken | What the service did, including any medication administered or first aid provided, and any medical personnel contacted. |
| Witnesses | Details of any person who witnessed the incident, injury or trauma. |
| Notifications | The name of any person the service notified or attempted to notify, and the time and date of each notification or attempt. |
| Entry | The name and signature of the person making the entry, and the time and date it was made. |
| Timing | All of the above entered as soon as practicable and not later than 24 hours after the incident, injury or trauma, or the onset of the illness (regulation 87(4)). |
Regulation 87 applies to the approved provider of every service and to each family day care educator. The procedure that staff follow when a child is injured, becomes ill or suffers a trauma is separately required by regulation 85, inside the regulation 168(2)(b) policy. A body map, photographs of the injury (with the regulation 168(2)(ha) image rules observed) and the first aid officer’s name are not prescribed but are what regulators expect to see attached.
| Event | Tell | By when | Provision |
|---|---|---|---|
| Any incident, injury, trauma or illness | The child’s parent | As soon as practicable, within 24 hours | r 86 (penalty $6,600) |
| Any incident, injury, trauma or illness | The record | Within 24 hours | r 87(4) |
| Death of a child | Regulatory authority | As soon as practicable, within 24 hours | s 174(2)(a), r 176(2)(a)(i) |
| Any other serious incident (r 12) | Regulatory authority | Within 24 hours of the incident or of becoming aware of it | s 174(2)(a), r 176(2)(a)(ii) |
| A complaint alleging a serious incident, or that the Law has been contravened, at the service | Regulatory authority | Within 24 hours | s 174(2)(b), r 176(2)(b) |
| Incident the provider reasonably believes involved physical or sexual abuse of a child while in care | Regulatory authority | Within 24 hours of the incident or of becoming aware | r 175(2)(d), r 176(2)(bb) |
| Allegation of physical or sexual abuse of a child while in care | Regulatory authority | Within 24 hours of the allegation or of becoming aware | r 175(2)(e), r 176(2)(bc) |
| Any circumstance posing a risk to the health, safety or wellbeing of a child attending the service | Regulatory authority | Within 7 days | r 175(2)(c), r 176(2)(c) |
| Incident requiring the service to close or reduce numbers | Regulatory authority | Within 7 days | r 175(2)(b), r 176(2)(c) |
| Occurrence of an infectious disease | Every family at the service | As soon as practicable | r 88(2) |
| Child protection concern | The state child protection authority and, where the state has one, the reportable conduct scheme | Under the state’s child protection law | r 84, state law |
| Serious workplace injury | The work health and safety regulator | Immediately for a notifiable incident | WHS law |
Notifications to the regulatory authority are lodged through the NQA IT System (form SI01 for a serious incident, C01 for complaints, NL01 for other notifications). Section 174 carries a penalty of $13,500 for an individual and $68,700 otherwise, and is an infringement-notice offence under section 291. Penalties are the National Law figures as adopted from 1 January 2026.
Regulation 183(2): a record relating to an incident, illness, injury or trauma suffered by a child while being educated and cared for, or that may have occurred following such an incident, is kept until the child is aged 25 years; a record relating to the death of a child, until 7 years after the death. It must be stored in a safe and secure place (regulation 183(1)), and confidentiality applies under regulation 181. If the service approval is transferred, incident records for currently enrolled children transfer with parental consent (regulation 184).
Under regulation 87(3): the child’s name and age; the circumstances and the time and date of the incident, injury or trauma, or the symptoms and time of onset of an illness; the action taken including first aid, medication and medical personnel contacted; witness details; the name of each person notified or whom the service attempted to notify with the time and date; and the name and signature of the person making the entry with the time and date. It must be completed within 24 hours.
As soon as practicable, and not later than 24 hours after the occurrence, under regulation 86. The penalty is $6,600. Each notification or attempt, with its time and date, goes in the record.
Regulation 12: the death of a child; serious injury or trauma that a reasonable person would consider needed urgent medical attention or for which the child attended or ought to have attended hospital; serious illness for which the child attended or ought to have attended hospital; any emergency for which emergency services attended; and a child missing or unaccounted for, taken or removed in contravention of the Regulations, or mistakenly locked in or out of the premises.
Within 24 hours of the incident or of the approved provider becoming aware of it, under section 174(2)(a) of the Law and regulation 176(2)(a); the death of a child as soon as practicable and within 24 hours. Lodged through the NQA IT System. Allegations or belief of physical or sexual abuse are also 24 hours; circumstances posing a risk to children are 7 days.
Until the child is 25 years old (regulation 183(2)(a) and (b)); records relating to the death of a child for 7 years after the death. They must be stored in a safe and secure place and kept confidential under regulations 181 and 183.
No. Regulation 87 prescribes the contents, not the form. ACECQA publishes a sample incident, injury, trauma and illness record that carries every required field, and most childcare software replicates it. Any form that captures all of regulation 87(3) within 24 hours meets the requirement.
Describe what happened and what treatment followed. WIDEN Law answers against regulation 12, section 174 and regulations 175 and 176, with the source cited.
14-day free trial, no card →This page is a research summary, not legal or compliance advice. Element and regulation wording is reproduced from the current reprint of the National Regulations; confirm the position with your regulatory authority before relying on it for a compliance decision.