Children’s Guardian (Transitional) Regulation 2020

The Regulation relies on a handful of recurring legal concepts, each expressed in short clauses. Those concepts determine how pre‑existing statutory instruments, decisions and eligibility rules behave after the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 commences.

Transitional operation: The Regulation is explicitly transitional (cl 3) and temporary. It preserves certain statuses from immediately before commencement and is not designed as a permanent rule set. The instrument itself will cease to operate at the end of 2 March 2022 (cl 3, Note).

Deeming and continuity: The principal device is deeming,the Regulation takes existing items granted under repealed provisions to be items under the corresponding sections of the new Act. Examples: employer’s authorities under repealed Schedule 2 of the CYP Act 1998 are taken to be authorities under s 95 of the Act (cl 6(1)(a)); employer’s exemptions under repealed s 224 are taken to be exemptions under s 102 of the Act (cl 6(2)(a)); and accredited designated agencies under repealed s 139 are taken to be designated agencies under the Act (cl 7(2)). Deeming preserves the "same conditions" or "conditions set out in the written notice" that applied under the repealed law (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)).

Pending‑application treatment: The Regulation treats applications made under the repealed scheme but not decided before commencement as if they were made under the Act and to be determined in accordance with the Act (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). This replaces a potential lacuna where an application might otherwise be orphaned between legislative regimes.

Preservation of exemptions under another Act until rules are made: An entire class or kind of exemptions under the Ombudsman Act 1974 that were authorised by repealed s 25CA remain in force until regulations are made under s 30 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 5(1)). The Office of the Children’s Guardian is the provider of a free list of those exemptions (cl 5(2)), which is an administrative transparency mechanism.

Head of entity treatment for residence‑based WWCC obligations: Where an adult is required to hold a working with children check clearance because they reside with an authorised carer for three weeks or more (per s 10 of the Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012), the Regulation treats the head of the relevant entity as the head of the authorised carer for purposes of Part 4 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 9(1)‑(2)). That is a specific, narrow deeming rule tying together two separate statutory regimes for administrative coherence.

Definitions and non‑operative notes: The Regulation defines key terms relevant to its operation,"commencement" and "the Act",and clarifies that explanatory notes included in the Regulation do not form part of it (cl 4(1)‑(2)). This confirms that only the operative clauses create legally binding effects.

Temporal modification and repeal: The instrument contains or references two short amendment history notes: a clause has been repealed (cl 8) and another clause (cl 9) was inserted by a later instrument (cl 9 note). The Regulation itself anticipates further regulation‑making under the Act by preserving transitional arrangements only until new subsidiary instruments are made (cl 3; cl 5(1); cl 9(4)).

Taken together, these concepts show that the Regulation is not a code of permanent substantive policy; it is a narrow, technical instrument using deeming and carry‑over devices to align prior administrative decisions and accredited statuses with the new legislative structure, pending detailed regulatory frameworks under the Act.

The Regulation affects a specific set of stakeholders who were operating under the repealed CYP Act 1998 and related laws immediately before the commencement date. The instrument names the categories directly.

Designated agencies and accredited providers: Clause 7 applies to a designated agency as defined under the repealed section 139 of the CYP Act 1998 that immediately before commencement both (a) arranged supported out‑of‑home care or statutory out‑of‑home care, and (b) was accredited under that Act (cl 7(1)(a)‑(b)). Those agencies are, on commencement, taken to be designated agencies under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 for the period approved and subject to the same conditions that applied under the repealed Act and regulations (cl 7(2)). Agencies with pending accreditation applications under the repealed Act are affected because those applications are taken to be applications under the new Act and to be decided under it (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). Practising agencies must know that their accreditation status and the conditions attached are carried over.

Employers and persons with employer’s authorities or exemptions: Employers who had been granted authorities under repealed Schedule 2 or exemptions under repealed s 224 of the CYP Act 1998 are affected. The Regulation takes those authorities and exemptions to be authorities and exemptions under ss 95 and 102 of the new Act respectively, and keeps the same conditions attached to them (cl 6(1)‑(2)). Therefore employers relying on those authorities/exemptions must be aware they continue, but subject to the new Act’s sections specified.

Recipients of Ombudsman Act exemptions: A class or kind of conduct of employees that had an exemption under the repealed s 25CA of the Ombudsman Act 1974 continues until regulations are made under s 30 of the Act (cl 5(1)). The Office of the Children’s Guardian holds a free list of those exemptions (cl 5(2)). That affects employees and entities who relied upon Ombudsman Act exemptions prior to commencement.

Adults residing with authorised carers: Clause 9 applies to a narrow group of adults who are required to hold a working with children check clearance under s 10 of the Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012 because they reside on the same property as an authorised carer for three weeks or more (cl 9(1)). For these adults, the head-of-entity treatment for Part 4 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 is assigned to the head of the authorised carer (cl 9(2)). These persons must note that the clause operates from the Act’s commencement and is subject to later repeal by regulation under s 17(1)(b) of the Act (cl 9(3)‑(4)).

Regulatory administrators and the Office of the Children’s Guardian: The Office is named as the entity that can supply a list of Ombudsman exemptions free of charge (cl 5(2)). The Office and the Children’s Guardian are de facto decision‑makers or record keepers for preserved authorities, exemptions and delegated roles, and they will be the bodies implementing the deeming and transitional arrangements until new regulations are made.

Legal advisers, compliance officers and auditors: While not directly named, these professionals will be affected in practice because transitional statuses are preserved but mapped into new named sections of the Act (cl 6(1)(a); cl 6(2)(a); cl 7(2)). Advisers must track the conditions attached to carried‑over authorities and exemptions to ensure ongoing compliance.

Not affected: The Regulation does not create new penalty regimes or expand the substantive obligations of the Act beyond preserving certain prior statuses; the Regulation itself contains no new offence provisions. Any enforcement or penalty consequences likely derive from the Act and the repealed Acts referenced in the clauses.

In short, the Regulation targets a narrowly defined set of entities and individuals who immediately before commencement held authorisations, exemptions or accreditation under pre‑existing laws and ensures that those legal statuses remain in force, mapped into the new Act and subject to their prior conditions.

The Regulation is primarily preservationary rather than normative: it does not impose novel duties or create new rights; instead it maps existing rights and conditions under the repealed framework into specified provisions of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019. The operative language is largely "taken to be" and "subject to the same conditions", which converts pre‑existing authorisations, exemptions and accreditations into corresponding statuses under the new Act. The main operative duties and rights to note are as follows.

Rights carried over as equivalent statuses: Employer’s authorities granted under repealed Schedule 2 to the CYP Act 1998 are taken to be employer’s authorities under section 95 of the Act (cl 6(1)(a)). Employer’s exemptions under repealed s 224 of the CYP Act 1998 are taken to be exemptions under section 102 of the Act (cl 6(2)(a)). Accredited designated agencies are taken to be designated agencies under the Act for the previously approved period and subject to previous conditions (cl 7(2)). These are legal rights or statuses carried over and recharacterised within the new statutory framework. The practical effect is to preserve entitlement to operate in the roles or carry on the conduct previously authorised.

Continuation of conditions: Where authorities, exemptions or accreditations are carried over, they remain subject to the same conditions and requirements that applied under the repealed Acts and the regulations under those Acts (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)). The preserved conditions remain binding on the holder. That means holders must continue to observe those conditions even after the Act’s commencement.

Obligation to be determined under the new Act for pending applications: Applications for accreditation that were lodged under the repealed CYP Act 1998 but not decided before commencement are deemed to be applications under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and will be determined in accordance with that Act (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). Applicants therefore are subject to the procedural and substantive decision‑making standards in the new Act rather than the old Act, as a matter of legislative deeming.

Persistence of Ombudsman exemptions until new regulations: An exemption of a class or kind of conduct of employees under repealed s 25CA of the Ombudsman Act 1974 that was in force immediately before commencement continues to have effect until a regulation is made under s 30 of the Act (cl 5(1)). The right to rely on that exemption therefore endures for the specified period unless replaced earlier by a regulation under s 30.

Administrative information right: A list of the exemptions preserved from the Ombudsman Act may be obtained free of charge from the Office of the Children’s Guardian (cl 5(2)). That creates an immediate administrative entitlement to information for affected parties.

Head of entity treatment for WWCC residency cases: For an adult who is required to hold a working with children check clearance under s 10 of the Working with Children Act 2012 due to residence with an authorised carer for three weeks or more, the head of the relevant entity is taken, for Part 4 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019, to be the head of the authorised carer (cl 9(1)‑(2)). This is a substantive reassignment of the "head of entity" role for the purposes of Part 4 and imposes on relevant actors the legal consequences that attach to being the head of entity under Part 4.

Temporal limits and prospective regulation: The rights and duties created or preserved by the Regulation are temporary in at least two senses: the Regulation itself is temporary (cl 3) and certain preserved exemptions remain effective only until regulations are made under specified powers in the Act (cl 5(1); cl 9(4)). This creates an implicit duty on holders to monitor subsequent regulator action and comply with any new regulatory schemes once made.

Absence of new sanctions in the Regulation: The Regulation contains no penalty provisions or express enforcement mechanisms. Enforcement, compliance duties and sanctions therefore remain those set out in the underlying Acts, with the preserved statuses now mapped into the new Act’s sections noted above. Practitioners should therefore consult the substantive provisions of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and the referenced Acts to determine specific penalty or enforcement consequences attached to the carried‑over authorities and exemptions.

In sum, the Regulation preserves existing rights and attaches existing conditions to them, recharacterising those rights within the Children’s Guardian Act 2019, and creates administrative entitlements to information; it does not itself create new substantive duties or penalties but changes which statutory provision is the legal source of an actor’s rights or obligations.

The Regulation contains no express penalty, offence or enforcement provisions. Its operative clauses perform legal mapping and preservation functions rather than establishing enforcement mechanisms. Accordingly, penalties and enforcement consequences are indirect and derive from the Acts into which the Regulation maps existing authorisations, exemptions and accreditations.

No new offences in this Regulation: The instrument does not create or modify offences; it does not specify fines, imprisonment, or enforcement agencies. It preserves statuses and their attached conditions but does not itself supply sanctioning text.

Enforcement through the Act and repealed Acts: Because employer’s authorities granted under the repealed Schedule 2 are taken to be authorities under section 95 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 6(1)(a)) and employer’s exemptions under repealed s 224 are taken to be exemptions under section 102 of the Act (cl 6(2)(a)), any enforcement powers, compliance obligations and sanctioning mechanisms attached to ss 95 and 102 of the Act, and to the retained conditions, will be the operative means of enforcement. The Regulation therefore reassigns the enforcement reference point from the repealed provisions to the corresponding sections of the Act.

Accreditation consequences mapped into the Act: Designated agencies accredited under repealed s 139 are taken to be designated agencies under the Act for the approved period, subject to prior conditions and requirements (cl 7(2)). Any enforcement, compliance monitoring, suspension, revocation or other sanctioning mechanisms that operate in relation to designated agencies under the Act are therefore in the background for these carried‑over agencies. The Regulation itself does not prescribe how enforcement decisions are to be exercised; it only preserves the status.

Ombudsman exemptions until regulations made: Exemptions that existed under repealed s 25CA of the Ombudsman Act 1974 continue until regulations are made under s 30 of the Act (cl 5(1)). Any oversight or enforcement function under the Ombudsman Act that depended on whether an exemption applied will continue to be affected by the preserved exemption until the children’s guardian regulations under s 30 alter that landscape. The Regulation does not itself modify Ombudsman Act enforcement powers.

Administrative monitoring and information: The Office of the Children’s Guardian is the custodian of a free list of preserved exemptions (cl 5(2)). Having an available list reduces information asymmetries for those seeking to understand whether a particular exemption applies, potentially reducing inadvertent non‑compliance. The Regulation does not, however, set a statutory enforcement timeline tied to that list.

Potential enforcement risks and residual uncertainty: The Regulation’s deeming approach could generate disputes about the interpretation of "same conditions" (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)) or about whether a particular pending application conforms to new Act requirements when it is taken to be converted into an application under the Act (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). Those disputes would be resolved under the Act and the existing judicial and administrative review mechanisms provided by the relevant statutes. The Regulation itself signals that transitional juridical questions are to be resolved under the new Act regime.

Practical implication: For enforcement purposes, holders of carried‑over authorities, exemptions or accreditations should assume that compliance and enforcement will be governed by the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and by any regulations subsequently made under it; the Regulation only bridges the administrative transition.

The Regulation is expressly cross‑referential. It functions to map and align prior instruments and decisions made under several repealed or existing Acts into the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and to clarify interoperation with the Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012 and the Ombudsman Act 1974. The main interactions are set out in the operative clauses.

Children’s Guardian Act 2019: The Regulation is framed around giving immediate effect to certain statuses under the new Act. Employer’s authorities and exemptions previously issued under the CYP Act 1998 are taken to be under ss 95 and 102 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 respectively (cl 6(1)(a); cl 6(2)(a)). Designated agencies previously accredited under the repealed CYP Act are taken to be designated agencies under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 7(2)). Pending accreditation applications are to be determined in accordance with the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 7(3)(b)). The Regulation therefore reassigns the statutory source of several legal statuses from the repealed framework to the Act.

Children and Young Persons (Care and Protection) Act 1998 (repealed provisions): The Regulation expressly relies on authorities, exemptions and accreditation frameworks that existed immediately before commencement under the CYP Act 1998 (cl 6(1); cl 6(2); cl 7). It preserves the conditions and requirements imposed under that Act and its regulations by making them continue in effect as conditions for the mapped statuses under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)). Thus, although the substantive text of the CYP Act 1998 provisions is not reproduced, their practical effects continue until regulations under the Act are made.

Ombudsman Act 1974: Exemptions of a class or kind of conduct of employees under the repealed s 25CA of the Ombudsman Act 1974 that were in force immediately before commencement continue until a regulation is made under s 30 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 5(1)). This clause links an exemption regime under a separate statute (the Ombudsman Act) to the children’s guardian regulatory framework and effectively defers the children’s guardian regulation‑maker the task of deciding whether and how exemptions should continue under the new regime.

Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012: Clause 9 invokes s 10 of the Working with Children Act 2012 to identify adults required to hold clearances because they reside with authorised carers for three weeks or more (cl 9(1)). For purposes of Part 4 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019, the head of the relevant entity for such adults is taken to be the head of the authorised carer (cl 9(2)). This is a cross‑statute coordination: the working‑with‑children check regime in one Act is given an administrative outcome under Part 4 of another.

Interpretation Act 1987 and notes: Clause 4 expressly notes that the Act and the Interpretation Act 1987 contain definitions and other provisions affecting interpretation and application of the Regulation (cl 4(1) Note). Clause 4(2) also states that notes included in the Regulation do not form part of it. These cross‑references constrain interpretive approaches and clarify that only operative text, not explanatory notes, confers legal effect.

Future regulation‑making: Several clauses expressly link the Regulation’s continuing effect to future regulations made under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019. Exemptions under the Ombudsman Act continue until a regulation is made under s 30 of the Act (cl 5(1)). Clause 9 is to be repealed on commencement of a regulation under s 17(1)(b) of the Act (cl 9(4)). Clause 3 generally contemplates that the Regulation is transitional and therefore temporary (cl 3). The effect is that the Regulation holds things in place until the Act’s regulation‑making powers are exercised, at which point the new subsidiary rules may displace the transitional approach.

Repeal and amendment notes: Clause 8 has been repealed (cl 8 note). Clause 9 was inserted by a later instrument (cl 9 note). The Regulation therefore interacts with the amendment process, and its operative map may have been changed by subsequent subordinate instruments.

Practical legal consequence: The Regulation functions as a bridge between old and new statutory architectures. Interpretive and enforcement questions about the continued operation of prior decisions, conditions and exemptions will be resolved by applying the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and the other Acts referenced, recognising that the Regulation preserves prior conditions and redirects statutory reference points until new regulations are made.

The Regulation’s instrument text itself contains a minimal amendment history and signals to readers that some clauses have been later altered.

Commencement and expiry dates: The Regulation commenced on 1 March 2020 (cl 2). Clause 3 declares the Regulation a transitional regulation and notes that it expires at the end of 2 March 2022 (cl 3 Note). Those dates define the initial life of the instrument.

Clause 8 repeal: An internal annotation indicates that clause 8 was repealed. The annotation appears as: "cl 8: Rep 2020 No 30, Sch 1.10." This records that clause 8 was removed by enactment number 30 of 2020, schedule 1.10. The Regulation text now shows "8 (Repealed)" and an explanatory line "cl 8: Rep 2020 No 30, Sch 1.10." The body of the Regulation as provided here therefore does not include the substance of clause 8; readers should consult the amending instrument cited for details of what was removed and why.

Clause 9 insertion: Clause 9 has an insertion note: "cl 9: Ins 2020 (205), cl 3." That indicates clause 9 was inserted by instrument number 205 of 2020, clause 3. Clause 9 sets out the head‑of‑entity rule for adults residing with authorised carers and contains a built‑in repeal trigger tied to the making of a regulation under s 17(1)(b) of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 9(4)).

No other amendments recorded in the provided text: Aside from the two short editorial notes linked to cl 8 and cl 9 and the initial commencement, the text contains no further amendment chronology. There are no side‑by‑side versions or transitional schedules recorded within the Regulation itself.

Regulations to be made under the Act expected to displace transitional arrangements: The Regulation expressly contemplates that some of its transitional effects are temporary and will give way to regulations to be made under the Act. Clause 5(1) preserves exemptions under the Ombudsman Act 1974 "until a regulation is made under section 30 of the [Children’s Guardian Act 2019]" and clause 9(4) provides that clause 9 is repealed upon the commencement of a regulation made under section 17(1)(b) of the Act. These are conditional transitions rather than strict sunset dates for those clauses, but clause 3 gives the Regulation an overall expiry date (cl 3 Note).

Practical way to read amendment notes: The embedded amendment annotations are the sole internal record of change supplied in the Regulation text. For a complete legislative history practitioners must consult the amending statutory instruments cited (2020 No 30, Sch 1.10; 2020 (205), cl 3) and the consolidated reprint maintained by the relevant parliamentary or government publisher. The Regulation as provided here must be read subject to those recorded changes.

The Regulation text supplied contains no judicial decisions, references to cases, or litigation history. It does not name any cases nor record any judicial interpretation. Therefore there is no direct litigation history to report from the source instrument.

Potential areas where litigation or administrative review could arise: While the Regulation itself does not record litigation, its transitional and deeming mechanisms create predictable legal questions that could become the subject of litigation or administrative review once parties press contestation under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019. Those potential areas, grounded in the text, include:

• Interpretation of "taken to be" mappings: The Regulation takes existing authorities, exemptions and accreditations to be equivalents under specified sections of the Act (cl 6(1)(a); cl 6(2)(a); cl 7(2)). Disputes could arise about the extent of equivalence, the scope of preserved conditions, or whether additional requirements in the Act alter the practical effect of the carried‑over status.
• Scope and application of "same conditions": The Regulation preserves prior conditions by reference rather than reproducing them (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)). Parties may contest whether a particular condition continues or whether it is inconsistent with a new regulatory requirement under the Act.
• Pending applications and application of new Act standards: Where an application for accreditation was lodged under the repealed CYP Act 1998 but not decided before commencement, the Regulation deems it to be an application under the new Act and to be decided accordingly (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). Applicants could seek review if the new Act’s procedures or thresholds differ materially from the repealed Act.
• Temporal and repeal questions: Clause 9 is taken to have operated from the commencement of the Act but is also drafted to be repealed on commencement of a future regulation under s 17(1)(b) (cl 9(3)‑(4)). Litigation could arise over whether particular actions taken during the interim period fall within the intended scope of cl 9 or are affected by later regulation.

Administrative review and statutory appeal mechanisms under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and the other referenced Acts would be the forum for such disputes. Because the Regulation delegates substantive enforcement and review frameworks to the underlying Acts (see "Penalties and enforcement" above), any litigation would be recorded against those parent statutes rather than in the Regulation’s text.

Absent judicial decisions recorded here, practitioners must treat these as possible dispute vectors based on the text’s transitional design, not as established litigation lines.

The Regulation is short and technical, but it contains several practical traps and timing risks for practitioners, employers, agencies and compliance officers. These are concrete procedural and interpretive points that arise from the Regulation’s terms.

Expiry of the Regulation overall: Although the instrument preserves many transitional arrangements, it is itself temporary. It expires at the end of 2 March 2022 (cl 3 Note). Stakeholders relying on the Regulation’s transitional protections must monitor whether, when, and how the regulator enacts permanent regulations under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 before the expiry date. After expiry, the legislative deeming devices in this instrument will cease to operate, unless replaced by subsequent rules.

Partial temporariness of specific rules: Some preserved statuses continue only until specified regulations are made. For example, exemptions under the Ombudsman Act 1974 continue only "until a regulation is made under section 30 of the [Children’s Guardian Act 2019]" (cl 5(1)). Clause 9 is repealed on commencement of a regulation under s 17(1)(b) of the Act (cl 9(4)). This dual timing,an instrument expiry date and conditional repeal triggers,creates multiple deadlines to watch.

"Same conditions" drafting: The Regulation preserves carried‑over authorities and exemptions subject to "the same conditions" or "the same conditions set out in the written notice" that attached under the repealed instrument (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)). Practitioners must ensure that the content and scope of those conditions are clearly documented and accessible. Reliance on an oral understanding or a missing condition document risks non‑compliance, because the Regulation preserves conditions by reference rather than restating them.

Pending applications are subject to the new Act: An application lodged under the repealed CYP Act 1998 but not decided before commencement is, on commencement, a taken to be an application under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and "to be determined in accordance with the [Children’s Guardian Act 2019]" (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). Applicants may find themselves subject to different procedural requirements or substantive tests under the new Act; they cannot assume the old procedural expectations will apply.

Administrative reliance and information availability: Clause 5(2) provides that a list of preserved Ombudsman exemptions "may be obtained, free of charge, from the Office of the Children’s Guardian." That creates an administrative right to information but also shifts the burden to affected parties to obtain the list. Failure to seek the list could result in erroneous compliance assumptions. The Regulation does not prescribe additional notice obligations beyond making the list available.

Interplay with working‑with‑children checks: Clause 9 assigns the head‑of‑entity role for Part 4 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 to the head of the authorised carer in certain residency‑based WWCC cases (cl 9(1)‑(2)). This is a non‑intuitive allocation that may affect who is the accountable person under Part 4 obligations. That clause is retroactive to the commencement of the Act (cl 9(3)) but is repealable on later regulation (cl 9(4)), creating a brief window of application that parties must track.

No penalties or enforcement details in the Regulation itself: Because the instrument does not set out enforcement mechanisms, actors must look to the Act and referenced statutes to identify sanctions or compliance regimes. Missing that step is a common trap: the Regulation preserves statuses but does not explain the enforcement consequences now attached to those statuses under the new Act.

Amendment notes indicate further changes: The internal notes show that clause 8 has been repealed and clause 9 inserted by subsequent instruments (cl 8 note; cl 9 note). Users must be careful to consult not only this Regulation but also any amending instruments cited to get the full picture.

Potential for interpretive disputes: The Regulation’s deeming language can generate disputes over scope. For example, questions may be raised about whether a particular condition from the repealed Act is equivalent in effect to a requirement under the new Act. The Regulation gives no guidance on resolving such tensions; they will fall to interpretation under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019.

Administrative transition risk: The Regulation preserves statuses while shifting their statutory home to the Children’s Guardian Act 2019. If the Office or the Children’s Guardian does not promptly publish or clarify the preserved conditions and exemptions, affected parties may face enforcement action based on unclarified obligations.

In practice, affected entities must (a) obtain the Office’s list of preserved exemptions, (b) catalogue and document the exact conditions attached to any carried‑over authority/exemption, (c) confirm whether any pending applications have been recharacterised under the new Act and what standards now apply, and (d) monitor for regulations made under ss 17(1)(b) and 30 of the Act that may supersede transitional rules.

Compliance under this transitional Regulation is largely about administrative hygiene: identify preserved statuses, confirm their attached conditions, and monitor for regulatory change under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019. The steps below are grounded in the Regulation’s text and cite the relevant clauses.

1. Identify whether you hold a carried‑over authority, exemption or accreditation

   • Check if you (or your entity) held an employer’s authority under Schedule 2 to the CYP Act 1998 or an employer’s exemption under s 224 of the CYP Act 1998 immediately before 1 March 2020. If so, cl 6(1)‑(2) applies: those are taken to be authorities/exemptions under ss 95 and 102 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 respectively.
   • If you are a designated agency that immediately before commencement arranged supported or statutory out‑of‑home care and were accredited under repealed s 139, cl 7(1)‑(2) applies: you are taken to be a designated agency under the new Act for the approved period and subject to the same conditions.

2. Obtain the preserved conditions and any official list

   • For any carried‑over authority, exemption or accreditation, obtain the original written notice or accreditation instrument that recorded the conditions attached. The Regulation preserves these conditions (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)); they remain binding.
   • For exemptions under the Ombudsman Act 1974 preserved by cl 5(1), obtain the free list from the Office of the Children’s Guardian (cl 5(2)). Do not assume an exemption applies; verify it against the Office’s list.

3. Reassess compliance against the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 framework

   • The Regulation maps prior rights into identified sections of the Act (cl 6(1)(a); cl 6(2)(a); cl 7(2)). Review ss 95 and 102 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019, Part 4 for head‑of‑entity responsibilities, and the definitions of "designated agency" in the Act to confirm how the carried‑over status operates under the new legal regime. The Regulation does not itself state enforcement mechanisms; compliance obligations should be checked in the Act.

4. For pending accreditation applications, prepare for the new Act’s processes

   • If you lodged an accreditation application under the CYP Act 1998 that was not decided before commencement, it has been taken to be an application under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and will be determined accordingly (cl 7(3)(a)‑(b)). Ensure any outstanding materials are updated to meet the procedural and substantive requirements of the new Act.

5. For adults residing with authorised carers (WWCC residency cases)

   • Where an adult must hold a working with children check clearance because they reside on the same property as an authorised carer for three weeks or more (per s 10, Child Protection (Working with Children) Act 2012), treat the head of the relevant entity as the head of the authorised carer for purposes of Part 4 of the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 (cl 9(1)‑(2)). Ensure arrangements and accountability reflect this allocation during the period cl 9 remains in force.

6. Monitor for regulations under the Act that will displace transitional arrangements

   • Exemptions preserved under cl 5(1) continue only until a regulation is made under s 30 of the Act; cl 9 is repealed on commencement of a regulation under s 17(1)(b) (cl 9(4)). The Regulation itself expires on 2 March 2022 (cl 3 Note). Establish a monitoring process to detect when regulations under ss 17(1)(b) or 30 are made so you can update compliance processes promptly.

7. Document decisions and retain records

   • Keep copies of the original authority/exemption/accreditation notices, any related correspondence with the Office of the Children’s Guardian, and evidence that you obtained the list of exemptions (cl 5(2)). Because the Regulation preserves conditions rather than restating them, having the original documents will be essential to demonstrate compliance.

8. Seek administrative clarification where necessary

   • If there is uncertainty about the content of preserved conditions or about how a pending application will be determined under the new Act, seek clarification from the Office of the Children’s Guardian or the Children’s Guardian office. The Regulation provides administrative hooks (cl 5(2); cl 7(3)(b)) for the Office to be involved in transitional handling.

9. Treat the Regulation as a bridge, not a permanent rule

   • Recognise that the Regulation’s effect is transitional (cl 3) and that its mappings could be superseded by regulations made under the Act. Plan compliance with that in mind: short‑term continuity is provided, but long‑term compliance obligations will be determined by subsequent regulations and the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 itself.

10. Advise stakeholders and update contractual documents

    • Ensure internal policies, staff training, contracts with carers or agency partners, and public representations reflect that existing authorities/exemptions/accreditations have been recharacterised under the Children’s Guardian Act 2019 and remain subject to their prior conditions (cl 6(1)(b); cl 6(2)(b); cl 7(2)). This reduces the risk of misstatements about legal authority.

Following these steps aligns operational practice with the Regulation’s transitional mapping and mitigates the principal compliance risks identified in the text.