The staffing policy required by regulation 168(2)(i) must cover three things: a code of conduct for staff members, how the service determines the responsible person present at any time (section 162, regulation 150), and the participation of volunteers and students on practicum placements. The code of conduct has a legal floor in the National Law: supervision (s 165), no inappropriate discipline (s 166), no conduct a reasonable person would consider inappropriate, which expressly includes filming a child (s 166A), protection from harm (s 167), no alcohol or impairment (r 83), the personal device restrictions in Part 6A, and the child protection and child safety training in sections 162A and 162B.
This page sets out what each of the three parts of the staffing policy must contain, the offences the code of conduct rests on, the records that go with volunteers and students, and what officers look for under Element 4.2.2.
Regulation 168 does not publish model policies. It names the matter the policy must cover and the operational regulations the procedures must comply with. This page reproduces those regulations from the reprint current as at 12 August 2026 and turns them into a contents checklist. Write the policy for your service, in your words, against this list. The regulation 168 hub covers the full set and regulations 169 to 172 on following, keeping available and changing policies.
168(2)(i) staffing, including—(i) a code of conduct for staff members; and (ii) determining the responsible person present at the service; and (iii) the participation of volunteers and students on practicum placements.
| Provision | What it requires | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| s 165 Law | The provider and nominated supervisor must ensure all children are adequately supervised at all times they are in the service’s care; a family day care educator must adequately supervise. | $34,200 individual, $172,200 otherwise; $34,200 for a nominated supervisor or FDC educator |
| s 166 Law | No child may be subjected to corporal punishment or any discipline that is unreasonable in the circumstances. Applies to the provider, nominated supervisor, staff members, volunteers and FDC educators. | $34,200 / $172,200; $34,200 individuals |
| s 166A Law | No child may be subjected to conduct a reasonable person would consider inappropriate in an education and care service. Circumstances include accepted practice, likelihood of harm (emotional, psychological or physical), the child’s age, and whether the conduct is sexual, aggressive or violent. Consent is immaterial. Filming, recording or capturing an image of a child is subjecting the child to conduct (s 166A(9)). Conduct can be a single act, repeated acts, a pattern, or an omission. | $34,200 individual, $172,000 otherwise; $34,200 for individuals |
| s 167 Law | Every reasonable precaution must be taken to protect children from harm and from any hazard likely to cause injury. | $34,200 / $172,200 |
| r 83 | A nominated supervisor, staff member or volunteer must not be affected by alcohol or drugs (including prescription medication) so as to impair capacity to supervise or provide education and care; a nominated supervisor or FDC educator must not consume alcohol while educating and caring for children. | $6,600 |
| r 84 | Nominated supervisors, staff members and volunteers must be advised of the existence and application of the current child protection law and any obligations they have under it. | $3,300 |
| s 162A, r 128B | Child protection training before the earlier of 14 days after engagement or starting to work directly with children: nominated supervisors, persons in day-to-day charge, staff members, volunteers. | $6,600 / $34,200 |
| s 162B, r 128D–128E | Foundation child safety training within the same period and every 2 years (all of the above plus persons with management and control); advanced training within 3 months and every 2 years for management, nominated supervisors, day-to-day charge and staff working directly with children. | $6,600 / $34,200 |
| ss 175D, 175F, 175H, 175I Law | Images of children captured only on a service-supplied device; no personal device in possession while working directly with children unless an exception or a written s 175J authorisation applies. | $6,600 individual; $34,200 provider |
| r 176B | A nominated supervisor, staff member or volunteer must tell the provider within 24 hours of a change in their working with children check or teacher registration status. | $6,600 |
| r 181 | Confidentiality of information in records. | $6,600 |
A code of conduct is the service’s own statement of expected behaviour, but each clause should be traceable to one of the provisions above or to the NQS. The structure that works:
Section 162 requires that the approved provider (or a person with management or control), a nominated supervisor, or a person in day-to-day charge is present at all times the service is operating. Penalty $17,100 for an individual, $86,100 otherwise. Regulation 150 requires a record of the responsible person at each time, and regulation 173(2)(c) requires the name and position of the responsible person in charge to be displayed. The policy must say who may be placed in day-to-day charge (section 162 requires written consent from the person and the minimum requirements in regulation 117A to 117C apply), how the roster shows who is responsible across opening, closing and lunch cover, how the display is updated, and what happens when the responsible person is called away. The responsible person guide covers the role in full.
Volunteers and students on placement are not educators for regulation 123 unless they meet the qualification rules and are working directly with children, and most policies state that they are never counted in the ratio. What the Regulations do require: a record of each volunteer and student with name, address, date of birth and working with children check details (regulation 149, kept in the staff record), the regulation 84 child protection advice, child protection and child safety training within the same deadlines as staff (sections 162A and 162B both list volunteers), supervision by a staff member, and the same conduct standards (sections 166 and 166A bind volunteers directly). The policy should set out induction, what tasks a volunteer or student may do and may not do (toileting and nappy changing are usually excluded), that they are never left alone with a child, and who at the service signs placement documentation.
The code of conduct is assessed under Element 4.2.2 (professional standards guide practice, interactions and relationships) and Element 7.1.3 (roles and responsibilities). Officers ask staff to describe the code in their own words, look for the signed acknowledgement in each staff file, check the responsible person record against the roster and the display, and check volunteer and student records against regulation 149. Since 2026 they also check the training records in regulations 146(ca) and 179AA.
Yes. Regulation 168(2)(i)(i) requires the staffing policy to include a code of conduct for staff members. The content is for the service, but it rests on offences in the National Law: inadequate supervision (s 165), inappropriate discipline (s 166), inappropriate conduct including filming a child (s 166A), failure to protect from harm (s 167), and regulation 83 on alcohol and drugs.
Only if they are educators for the purposes of regulation 123: working directly with children (regulation 122) and meeting the qualification rules in regulation 126 for the service type. Most services’ policies exclude them from the ratio entirely. They must be recorded under regulation 149 and complete child protection and child safety training under sections 162A and 162B, which list volunteers expressly.
Under section 162 one of the approved provider (or a person with management or control), a nominated supervisor, or a person in day-to-day charge must be present at all times. The service records who it is at each time (regulation 150) and displays the name and position (regulation 173(2)(c)). Penalty for no responsible person present: $17,100 for an individual, $86,100 otherwise.
It should. Part 6A of the National Law prohibits a nominated supervisor, staff member or volunteer from having a personal device in their possession or under their control while working directly with children (sections 175H and 175I, penalty $6,600 for the individual, $34,200 for a provider), subject to listed exceptions and written authorisations under section 175J. The digital technologies policy under regulation 168(2)(ha) covers the detail.
Conduct a reasonable person would consider inappropriate in an education and care service, judged on the circumstances: accepted practice, likelihood of emotional, psychological or physical harm, the child’s age and stage, and whether the conduct is sexual, aggressive or violent. A child’s apparent consent and the person being related to the child are immaterial. Filming or photographing a child is conduct for this section.
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.