I had no idea there were so many bureaucratic hoops to jump through when you volunteer to work with children.
Now that we are back, I thought it was about time for me to get involved at the local primary school in a voluntary way. I still have my teaching accreditation for the state of Victoria but it will finish in September as I have decided not to renew it. I thought if I was volunteering it would just be a matter of the school checking my current teaching accreditation to verify that it would be ok for me to work with children: to listen to children reading or to help out with craft etc. I was a little misguided!
In order to work with children in Victoria you must have what is called “A Working With Children Check” . If everything is ok then you are given a registration card.
You need to go to a Post Office to collect a form, you can’t download one on the web at the Department of Justice website. Once you have the document, it is similar to filling out a passport application, you need to provide three documents to prove your identity. You also need to supply a passport sized photograph.
Now I have read all the information on the check I realise the importance of this Check as it helps to protect children from sexual or physical harm by checking a person’s criminal history. Do you have something similar where you are?
Gippsland Granny 
We do not have a card but you need to have references and to pass a check with the police to show you are not a criminal.
I guess it is a good thing that there is a check of some sort.
If you want to work with children in the UK there are a number of checks that can be made, but by law you must undergo a CRB (Criminal Records Bureau) check, which looks for criminal convictions. You’re then given what they call a ‘disclosure’ which allows an employer to decide whether or not to employ you. It’s an important way of finding out the suitability of someone but it can be very frustrating because it can take a while to do.
I had to have a police check before teaching in Victoria. It didn’t cost anything but if I wanted a full police check now it would cost $35. The working with children check doesn’t cost anything.
I was finger printed along with a background check for the city of cleveland. I guess its good for the children’s safety.