Educator qualifications, ratios and who cares for your child
What the legal ratios are, what each qualification actually means, and the checks behind every educator in the room.
🧩 Learning & development · 5 min read
Key facts
- National ratios for centre-based care: 1 educator to 4 children under 24 months, 1 to 5 for 24-36 months, and 1 to 11 for children over 36 months in Victoria.
- At least 50% of educators counted towards ratio must hold or be working towards an approved Diploma-level qualification; the rest need at least a Certificate III.
- Services with 25 or more preschool-age children must have an Early Childhood Teacher, and funded kindergarten must be delivered by a qualified ECT.
- Every educator must hold a current Working with Children Check and approved first aid, anaphylaxis and asthma training.
What the ratios mean in practice
Ratios are minimums set by the Education and Care Services National Regulations, and they must be maintained at all times children are in care — including during sleep periods, transitions and staff breaks. A good service rosters above the minimum at busy times rather than sitting exactly on the line.
The qualifications, decoded
- Certificate III in Early Childhood Education and Care — the minimum qualification to work in a room
- Diploma of Early Childhood Education and Care — typically room leaders and educational leaders
- Bachelor-qualified Early Childhood Teacher (ECT) — plans and delivers the funded kindergarten program
- Educational Leader — a nominated role responsible for guiding curriculum and practice across the service
Questions worth asking about the team
- Who leads my child's room, and how long have they been here?
- Is the Early Childhood Teacher on the floor, and on which days?
- What is your educator turnover like in the past year?
- How do you cover leave — regular relief educators or agency staff?
- Who is the Educational Leader and how do they support the team?
How Meraki staffs its rooms
Each Meraki room is led by a Diploma-qualified educator or an Early Childhood Teacher, supported by Certificate III-qualified educators, with familiar relief educators used to keep faces consistent. All educators hold current Working with Children Checks, first aid, anaphylaxis and asthma training, and child safety training under the Victorian Child Safe Standards.
Frequently asked questions
What is the educator-to-child ratio in Victorian childcare?+
One educator to four children aged birth to 24 months, one to five for 24 to 36 months, and one to eleven for children over 36 months. These are legal minimums that must be met at all times children are being educated and cared for.
Does my child's kindergarten program have to be taught by a qualified teacher?+
Yes. Funded three and four-year-old kindergarten in Victoria must be delivered by a degree-qualified Early Childhood Teacher. At Meraki, the kindergarten program runs inside long day care and is led by an ECT.
What checks do educators need?+
A current Victorian Working with Children Check, plus approved first aid, CPR, anaphylaxis and asthma management training. Services must also meet the Child Safe Standards, including safe recruitment and ongoing supervision.
Keep reading
Play-based learning and the EYLF: what your child is actually doing all day
Why 'they just played today' is the sign of a strong program — and how the EYLF outcomes show up in sand, blocks and dress-ups.
Child Safe Standards: what every parent should know
What Victoria's Child Safe Standards require, what good practice looks like, and how to raise a concern.
Want to talk it through in person?
Book a tour of our Bayswater or Mooroolbark centre and ask us anything.