PROVIDER APPROVAL & CENTRE SETUP
Open an approved centre in Australia
HCPA helps prospective childcare providers prepare the approvals, evidence, premises planning and assessment requirements needed to open a long day care or early learning service.
Opening a childcare centre usually involves three connected approval pathways: provider approval for the person or organisation operating the business, service approval for the individual early learning centre, and Child Care Subsidy approval where the service intends to administer CCS.
The first two sit within the National Quality Framework and are managed by state and territory regulatory authorities. CCS is administered federally by the Australian Government Department of Education. Planning the applications together can help the business progress its premises, provider, service and funding pathways in the right sequence.
Still deciding whether a childcare centre is the right opportunity for you?
Long day care can provide a strong long-term business opportunity where local family demand, service capacity and operating costs support sustainable occupancy.
The commercial model is highly location-specific. A centre in a growing catchment with unmet demand can perform very differently from one entering an area with significant existing capacity.
The site also shapes much of the eventual business model. Approved places, room configuration and age mix affect staffing requirements, while the lease or property cost continues regardless of whether every place is filled.
Before committing to a site, HCPA can help assess the local childcare market, proposed service capacity, likely staffing model and whether building, leasing or acquiring an existing early learning centre provides the stronger pathway.
Who is suited to opening a childcare centre?
HCPA’s experience is that management capability is particularly important during provider approval. Applicants often come from outside early learning, so the task is to demonstrate how their existing leadership and management experience transfers to operating a regulated childcare service.
What does childcare provider and service approval involve?
Starting a long day care service involves more than securing a property. The approvals, premises, capacity, workforce and CCS pathway need to support the way the childcare centre will actually operate.
1. Obtain the right childcare approvals
Most long day care operators need to work through three approvals.
Childcare provider approval applies to the individual or legal entity responsible for operating the service. Under the National Quality Framework approval process, provider approval is ongoing and is recognised nationally.
Childcare service approval applies to the individual early learning service and premises. Each centre operated by an approved provider needs its own service approval.
CCS approval is a separate Australian Government approval allowing an eligible provider to administer Child Care Subsidy. The current CCS approval process allows National Law and CCS applications to progress at the same time, although CCS approval cannot be finalised until the relevant state or territory approval has been granted.
HCPA can help plan these applications together so one approval pathway does not unnecessarily hold up another.
The applications can therefore overlap rather than being treated as three completely consecutive stages. CCS should also be lodged before the intended commencement date because payments cannot be backdated to a date before the application was submitted.
2. Plan the premises, capacity and workforce
The site has a direct effect on how many children the childcare centre can accommodate and how the service can be staffed.
Indoor and outdoor space, room layouts, age groups and service design all affect the approved capacity. The workforce then needs to support that model, including applicable educator qualifications, early childhood teacher requirements and educator-to-child ratios.
The age mix matters commercially too. A nursery room, toddler room and preschool room can have very different staffing requirements, so the number of approved places alone does not tell you what the centre will cost to operate.
This is why capacity planning should look at the likely room mix as well as the headline number of places. A 96-place centre with a larger proportion of younger children can have a different workforce cost from another 96-place service.
HCPA can help assess these requirements while the premises and business model are still being planned.
3. Prepare the application and assessment
Approval requires more than submitting forms and policies.
Applicants may need to provide evidence including:
- resumes and management experience
- business and company documentation
- qualifications and transcripts
- governance information
- fit and proper person evidence
- policies and procedures
- premises and service information
- nominated supervisor details
- CCS documentation
Provider approval also involves demonstrating a working understanding of the regulatory framework. HCPA’s early learning team identifies assessment preparation as one of the most important parts of the process, particularly for applicants who have not previously operated a childcare service.
HCPA provides more than 150 practice questions across different assessment styles to help applicants build their knowledge and prepare for regulator assessment or interview.
4. Plan the timeframe and investment
The time required to open a childcare centre depends on more than the approval applications.
Under the National Law, a regulatory authority generally has 60 calendar days to decide a complete provider approval application. Service approval has its own statutory assessment period, but these timeframes can pause where further information or a knowledge assessment is required.
Premises, construction or lease negotiations, application evidence, assessments, staffing and CCS readiness all affect the project timeline. HCPA’s experience is that the broader journey can extend across many months, with some new long day care projects taking around six to 18 months depending on the site and how quickly each workstream progresses.
CCS also needs to be planned early. The Department of Education does not provide a fixed completion timeframe for CCS approval and recommends applying before the planned commencement date.
The investment varies substantially between models. Building a new centre creates a very different capital requirement from acquiring or leasing an operating or previously fitted childcare site.
Why work with HCPA for childcare provider approval?
Provider approval, service approval and CCS are connected to the wider childcare business you are building.
A decision about the premises can affect capacity. Capacity affects staffing and occupancy targets. Your management structure influences provider approval, while CCS affects how most families will fund care.
HCPA brings those decisions into the same setup plan, helping applicants prepare the approval pathway while considering whether the proposed centre can work commercially once it opens.
It is never too early to speak with HCPA. Whether you are still comparing sites, assessing a lease or ready to begin the approval process, we can help identify what needs to be resolved before significant capital is committed.
Backed by HCPA’s Compliance Guarantee
Eligible HCPA registration services are backed by the Compliance Guarantee. If approval is not achieved due to HCPA’s compliance work following three attempts, HCPA provides a full refund and you keep the work completed.
How HCPA helps you open a childcare centre
Assess the childcare model
Review the location, service capacity, business structure, premises pathway and proposed operating model.
Prepare the approvals
Coordinate provider approval, service approval and CCS requirements around the proposed early learning service.
Get assessment-ready
Build your regulatory knowledge, prepare the supporting evidence and work through HCPA's childcare assessment preparation.
Move towards opening
Support regulator requests and final application requirements while the premises, workforce and operational systems move towards launch.
Our experience helping businesses enter regulated markets
businesses supported
industry consultants
first-time approval rate
client revenue generated
HCPA’s early learning work covers provider approval, service approval, CCS applications and the assessment preparation needed before a new service can open.
Our early learning team also uses more than 150 assessment questions to help applicants prepare for the knowledge and assessment component of childcare provider approval.
That practical experience helps applicants connect the approval requirements with the management structure, premises, staffing model and service design behind the proposed long day care centre.
Frequently asked questions about childcare provider approval
How do I obtain provider and service approval to open a childcare centre?
Each long day care or early learning centre then needs service approval for its individual premises and operating model. A provider approval application and service approval application can be progressed together, although the service approval cannot ultimately be granted unless provider approval is in place.
The practical advantage of progressing them together is that the business can align the provider, premises and operating model rather than waiting for one entire process to finish before beginning the nex
How does a new early learning service obtain CCS approval, and when should it apply?
CCS approval is separate from provider and service approval under the National Law. Apply for provider and service approval through your state or territory regulatory authority, and submit your CCS application before your planned start date. The National Law and CCS applications can be submitted and assessed at the same time, but CCS approval cannot be finalised until National Law approval is granted. If the service starts operating before CCS approval is finalised, it cannot administer CCS until that approval is granted.
Do I need an early childhood qualification to own a childcare centre?
Not necessarily.
The approved provider does not personally need to be the educator delivering care. HCPA works with applicants from early learning as well as sectors such as NDIS and aged care.
What matters at provider level is demonstrating suitable management capability and an understanding of the regulatory responsibilities involved. The centre itself must then engage appropriately qualified staff and meet the relevant workforce requirements.
Is opening a childcare centre still a worthwhile business opportunity?
It can be, particularly where the proposed centre responds to genuine local demand and the capacity can be filled sustainably.
HCPA’s experience is that location, occupancy, funding and the underlying business model have a major influence on performance. A well-located childcare centre with sustained family demand can operate very differently from one competing for children in an already saturated market.
The opportunity should therefore be tested at suburb and catchment level before a site is chosen.
How much does it cost to open a childcare centre?
There is no single figure.
HCPA’s indicative experience suggests that building a new long day care centre can involve several million dollars. A new centre of around 96 places may require approximately $4 million or more depending on the land, construction, fit-out and specification.
Taking over an existing lease or childcare site can require substantially less capital, although the value varies considerably according to location, occupancy, rent, centre condition and the commercial terms.
These figures should be treated as initial planning ranges rather than project quotes.
Should I build a new childcare centre or lease an existing one?
Both models can work.
A new build gives the operator more control over layout, capacity and service design, but requires considerably more capital and a longer property-development pathway.
An existing childcare lease can reduce the upfront investment and may provide an already suitable facility. HCPA’s experience is that underperforming centres can sometimes present opportunities where the location has demand but the existing service has weak occupancy or operations.
The key question is not simply which site costs less upfront, but which model gives the business the strongest combination of local demand, suitable capacity, sustainable rent or property costs and approval readiness.
What premises and staffing requirements should I consider before applying?
Start with the number and ages of children the centre intends to accommodate.
Premises need sufficient compliant indoor and outdoor space for the proposed capacity. The age mix then affects workforce requirements because childcare ratios differ between babies, toddlers and older children.
The staffing model should also consider qualification requirements, early childhood teacher requirements, management coverage, opening hours and relief capacity.
A 96-place approval does not automatically mean that every 96-place centre will have the same workforce cost.
What affects the profitability of a long day care centre?
Occupancy is one of the biggest factors.
A childcare centre carries significant fixed costs in rent or property, staffing, utilities, food, insurance, administration and compliance. A centre with unused places still carries much of that operating cost.
Room mix also matters. The number of children in different age groups affects staff ratios and therefore the cost of servicing each place.
Location, fees, CCS, labour cost, rent and the centre’s ability to maintain enrolments all need to be considered together.
What happens during the childcare provider approval assessment?
HCPA’s experience is that applicants can underestimate this part of the process.
The goal is not simply to memorise answers. The applicant needs to be able to explain how the regulatory framework applies to the service they intend to operate.
HCPA’s preparation includes more than 150 practice questions and assessment support.
How long does it take to open a childcare centre?
Allow for the entire setup project, not only the regulator’s application assessment.
The premises, design or lease, provider and service applications, assessment preparation, staffing and CCS pathway can all affect when the service can actually open.
HCPA’s experience is that a long day care setup can take around six to 18 months depending on the model and stage at which the applicant begins.
Can I apply for provider approval, service approval and CCS at the same time?
Provider approval, service approval and Child Care Subsidy (CCS) approval are separate requirements.
Provider approval must be granted before service approval can be granted. CCS approval is assessed separately and cannot be finalised until the required National Law approval is in place.
Applicants should allow sufficient time for each approval process before their planned start date.
Related childcare resources
Managing long day care compliance
Need support with policies, assessment and rating or a regulatory issue?
Growing your long day care service
Ready to increase occupancy and strengthen service performance?
Review local demand, parent acquisition, service positioning and operating capacity so the centre can attract more families and grow sustainably.
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Amazing service and incredibly friendly, helpful staff. We engaged HCPA for our NDIS registration, and they guided us step by step through the entire process from start to finish. Thanks to their professionalism and support, we successfully completed our NDIS Registration Audit on the first attempt with zero non-conformities. I highly recommend HCPA to anyone looking to become an NDIS service provider. Thank you so much to the entire HCPA team for helping us achieve our goal!
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With the two very helpful and friendly calls I have received since I enquired online for information, I am very happy with the thought of working in this field to provide technical and outdoor garden work for clients potentially moving forward.
