Licensing criteria for home-based ECE services

Section 10 of the Education and Training Act 2020(external link) defines home-based ECE services as the provision of education or care, for gain or reward, to children who are under the age of 5 years, or who are aged 5 years but not enrolled at school, in:

  • the children’s own home; or
  • the home of the person providing the education or care; or
  • any other home nominated by a parent of the children.

These services are licensed in accordance with the Education and Training Act 2020 under the Education (Early Childhood Services) Regulations 2008(external link), which prescribe minimum standards that each licensed service must meet. Licensing criteria are used to assess how the services meet the minimum standards required by the regulations.

For each criterion there is guidance to help services meet the required standards.

The publication of the criteria on its own can be downloaded as a PDF [PDF, 1.3 MB] and printed.

The licensing criteria were last updated in September 2022.

PF7 Storage

  • Criteria
    • Criteria

      Premises and Facilities criterion 7

      There are spaces for the safe storage of children's play equipment, personal belongings, cleaning materials, and confidential administrative records.

      Rationale/Intent:

      To ensure that equipment is safely stored, and that confidentiality can be assured in a home setting.

  • Guidance
    • Guidance

      Any examples in the guidance are provided as a starting point to show how services can meet (or exceed) the requirement. Services may choose to use other approaches better suited to their needs as long as they comply with the criteria.

      Homes are not always designed with large storage areas. Consider how to best use existing storage areas, ie, cabinets or cupboards, to provide the storage needed.

      When children are attending an educator’s home, it is important for them to have independent access to their belongings so they have the ability to take some responsibility for their things, including choosing what to wear throughout the day.

      Storage space both indoors and outside will be needed for resources, such as paper, paint, spare puzzles, books, so that these are easily accessible to support children’s learning. Consider how existing storage space might be adapted, such as the lower shelves of existing linen and spare cupboards, to accommodate resources. If additional storage space is needed, there is a range of inexpensive options, such as baskets or stackable boxes, available.

      If high shelving is being used, it will be necessary to ensure that any stored equipment can’t fall in an earthquake.

      Any confidential administrative records kept in the home setting must be stored using a lockable cupboard, file box, file cabinet, drawer or room to ensure visitors to the home cannot access these.

      Cleaning materials need to be safely stored out of children’s reach. A lockable cupboard (for example, with security latches) or high shelving in the kitchen or laundry area may be most suitable for this purpose.