BY RHODIUM SECURITY · BUYING GUIDE
Updated
Choosing security cameras for a childcare centre starts with the service’s child safety and privacy responsibilities, before camera brands or quantities. Prepare an approved coverage plan, decide who can access recordings and define how footage will be handled. Use this equipment planning guide with your service’s governance process; it does not establish that CCTV is required or replace a legal or child safety assessment.
Agree on the purpose before drawing camera positions
Write down the specific problem the centre needs to address: reviewing an arrival at the entrance, understanding an after-hours intrusion or checking an approved delivery access point. Give each proposed camera one purpose and identify the person who can approve that view. A large camera count is not a substitute for a clear brief.
Victoria’s Rapid Child Safety Review discusses CCTV’s investigative use and privacy concerns. Treat cameras as one part of the centre’s arrangements, alongside staffing, supervision and reporting. Do not describe a CCTV purchase as preventing abuse or satisfying every child safety requirement.
References: Victorian Rapid Child Safety Review: centre environment and CCTV
Mark approved views and private areas on the plan
Consider entrances, gates and perimeter approaches first, subject to the service’s assessment. Draw the full proposed field of view, including what happens when doors open. Exclude toilets, nappy-changing and other private care areas from the proposed equipment brief. Ask for any masking feature to be demonstrated on recorded playback, rather than assuming a live-view setting applies everywhere.
A camera near collection should provide the agreed entrance detail without needlessly recording neighbouring homes or other rooms. Safely measure the approach distance and note prams, signs, foliage and door reflections. Victorian guidance asks services to balance visibility with children’s and staff members’ privacy.
References: Victorian guidance: child safety in physical and online environments
Compare entrance images, power and recording
Ask to assess a person walking through the approved entrance view, with both daylight behind them and evening lighting. Choose the lens around that distance. A wide overview may show a gate opening while a separate, closer entrance view provides more useful detail. Check whether any visible camera lighting is appropriate during early drop-off or late collection.
For fixed positions with suitable cable routes, compare a wired camera and compatible recorder configuration. Confirm camera power, included storage and the recorder’s supported resolution and recording modes. For an existing system, supply exact model numbers before ordering additions. A microphone being included does not mean audio recording is appropriate: leave audio out of the brief unless separately assessed and authorised.
Specify access, retention and incident handling
Identify who may view live images, replay recordings and export clips. Request separate accounts with the necessary permissions where supported, a secure recorder location and a procedure for removing access when staff leave. Do not include open parent livestreams or shared public links in a standard security-camera proposal.
Have the service set its retention and disclosure rules before sizing storage. Confirm how an authorised person preserves an incident before routine overwrite, records an export and supplies it through an approved process. Discuss family information, access requests, cloud services and contractor arrangements with the service’s responsible decision maker; these are governance decisions, not settings a camera salesperson should invent.
Use a centre-specific quote and handover checklist
Arrange installation access around the service’s contractor controls and operating routine. Provide an empty layout drawing rather than photographs containing identifiable children. The quote should itemise equipment, cabling, configuration and training against the approved views. Ask the installer to confirm any work involving locks, networks or other contractors separately.
At handover, test the actual recorded entrance image, replay an agreed test event and export a short test clip. Check the time display, account permissions, excluded views and recording after a restart. Bring your approved brief to Rhodium Security in Lynbrook to discuss Dahua, Hikvision and HiLook options.
- Approved purpose and camera view for every position.
- Private areas excluded; audio decision documented.
- Named account owner and approved footage-access process.
- Retention assumptions and included hard drive recorded.
- Safe installation access and staff playback training agreed.
Related planning guides
- How to Choose Security Cameras for Medical Centres ↗
- Commercial security checklist: cameras, recording and handover ↗
- Remote CCTV viewing: plan secure access to your footage ↗