No regulation sets a temperature at which children must come inside, but several duties apply on a hot, smoky or stormy day. Indoor spaces must be well ventilated and kept at a temperature that ensures children’s safety and wellbeing (regulation 110). Children must have safe drinking water at all times (r 78). Outdoor spaces must have adequate shade (r 114). The emergency procedures must rest on a risk assessment of the emergencies relevant to the service, reviewed at least every 12 months (r 97). If the weather forces the service to close or take fewer children, notify the regulator within 24 hours (r 175(2)(b), r 176).
The regulations that apply to extreme heat, bushfire smoke, storms and floods in childcare, and the procedures and notifications that follow from them.
| Regulation | Duty | On a hot, smoky or stormy day |
|---|---|---|
| r 110 | Indoor spaces well ventilated, with adequate natural light, kept at a temperature that ensures children’s safety and wellbeing (maximum penalty $6,600) | Working cooling, a plan for a power failure, and a way to keep air clean when the outdoor air is poor |
| r 78 | Safe drinking water available at all times, and food and drink offered regularly through the day | Water within reach indoors and outdoors, with educators prompting younger children to drink |
| r 114 | Adequate shade in outdoor spaces at centre-based services | Outdoor play limited to shaded areas or moved to cooler times. See sun protection policy |
| r 97 | Emergency procedures based on a risk assessment of the emergencies relevant to the service. A centre-based service reviews it at least every 12 months, and as soon as practicable after anything that may affect safe evacuation, then updates the procedures | Bushfire, flood, storm, heatwave and smoke considered where they apply to the location |
| r 168 | Policies on health and safety, sun protection, emergency and evacuation, and excursions | The weather triggers written into those policies, not decided on the day |
Services in bushfire- or flood-prone areas should name those emergencies in the regulation 97 risk assessment. The procedures should cover the trigger for leaving early, the relocation site, transport, and how families will be contacted. Under regulation 97(3), centre-based services rehearse the procedures every 3 months, and every rehearsal must be documented. See emergency and evacuation procedures.
| Event | Notification |
|---|---|
| The service closes, or reduces the number of children, because of the weather or its effects (for example flood, fire damage or loss of power) | Regulator within 24 hours (r 175(2)(b), r 176(2)(b)). See closing or suspending a service |
| A child becomes seriously ill (for example heat-related illness) and attends, or ought reasonably to have attended, hospital; or emergency services attend | A serious incident: regulator within 24 hours (r 12, r 176(2)(a)). See serious incident notification |
| Any illness or injury of a child at the service | Incident record and the parent told within 24 hours (r 87, r 86) |
No figure is set. Regulation 110 requires indoor spaces to be well ventilated and kept at a temperature that ensures children's safety and wellbeing, so the service must judge and document what that means for its rooms and children.
Yes, if it is safe. Outdoor spaces must have adequate shade (regulation 114), children must have drinking water at all times (regulation 78), and the sun protection policy applies. Many services move outdoor play to cooler times on very hot days.
Yes. Any incident requiring the service to close or reduce the number of children for a period is notified within 24 hours under regulations 175(2)(b) and 176(2)(b).
Regulation 97 requires a risk assessment to identify the emergencies relevant to the service, reviewed at least every 12 months. Services in bushfire-prone or smoke-affected areas should include them in that assessment and in their procedures.
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.
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