In late 2025, the Department of Education undertook a comprehensive review of contractor employee screening processes. This review identified 12 critical actions to strengthen how contractors are vetted and monitored that will ensure greater consistency across staff working on school sites and enhance the safety measures in place to protect our staff and students.

Department staff can access additional resources, including templates, as they become available on the WWCC clearance intranet page.

What is changing for contractors in schools

Contractors working in NSW public schools will be required to have a valid paid NSW Working with Children Check before they can enter a school site from 1 September 2026.

The change is in 2 stages so that contractors have time to prepare:

• By 1 July 2026
  • NEW Facilities Maintenance Contractors (FMC) and Local Contractors (LC) engaged by School Infrastructure who start a new contract will need a valid paid NSW WWCC before entering school sites.
  • Existing FMC and LCs engaged by School Infrastructure will need to have applied for a valid paid NSW WWCC.
• By 31 August 2026:
  • Existing FMC and LCs engaged by School Infrastructure will need a valid paid NSW WWCC before entering school sites.
  • Contractors engaged directly by other Education Support units and by schools will need a valid paid NSW WWCC before entering school sites.

To enable a smooth transition and avoid delays in delivering services, all contractors are encouraged to apply for a paid NSW WWCC through ocg.nsw.gov.au as soon as possible.

Please note:

1. The NSW WWCC application is online and requires the applicant to attend a Service NSW Centre to present proof of identity documents to complete and submit the application. Rural, regional or remote applicants can visit the Service.NSW website for the Mobile Service Centre schedule and locations.
2. The cost for a paid NSW WWCC will need to be covered by the applicant or their employer.
3. Visit the Office of the Children’s Guardian website for more information on the NSW WWCC application process.

From 1 September 2026, any contractor who does not have a valid paid NSW WWCC will not be allowed to enter any NSW public school sites.

Inform the department of your NSW WWCC

All contractors are required to inform the department of their paid NSW WWCC by completing a digital declaration. This enables the department to verify your WWCC details against the Office of the Children's Guardian (OCG) records.

Once your declaration is submitted, verification is usually completed within a few minutes, and the status will be reflected in the department's screening applications.

If your verification is delayed

A delay in verification is often caused by a simple data entry error where the details entered in the digital declaration do not exactly match the records held by the OCG.

Before submitting your declaration, ensure the following information is entered exactly as it appears on your WWCC:

• Full name (including any middle names or hyphens)
• Date of birth
• WWCC number.

Please refer to the quick reference guide for completing the digital declaration form for contractors (PDF 321 KB) for step-by-step guidance.

If your details are correct and verification is still pending after a reasonable period, contact the Probity Unit for support on 1300 32 32 32.

Incidental activities that do not require a NSW WWCC

Incidental activities with supervised student interactions and locations such as the front office or external access areas, do not require the individual to have a valid paid NSW WWCC. These include:

• utility meter readers
• drivers conducting deliveries, cash pick ups, parcel pick-ups, skip bin collections
• bus drivers during a school-related activity when students are accompanied by school staff
• council inspectors of shared external facilities such as sports fields
• apprentices under 18 years of age
• animal catchers.

If the individual working on an incidental activity is required to enter areas within the school where students are present, they must be supervised at all times or students must be supervised to prevent interaction. This also applies to instances where the work requires urgent remediation that will affect school operations or the health and safety of students and staff.

Cleaners, including those engaged to refill hygiene supplies or to empty sanitary bins in toilets and other common areas are required to have a valid NSW WWCC.

Requirements for School Infrastructure engaged contractors

From 31 January 2026, all existing Facilities Maintenance Contractors (FMCs), Local Contractors (LCs), general contractors and their employees must complete a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC) before accessing any NSW Department of Education school site.

• Verification of completed NCCHCs must be submitted before adding individuals to the FMWeb 2.0 system and site attendance.
• LCs or employees charged or convicted of serious offences must report this to their employer immediately.
• Employment and access to department school sites for those who have a serious offence will be placed on hold until a determination is made based on further assessments by the department.
• The cost of NCCHCs is the responsibility of FMCs, LCs and general contractors or their employers.

From 1 July 2026, valid Working with Children Checks (WWCC) are mandatory for all new FMCs, LCs, general contractors and their employees, for paid employment.

From 31 August 2026, existing FMCs and local contractors engaged by School Infrastructure will need a valid paid WWCC before entering school sites.

Refer to the above section under ‘What is changing for contractors in schools’ for further details.

Contractors working on new school sites with no students

Working with Children Checks are not required for contractors working in the following site settings:

• Brand new build under management of the building contractor.
• The work site is within an existing and operating school and has been handed over to the building contractor or Asset Management to manage, with adequate exclusions in place to prevent direct interaction with students such as:
  • fencing
  • dedicated separate entry and exit point that does not go through the school site.

If entry and exit is required through an operating school site or after handover back to the school such as defect inspections and/or repairs, these contractors must have a valid paid NSW WWCC before they attend site from 1 September 2026.

Questions and answers

Additional questions and answers will be added as new information becomes available. Please refer to the department representative engaging your services if you have any unanswered questions.