Children’s Act 2014 requirements for schools and kura

Schools, kura and their contracted providers must safety check all their children's workers and must have a child protection policy. These are requirements of the Children’s Act (CA).

All education providers must meet the requirements set out in the Children’s Act 2014.

Renaming of the Act

As of December 2018, the Vulnerable Children Act 2014 was renamed the Children’s Act 2014. All guidance and resources on this page should be read as Children’s Act still and provides current information. 

Vulnerable Children's Act Guide

The Vulnerable Children's Act Guide ('the Guide') helps you navigate the requirements of the Act. It brings together information and resources already published and complements the advice and guidelines produced by the Children’s Action Plan.

The Vulnerable Children's Act Guide (full document) [PDF, 5.2 MB]

• Quick download: Resources within the Children's Act Guide
• Child protection policies
• Safety checking
• Safety checking people in your service or school
• Safety checking steps
• Volunteers don't need to be safety checked
• Further information

Quick guide to resources within the CA Guide

CA Scope of the Standard Safety Checking Environment (page 16)(external link)

Relieving teachers (page 20)(external link)

Trainees on practicum (page 23)(external link)

What checks do I need to undertake for adults coming onto my school? (page 27)(external link)

Safety checking for new and existing employees (page 35)(external link)

Child protection policies

From 1 July 2016, all schools and kura need to have a child protection policy in place.

Child protection policies encourage early identification and referral of suspected child abuse or neglect. They also help build a strong culture of child protection in your school or kura.

Key requirements of a child protection policy

• It needs to be written down and in use.
• Say how suspected neglect and abuse will be identified and reported.
• Be reviewed every three years.
• Available on school websites or on request.

Child Protection Policies – CA Guide(external link)

Safety checking

All children’s workers need to be safety checked every three years. This includes both staff employed and staff engaged in your school or kura, whose work involves regular or overnight contact with children. They're classified as either core workers or non-core workers.

Core workers

Core workers are either in sole charge or have primary responsibility or authority over the child or children in their care. Schools and kura are now unable to employ a core worker who has a specified criminal conviction unless they hold a Core Worker Exemption (CWE).

Workforce restriction and the core worker exemption – page 36, CA Guide(external link)

Visit the Oranga Tamariki website for more information about the:

• Workforce Restriction, and
• Core Worker Exemption.

Children's Act requirements – Oranga Tamariki(external link)

Non-core workers

Non-core workers have regular but limited child contact and are never alone with children. 

Volunteers

Volunteers don't need to be safety checked under the Children Act 2014 or the Education and Training Act 2020.

A school or kura Māori can choose whether to safety check (including whether to vet) volunteers that support their school (this may be guided by their own child protection policies and any health and safety policy or procedures).

If a school or kura Māori chooses to police vet a volunteer, the vet request should be submitted to Police as a non-Children Act 2014 vet (that is, one that isn’t required by the Children Act 2014 legislation).

Safety checking people in your service or school

What checks you need to do on people in your service or school [PDF, 449 KB]

Safety checking steps

Last reviewed: 31 January 2023 Has this been useful? Give us your feedback