Blue card system statistics

On this page you will find information about:

• the size of the blue card system in Queensland
• the strength of the safeguards it provides to children
• the support we provide to applicants, employers and community groups to increase blue card system participation and compliance.

Size of the blue card system

Safeguards for children

We contribute to a safer and more secure Queensland for children through the following measures.

Screening

To help keep children in Queensland safe, the blue card system stops certain people upfront from holding or applying for a blue card.

Our blue card screening involves a comprehensive check of whether there is any known criminal history or other information that raises concern about a person working with children. Where concerning information is identified, we undertake an assessment to decide if the person is eligible to work with children.

This process prevents people from working with children in regulated child-related environments if their past behaviour shows that they are unable to protect a child from harm and promote their wellbeing.

Another important safeguard for Queensland children is the No Card, No Start laws, which mean all people working with children are screened before they can start child-related work.

To make this easier, people can apply for and renew their blue cards using an online service.

Online applicants with no police or other relevant information are usually approved for a blue card within a few days.

Paper forms can take longer to process because they need manual entry and are affected by peak processing periods.

There are a number of factors that can impact our processing times, some of which are outside our control.

Monitoring

Unlike a one-off police check, the blue card system provides ongoing protection to children and young people through daily monitoring of all blue and exemption card applicants and card holders for changes to their Queensland criminal history.

This is a critical part of the system, allowing us to take steps to protect children from harm when a person is charged with offences relevant to child-related employment.

It is therefore essential for employers to link a blue or exemption card holder to their organisation before starting them in regulated employment. This ensures the organisation will receive important notifications about the person’s blue card status, including if the card is suspended or cancelled.

Compliance

All people and organisations regulated by the blue card system must comply with their blue card obligations, such as the legislative requirement for organisations to develop child and youth risk management strategies to mitigate risks of harm to children and young people in their service environments. This includes policies for recruiting, selecting, training, and managing employees and volunteers.

We engage directly with individuals and employers to ensure they are compliant and supported in providing safe environments for children.

If we identify a breach of blue card system obligations, we can refer the matter to the police.

Where possible, our activities focus on helping organisations and individuals comply with their obligations under the blue card system and reduce risks of harm to children.

We have developed an organisation portal to help employers and volunteer organisations keep track of their blue card obligations and records.

Compliance activities include:

• educating and directing organisations and individuals to comply with specific requirements under the blue card system
• ensuring organisations have a child and youth risk management strategy in place that covers the 8 mandatory requirements
• checking that organisations have actioned our notifications that certain individuals cannot work with children.

Where efforts to achieve compliance through engagement with organisations or individuals cannot be achieved—or where a serious breach is identified—we refer these matters to the Queensland Police Service for investigation and possible prosecution.

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Education and resources

Queenslanders now recognise that we all have an important role to play in protecting our children.

Our education activities help individuals and organisations foster safer service environments by:

• increasing understanding of who needs a blue card and how to apply
• helping people and organisations meet their blue card obligations, and
• working with organisations to educate them about their risk management requirements.

Learn more about blue card resources for individuals, organisations, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, or people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds.

Supporting our stakeholders

We provide support to stakeholders via a range of media and contact points.

We are committed to breaking down barriers for First Nations Queenslanders by providing more support through each step of the blue card process. In 2024–25 Blue Card Services:

• continued to implement the Safe children and strong communities strategy and action plan
• expanded our dedicated team of identified liaison officers that help First Nations stakeholders with the blue card application and assessment processes, and provide a cultural lens on the decision-making process
• provided targeted cultural capability training for staff
• provided free, tailored workshops in-person and online
• increased attendance in remote communities and—at community events—gave people the opportunity to learn about the blue card system, eligibility and how to apply.

Our dedicated team of professionals—including identified liaison officers—continued to provide practical support to First Nations applicants and employers. Since 1 July 2024 this has included travelling to Mornington Island, Palm Island, Kowanyama, Yarrabah, Thursday Island, Aurukun, Lockhart River, Woorabinda, Cherbourg, Mossman, Hope Vale, Coen, Normanton, and Doomadgee— to provide one-to-one support to applicants engaging in the blue card application and assessment processes.

We also completed outreach visits to Toowoomba, Warick, Townsville, Mt Isa, Logan, Hervey Bay, and Maryborough and Inala to assist First Nations applicants with their blue card applications.

In 2022, we launched the Yarn with Jess podcast series to assist First Nations stakeholders to have a better understanding of the blue card system. In the first series, Jess—a proud Bidjara woman—presented 15 episodes with a number of guests to discuss all things blue card. Since then, the second series of this podcast was launched and remains popular with stakeholders.

Find out more about how we support First Nations communities.

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