From 1 October 2026, private health facilities in New South Wales will be brought within the NSW Reportable Conduct Scheme and the Child Safe Scheme.
The change extends the oversight of the Office of the Children’s Guardian (OCG) to private hospitals and day procedure centres licensed by NSW Health, and introduces significant new legal obligations for boards, executives and safeguarding leads across the private health sector.
For facilities that have not previously operated under a child safety regulatory framework, the lead time is short. Preparation should begin now.
Why the change is happening
The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse recommended that all organisations engaging with children implement Child Safe Standards, and NSW has progressively extended its schemes across sectors since the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 commenced. Public health entities have long been relevant entities under the Reportable Conduct Scheme, but comparable private healthcare settings sat outside it.
The 2024 statutory review of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 recommended closing that gap, and the Children’s Guardian Amendment Act 2025, which received assent on 15 August 2025, gives effect to the recommendation. Its private health provisions commence on 1 October 2026, aligning obligations across public and private healthcare and ensuring that concerns about workers’ conduct towards children are subject to independent oversight, regardless of where care is delivered.
Who is affected
The changes apply to any health facility required to be licensed by NSW Health under the Private Health Facilities Act 2007 that provides services to children in any capacity. In practical terms, this captures private hospitals and day procedure centres across the licensed classes, including surgical, anaesthesia, gastrointestinal endoscopy, chemotherapy, maternity, mental health and rehabilitation services.
Two scoping points deserve particular attention:
- Frequency of contact is irrelevant. A facility that treats children only occasionally is still in scope. If children are provided services at any time, the schemes apply.
- A child is any person under 18. While clinical convention in some settings treats only patients aged 14 and under as children, the schemes apply the statutory definition. Matters involving 15 to 17-year-olds must be notified and managed in the same way.
What the Reportable Conduct Scheme will require
The Reportable Conduct Scheme oversees how organisations prevent, identify, report and respond to allegations of certain conduct by their employees, contractors and volunteers towards children. Reportable conduct includes sexual offences and sexual misconduct, physical assault, ill-treatment, neglect, and behaviour that causes significant emotional or psychological harm to a child.
From 1 October 2026, the head of each private health facility, the Head of Relevant Entity (HRE), will be responsible for ensuring the organisation:
- has systems in place to prevent reportable conduct and to enable employees to recognise and report it
- notifies the Children’s Guardian within seven business days of becoming aware of a reportable allegation or reportable conviction
- ensures allegations are properly investigated, with appropriate regard to procedural fairness for all parties
- reports findings and outcomes to the Children’s Guardian at the conclusion of the investigation.
The HRE may delegate day-to-day reportable conduct functions to a suitably qualified employee, but remains ultimately accountable for the organisation’s compliance. Identifying the HRE and any delegate and ensuring they understand their role is one of the first practical steps facilities should take.
What the Child Safe Scheme will require
Under the Child Safe Scheme, private health facilities will be required to implement the ten NSW Child Safe Standards. The Standards provide a whole-of-organisation framework covering:
- leadership, governance and culture;
- the participation and empowerment of children;
- family and community involvement;
- equity and diverse needs;
- the suitability and supervision of personnel;
- child-focused complaint handling;
- staff education and training;
- safe physical and online environments;
- continuous review and improvement; and
- documented policies and procedures.
The Children’s Guardian monitors implementation of the Standards and holds capability-building and enforcement functions under the Act. For most private health facilities, the Standards will require a deliberate translation of existing clinical governance, credentialing and incident management systems into a child safety framework. The building blocks are often present, but they are rarely organised or documented with children’s safety in mind.
What facilities should do before 1 October 2026
Facilities that begin now will be well placed for commencement. Sensible preparation includes:
- confirming whether the facility is in scope and mapping where and how children receive services
- identifying the HRE and any delegate, and defining governance reporting lines to the board or owners
- reviewing and updating child safety policies, codes of conduct, recruitment and screening practices, and complaint-handling procedures against the Child Safe Standards
- establishing processes for receiving concerns, assessing whether an allegation is reportable, and notifying the OCG within the statutory timeframe
- ensuring access to investigation capability that is trauma-informed, procedurally fair and consistent with the scheme’s requirements
- training staff, contractors and volunteers to recognise reportable conduct and understand their reporting pathways.
How Safeguarding Services can help
Safeguarding Services works with organisations across the health, disability, aged care, education, faith-based, and community sectors to meet their obligations under the Reportable Conduct Schemes and the Child Safe Standards nationally. For private health facilities preparing for 1 October 2026, we provide:
- readiness reviews and gap analyses against the Child Safe Standards and Reportable Conduct Scheme requirements
- policy and procedure development tailored to clinical environments
- training for boards, executives, HREs and frontline staff
- independent, trauma-informed investigation of reportable allegations
- ongoing advisory support for HREs and safeguarding leads, including OCG notification and liaison.
To discuss what these changes mean for your facility, contact our team on 1800 227 672 or through our website.
This article provides general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Organisations should seek their own legal advice about their specific obligations.
