Childcare in Queensland is regulated by the Education and Care Services National Law, applied by the Education and Care Services National Law (Queensland) Act 2011, and the National Regulations, which are themselves made as a Queensland law and adopted by the other states. The Queensland Department of Education is the regulatory authority. Queensland has no ratio variation: the national regulation 123 ratios apply. Its Part 7.5 variations are about staffing flexibility and school-age care: qualification rules for educators of children over preschool age (regulation 299), the rest period condition that lets a service approval allow relaxed ratios for up to 2 hours a day during children’s rest (regulations 299A to 299E), and the rest pause and 5-minute absence rules under which a service is taken to meet ratios while an educator takes a 10-minute pause or a short absence (regulations 299F to 299I). Services outside the NQF are regulated by the Education and Care Services Act 2013 (Qld), and state law adds the blue card, mandatory reporting under the Child Protection Act 1999 and the Child Safe Organisations Act 2024.
This page summarises what is different in Queensland. The national rules are on the guides linked from each section.
Queensland applies the national ratios in regulation 123 without modification: 1:4 for birth to 24 months, 1:5 for over 24 to 36 months, 1:11 for 36 months to preschool age, and 1:15 for children over preschool age. Regulation 300 preserved a 1:5 ratio for 15 to 24 month olds at some pre-2011 licensed services, but that saving ended on 1 January 2020. The Queensland ratio calculator applies regulation 123. Educator qualifications for children preschool age or under follow the national regulation 126; for children over preschool age Queensland has its own rule in regulation 299.
A Queensland service approval may include a rest period condition: one or more periods totalling not more than 2 hours a day designated as rest periods (r 299A). During a rest period the ratios in regulation 299C apply instead of regulation 123:
| Age group | Rest period ratio (regulation 299C(1)) |
|---|---|
| Over 24 months but under 36 months | 1:12 for the first 12 children, then 1:6 for additional children |
| Over 30 months but under 36 months | 1:16 for the first 16, then 1:8 |
| At least 3 but under 7 years | 1:24 for the first 24, then 1:12 |
| At least 4 but under 7 years | 1:26 for the first 26, then 1:13 |
| At least 4 but under 13 years | 1:24 for the first 24, then 1:12 |
Where fewer than 31 children attend, one staff member or volunteer may be counted as an educator for every 3 educators in the ratio during the rest period (r 299C(2)). In addition to the ratio educators, extra staff or volunteers must be present and able to attend immediately: one for up to 30 approved places, two for 31 to 75, three for 76 or more (r 299D). Every ratio educator during a rest period must be at least 17 and hold or be working towards a certificate III (r 299E). There is no rest period relaxation for children under 24 months. A service without the condition on its approval applies regulation 123 throughout the day.
Queensland is one of three jurisdictions with express provisions (with South Australia’s regulation 325A and Tasmania’s regulation 342A) that deem the ratio met during a brief absence:
These provisions remove the lawful-but-contested “under the roof” argument for breaks in Queensland by setting the exact conditions. The under the roof guide and the roster checker treat Queensland pauses on these terms.
| Area | Queensland law | What it requires of a service |
|---|---|---|
| Working with children | Working with Children (Risk Management and Screening) Act 2000 | A blue card for every paid employee and most volunteers in regulated child-related employment, linked to the organisation through the blue card system, and a written child and youth risk management strategy; the regulation 176B and 176C 24-hour notifications apply to changes in card status. |
| Child safe standards and reportable conduct | Child Safe Organisations Act 2024 | Universal child safe standards and a reportable conduct scheme for organisations working with children, phased in through 2025 and 2026 under the Queensland Family and Child Commission. |
| Mandatory reporting | Child Protection Act 1999 | Early childhood education and care professionals are mandatory reporters of a reasonable suspicion that a child has suffered, is suffering or is at unacceptable risk of suffering significant harm from physical or sexual abuse and may not have a parent able and willing to protect them; reports to Child Safety Services. |
| Services outside the NQF | Education and Care Services Act 2013 and its regulation | Licensing and standards for occasional care and other non-NQF services; a new regulation under the Act commenced in 2026. |
| Food | Food Act 2006 and the Food Standards Code | Licensing by the local government where food is prepared, a food safety supervisor, and an accredited food safety program for services preparing food for vulnerable persons. |
| Planning and building | Planning Act 2016, the Queensland Development Code and the National Construction Code | Development approval and Class 9b building compliance, including the Queensland Development Code’s child care centre provisions. |
| Pools | Building Act 1975 (pool safety provisions) | Fencing and a pool safety certificate for any pool at a family day care residence; the regulation 116 assessment records it. |
The Department of Education publishes its enforcement actions, guidance and the Queensland-specific requirements for child protection training (regulation 128B is jurisdiction-specific and Queensland has its own transitional provisions in Part 7.16). The Regulations reprint on the Queensland legislation website is the authoritative text for every jurisdiction; Part 7.5 is the Queensland chapter.
The national ratios in regulation 123 apply without variation: 1:4 for birth to 24 months, 1:5 for over 24 to 36 months, 1:11 for 36 months to preschool age, and 1:15 for children over preschool age. A service with a rest period condition on its approval may apply the relaxed regulation 299C ratios for up to 2 hours a day during rest periods.
A condition on a Queensland service approval under regulation 299A designating one or more periods totalling not more than 2 hours a day as rest periods. During them the regulation 299C ratios apply (for example 1:24 for 3 to 7 year olds for the first 24 children), extra staff or volunteers must be present and able to attend immediately under regulation 299D, and every ratio educator must be at least 17 with a certificate III or working towards one (r 299E). It never applies to children under 24 months.
Within limits. Regulation 299F deems the ratio met during a rest pause of not more than 10 minutes, once a day per educator, if a specified person not working with children is present and able to attend immediately and only one ratio educator is on a pause at a time. Regulation 299H deems it met during an absence of not more than 5 minutes if no other ratio educator is absent. Outside those conditions regulation 123 applies in full.
Regulation 299: at least one educator holding or working towards a 2-year relevant qualification present for 7 hours 15 minutes (or all the time if the service runs for less) on each day school-age children attend; where 30 or more attend, one educator per 30 with at least a 1-year relevant qualification; all educators under 18 with at least a 1-year qualification; with short exemptions for new adult educators. Relevant qualifications are the ACECQA Queensland list for children over preschool age.
The Queensland Department of Education is the regulatory authority under the National Law for NQF services, and also administers the Education and Care Services Act 2013 for services outside the NQF. Blue cards are issued by Blue Card Services, and child safe standards and reportable conduct are overseen by the Queensland Family and Child Commission under the Child Safe Organisations Act 2024.
WIDEN Law answers National Quality Framework questions with inline citations to the National Law, the Regulations and the NQS, so you can check the source provision yourself.
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.