Find out what you need to do to be eligible to apply for an ancillary or support role in South Australian government schools and preschools.

Ancillary or support staff roles in schools and preschools include:

• Aboriginal community education officer (ACEO)
• school services officer (SSO)
• early childhood worker (ECW)
• government services employees (GSE).

Mandatory requirements

To undertake an ancillary or support role you must:

• have a current application on the employable ancillary register (EAR) – see preparing your Edujobs online application to help you avoid delays in your application for employment.
• be an Australian resident either with Australian birth certificate, residency permit or current work visa
• have completed full day Responding to Risks of Harm, Abuse and Neglect – education and care training and maintained training by holding a current approved full day or update Responding to Abuse and Neglect training certificate, see Keeping your RRHAN-EC current – for staff
• hold a current general Department of Human Services (DHS) working with children check (WWCC) – a volunteer WWCC is not valid for paid employment
• obtain an authority to work letter
• meet the COVID-19 vaccination requirements for education and early childhood settings.

Get help with
employment requirement

Early childhood certification

In addition to the requirements above, all early childhood workers (ECW) and school support officers (SSO) who are 'primary contact staff' within early childhood programs must have an approved early childhood qualification.

Primary contact staff are the staff employed to maintain the student staff ratios.

The minimum approved qualifications include a Certificate III in Children's Services or Education Support, or the employee must be actively working towards an approved qualification.

All primary contact ECWs and SSOs in department preschool occasional care or rural care programs must have a minimum qualification of a Diploma in Children's Services, Education and Care.

More information about approved qualifications is on the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA) website.

Optional first aid training

Although first aid training is not a requirement for ancillary employment, if you're looking for work as an ECW or SSO in a school based preschool program you should consider getting the 'provide first aid in an education and care setting (HLTAID012)' certification. Alternatively, you could combine the 'provide first aid HLTAID011' with approved anaphylaxis and asthma certification.

Search for an approved training organisation by entering the required unit of competency code on training.gov.au.

Not having this training may limit your employment opportunities.

Swimming and aquatics instructors

Swimming or aquatics instructors follow a different process. See working in swimming and aquatics for information.

Vacancies and registering for employment

You can apply for specific ancillary and support vacancies or register your availability for work on Edujobs.

You can be recommended for a position, but will not be cleared to take up that position until you have met and verified all employment requirements.

Non-permanent staff must:

• maintain a current completed online registration for employment on EduJobs
• update minimum requirements as expiry dates are reached
• submit a new application each year.