The Hearings Process
Proceedings
“Proceedings” are formal legal processes for deciding a discipline or fitness to practise case. There are different types of proceedings for discipline cases and for fitness to practice cases.
All proceedings follow the Rules of the Discipline Committee and of the Fitness to Practise Committee.
Registered Early Childhood Educators (RECEs) who are involved in a case should make sure their email address and telephone number are correct in My College Account, because that’s how the Hearings Office will contact them. More information about how the Hearings Office communicates with RECEs can be found here.
To learn about how cases come to the Discipline and Fitness to Practise Committees, click here.
Types of Cases
Discipline Cases
In a discipline case, a Panel of the Discipline Committee decides whether a Registered Early Childhood Educator (RECE) has committed professional misconduct, and, if the RECE is found to be guilty, decides the consequences.
Professional misconduct
Professional misconduct includes:
- conduct listed in the Professional Misconduct Regulation
- conduct that doesn’t follow the Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice
- sexual abuse or misconduct
Fitness to Practise Cases
In a fitness to practise case, a Panel of the Fitness to Practise Committee decides whether an RECE is incapacitated. Being “incapacitated” means an RECE’s physical or mental health makes it unsafe for them to practise the profession.