What a verified check means

Last updated: 24 August 2026

What we checked

Some teachers on this site show a badge such as “WWCC verified” or “Blue Card verified”. It means the teacher gave us the number of their Working with Children Check, and somebody here looked that number up on the public register run by the state or territory that issued it, and found it current.

The badge names the day we did that and the day the check expires. Both dates matter. A check is valid for three to five years depending on the state, and the badge disappears by itself on the day it lapses — we do not wait to be told.

What it does not mean

  • It is not an endorsement or a recommendation. We have not met the teacher, watched them teach, or assessed them in any way.
  • It is not a background check we performed. The screening is done by the issuing state; all we did was confirm the result is current.
  • It is not a guarantee of anything that happens in a lesson, and it does not replace your own judgement, your own questions, or the ordinary precautions you would take with anyone teaching your child.
  • It is a record of a check on a date. A person's circumstances can change the day after we looked.

A teacher without a badge has not failed anything

Most teachers here have not submitted a check, and we never mark that on a profile. Plenty of them teach adults only and have no reason to hold one. Others hold a current check and simply have not sent it to us. The absence of a badge tells you nothing at all — so if it matters to you, ask.

Checking for yourself

You do not have to take our word for it, and for a private teacher you are the right person to ask. A self-employed teacher is expected to give their check details to the family engaging them so the family can verify it directly — that is how the schemes are designed to work. Ask the teacher for their number and whatever else their state's register asks for — a name, sometimes a date of birth, and in Queensland the expiry printed on the card — then check it for their state:

We never publish a teacher's check number. It is theirs to give you, not ours to broadcast.

Teachers

Submitting your check is free and always will be. Add it in your profile settings. We store the number to verify it and to check it again when it is due to expire; it is never shown on your profile and is deleted with your account. See our privacy policy for how we handle it.

Something wrong?

If a badge looks wrong to you, tell us and we will re-check it that day. Get in touch.