| Date | 14 August 2026 |
| Time | 12.00pm-3.00pm AEST (Syd/Melb/Bris time) |
| Venue | Live Online with recording (recording access expires 14 September 2026) |
| Pricing | $440 Price includes gst. |
| Sector | Non-State Schools |
| CPD | Addresses 7.2 of the Australian Professional Standards for Teachers |
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Program
12.00 LawSense Welcome
12.05 Chairperson’s Remarks
Lisa Christopher, Director of ELC and Early Learning, Haileybury (Victoria)
Anne-Maree Coe, Director Early Years & OSHC Service, Queensland Lutheran Early Childhood Services (Queensland)
12.10 Reforms Update: Navigating Interests of the Child as Paramount, Liability of the Nominated Supervisor and Staff and Regulator Enforcement
Implementation of Key Reforms and Regulator Scrutiny
- Outlining the implementation of key reforms
- Understanding how the reforms interact with existing quality areas
- Exploring areas of increased scrutiny and activity by regulators
Interests of the Child as Paramount Consideration
- Understanding the requirement that the safety, rights and best interests of children are the paramount consideration
- Examining how does this applies in practice, including with respect to staff without direct management of the early learning centre or pre-school
- Exploring optimum policies to ensure application of this paramount consideration, including learnings from what policies schools have put in place
Navigating Liability of the Nominated Supervisor
- Examining the changes regarding nominated supervisors, including potential personal liability
- Understanding the potential legal exposure of others involved in care, including staff
- Understanding when personal liability would apply and implementing mitigation strategies
Elena Totino, Founder, Director and Principal Lawyer, Safety Quality & Care Legal Services
1.20 Break
1.30 Best Practice Recruitment and Probation: Including Examining Questions to Ask, Reference Checks, Gathering and Sharing Information, Privacy, Terminations and Discrimination
- Examining the reforms and impacts on recruitment
- Understanding how privacy and discrimination laws apply
- Implementing best practice in recruitment including:
- optimising questions and obtaining of information
- best practice due diligence, including reference checking and employment history verification. Should you request references for every relevant role the candidate has held?
- Understanding your obligations to proactively provide information to other services a former staff member may go to, despite not receiving a reference request
- Exploring best practice recruitment policies for ELCs in response to reforms
Probation
- Exploring key rights and obligations during probationary periods
- Dismissing staff during the probation period:
- understanding your rights and potential claims from the employee
- dismissing the successful candidate where they omitted relevant information during recruitment. What if they did not disclose an injury or illness?
- examining best practice in communications with the employee you are dismissing to protect your legal position
David Scanlan, Employment Law Practice Lead – WA, Mapien Law; Former, Director, People and culture, St Hilda’s Anglican School for Girls, Perth
2.30 Break
2.40 Supervision, Ratios, Phones/Smart Watches, Photos, Storage and CCTV: Implementing Compliant Policies, Managing Supervision Challenges and Learnings from What Services Have Implemented
Applicable Laws and Recent Reforms
- Outlining key laws and reforms applying in centres:
- staff ratios and removal of “under one roof” approach
- mobile phones
- the taking and storing of images
- use of CCTV
- supervision of staff, children and parents
Ratios and Supervision
- Examining compliant ratios following the reforms, including required coverage for staff breaks
Induction and Supervision of Other School Staff, Contractors and Volunteers
- Managing contractors and volunteers, including:
- ensuring training requirements
- meeting supervision requirements
- Dealing with broader school staff, such as primary school staff or business managers engaging with the ELC. Should they undertake the training? What policies and “work arounds” can be implemented
Smart Watches
- Understanding the application of the reforms to devices such as smart watches
Dealing With Parents, Managing Consent and Policies Regarding Phones/Smart Watches and Images
- Exploring challenges and best practice in dealing with parents and obtaining and managing informed consent regarding images and data
- Learnings from policies schools have implemented
Navigating Rights and Obligations with CCTV and Learnings from What Centres Have Implemented
- Outlining recent reforms regarding CCTV and key applicable laws
- Understanding the limits of how you can use CCTV, including privacy, storage and other legal issues
- Exploring the implications for your duty of care, including avoiding risks of over-reliance
- Providing CCTV recordings to:
- other staff members
- parents
- police or other agencies
- Examining best practice in developing and communicating CCTV policies
- Implementing effective consent forms/clauses for CCTV
- Learning from what ELC’s and pre-schools have implemented to date regarding CCTV
Storage and Retention of Images/Data
- Examining best practice in managing complaint storage, sharing and retention of images and data regarding children
Managing Particular Supervision Challenges
- Managing particular challenges:
- social events, celebrations – what is your obligation to supervise with parents present? Managing use of devices/photos/video by parents
- parents attending school outside designated times
- children on the Centre/School grounds before and after centre hours
- events involving “incursions” by other centres, schools or organisations – what are your obligations regarding staff of the visiting organisation, including supervision?
Ben Tallboys, Principal, Russell Kennedy; Legal Counsel, Association of Heads of Independent Schools of Australia (AHISA)
3.50 Closing Remarks
3.55 Event Close
Presenters / panelists include:
Elena Totino has been a practising lawyer for over 24 years. During this time, Elena has advised and supported children and young people, other vulnerable people, service providers, government departments, agencies and regulators. Elena's work has included as Principal Lawyer and Manager of the Department of Education VIC and as Senior Legal Advisor and Acting General Manager, Reportable Conduct at Melbourne Archdiocese Catholic Schools.
David Scanlan is currently a Senior Employment Lawyer at Mapien Law heading up their WA office, having commenced in September 2025. Prior, David was the Director of People & Culture at St Hilda’s from 2020. In this role he drove the people development, cultural development, talent acquisition and compliance functions of the School. Prior to joining St Hilda’s, David worked in private practice as lawyer. He spent much of his career at international law firm Ashurst in their Perth Employment and Industrial Relations team, starting there as a graduate and leaving as a Senior Associate.
Ben Tallboys provides sector-specific, practical legal solutions to schools across Australia. Ben is a passionate and effective advocate for principals dealing with complex matters relating to parents, staff and students, as well as their own employment.