Cleaners and Child Safety in Victorian Childcare: Checks, Keys and Who Is in the Building

A cleaner at a childcare centre holds a key, an alarm code and hours alone in rooms where children spend the day. Most centres take the checks for that person as seriously as they take those for educators. Victoria's rules have changed a good deal since 2025, so this post sets out where things stand. It is general information, not legal advice.

Does a cleaner legally need a Working with Children Check?

Under the Worker Screening Act 2020 (Vic), a Working with Children Check is required for child-related work. Broadly, that is work involving contact with children that is a usual part of the work and more than incidental to it.

A cleaner who works only after the children have gone home may not strictly fall within that definition. A cleaner who works while children are present, during a midday clean, a nap-time restock or an early-morning shift that overlaps drop-off, is in a greyer position.

Our view is that the legal minimum is the wrong question. Almost every centre we speak to requires a current WWCC for anyone with a key, and parents assume it. If you expect a check, say so in the contract, not just at the walkthrough. Then ask for each cleaner's card number and check it online yourself.

What changed in 2026

Several parts of Victoria's child safety system moved in quick succession:

A new regulator for the sector. The Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority took over regulation of early childhood services from the department's Quality Assessment and Regulation Division.
WWCC under the Social Services Regulator. Working with Children Checks, the Child Safe Standards and the Reportable Conduct Scheme now sit with one regulator, which has stronger powers to suspend or revoke a check quickly.
Organisations linked to their workers. A new online service, WWC Connect, records which organisations engage which check holders, so the regulator can tell an organisation when a worker's status changes. The government's material points to October 2026 for the main operational changes. Check the WWC Check website for what applies to your service and when.
New applicants do child safety training. People applying for or renewing a check must now complete online child safety training first.

The practical consequence for a centre: a check that was valid on the day a cleaner started is not something you can file and forget. Status can change, and you want a provider that keeps track of it.

The Child Safe Standards reach contractors too

Victoria's eleven Child Safe Standards apply to early childhood services. They ask the organisation to make sure that people working with children are suitable and supported. That is not limited to staff on your payroll. Contractors who are regularly on the premises are part of your child safety environment, and your child safe policy should say how you manage them.

In practice, for a cleaning contract that means:

You know the names of everyone who will clean your centre, including relief cleaners.
Each has a current check you have seen and verified.
They have read your child safety code of conduct, or at least the parts that apply to them.
The provider will tell you promptly when someone new is going to attend.

The last point is where subcontracted cleaning causes trouble. If your provider passes the site to another company, the relief cleaner on a Tuesday night may be someone neither of you has vetted. We discuss that in why childcare centres should avoid cleaning companies that subcontract.

If cleaning happens while children are present

Some centres need a daytime clean: toilets at lunchtime, a spill in a room, a restock during the afternoon. Treat that person as you would any adult visitor in a room with children:

Brief them on where they can and can't go, and never leave them alone with children.
Apply your personal device rules. National changes now restrict personal phones and similar devices for people working directly with children in centre-based services. A cleaner should not be taking photos in rooms while children are there.
Keep chemicals on the trolley, out of reach and never decanted into unlabelled bottles.

Keys, codes and the alarm log

The check tells you who someone is. The access log tells you what happened. Ask your provider:

Who holds keys and codes? Codes should be individual where your alarm allows it, so the log shows who entered.
What happens when a cleaner leaves? You want a same-day notice, and you should change the code.
How is attendance recorded? Every clean we do is signed in and out on our app, inside a geofence around the building, with a photo. If the alarm log and our record ever disagree, you have something concrete to ask about.

What you should be able to see

You should not have to ring your cleaner for a list of names and check numbers. In our client portal, a centre can see the Working with Children Check number, issuing state and expiry for each cleaner we list at its site, with a link to check it online. The full certificate is shared only when the cleaner has agreed. More on that in why your childcare cleaner should give you a client portal.

If you are reviewing your cleaning contract against your child safe policy, our medical and childcare cleaning page explains how we set up a centre, or ask for a walkthrough.