Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA)
VECRA is the independent early childhood education and care regulator for Victorian early childhood providers and services. The role of VECRA is to ensure that services across Victoria provide are safe and provide quality education and care, and to ensure that service providers comply with requirements under the Child Safe Standards, the National Quality Framework (NQF) and where relevant the Children’s Services Act 1996 (CS Act) and Regulations.
VECRA is responsible for regulating early childhood education and care services in Victoria. This includes kindergartens, long day care, family day care, outside school hours care and vacation care under the NQF, as well as occasional care and limited hours children’s services under the CS Act.
VECRA replaces the regulatory functions previously delivered by the Quality Assessment and Regulation Division (QARD) within the Department of Education.
Find out more at Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA) | vecra.vic.gov.au
Key responsibilities
- Ensure early childhood services provide safe, high-quality education and care
- Conduct regular monitoring and inspections of services
- Provide education and guidance to service providers to improve safety and quality
- Take prompt regulatory action when children’s safety is at risk
- Ensure services support children’s learning, development and wellbeing
- Shares information with other regulators and law enforcement agencies to help prevent harm
- Regulates the Child Safe Standards in early childhood education and care services in Victoria
Types of regulatory action
Regulatory action depends on the nature of the concern and level of risk to children. Actions may include:
- Investigations
- Compliance visits
- Issuing compliance notices
- Enforceable undertakings
- Prosecution
- Suspension or cancellation of provider or service approval
- Emergency action notices
- Prohibition notices and other enforcement actions
For more information refer to How we monitor, investigate and enforce compliance.
Complaints about early childhood services
Anyone can make a complaint about an early childhood service to VECRA if you have concerns about:
- the health, safety or wellbeing of children
- the actions or practices of staff at an early childhood service, including failure to act
- physical or sexual abuse of a child/ren at an early childhood service
- an unlicensed service operating in the community
Read about how to Make a complaint about an early childhood service, and access the online form.
Contact us
You can contact us:
- via the VECRA enquiries line (business hours) on 1300 307 415, or
- email at vecra@education.vic.gov.au, or
- by calling your local VECRA office
Refer to the Contact us webpage for more information about using an interpreter or using the National relay service for people who are deaf or have a hearing or speech impairment.
