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Deciding who is eligible to work with children

What is the blue card check?

The blue card system is a government initiative developed to contribute to increasing the safety of children and young people in Queensland. It determines who is eligible to work in child-related employment or carry on a child-related business.

This is determined through the blue card check conducted by the Commission. The blue card check, also known as the ‘Working with Children Check', assesses:

• any national charge or conviction for an offence (even if no conviction was recorded)
• child protection prohibition orders (whether a person is a respondent or subject to an application)
• disqualification orders
• if a person is subject to reporting obligations under the Child Protection (Offender Reporting) Act 2004 or Dangerous Prisoners (Sexual Offenders) Act 2003
• disciplinary information held by certain professional organisations (including teachers, child care licensees, foster carers and certain health practitioners), and
• information that the Police Commissioner provides in relation to police investigations into allegations of serious child-related sexual offences, even if no charges were laid.

Deciding who is eligible to work with children

When making a decision about an application, the Commission’s key priority is maintaining the safety and wellbeing of children and young people in Queensland. The Commission’s Act outlines strict guidelines that must be followed before issuing a blue card or a positive exemption notice.

If an applicant has no known police or disciplinary information, a positive notice and card will be issued.

If there is police or disciplinary information that does not automatically disqualify someone from working in regulated employment, the Commission will consider:

• whether there are charges or convictions
• whether the offence committed or alleged to have been committed is a serious offence or a disqualifying offence as defined by the Act
• when the offence was committed or was alleged to have been committed
• the nature of the offence and its relevance to working with children and young people
• in the case of a conviction – the penalty imposed by the court and any reasons given if the court made no imprisonment order or no order disqualifying the person from holding or applying for a blue card, and
• any other relevant information relating to the offence or alleged offence.

Making submissions

If a person’s police information suggests that they are unable to protect a child from harm and promote the child's wellbeing, the Commissioner will ask them to provide a submission on any police or disciplinary information held about them, explaining why they should not be refused a blue card.

Click here (PDF, 160KB) for further information about making a submission to the Commission.

The Commissioner assesses the submission, any references or other relevant material provided, the nature of the offence/s and the circumstances surrounding the case before making a final decision.

 

Last updated: 28 March, 2013

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