Photographer's Guide to Play by the Rules Child Images Under 18 2025

Sport Integrity Australia's Children and Young People Safe Practices say:

• Images should not be taken on personal devices where possible. A club or organisation's camera should be used for all official images, where possible by a person who holds a Working with Children Check (WWCC) under state and territory legislation.
• If the club has no equipment, it should have a procedure for using a personal device on behalf of the club. The procedure should cover when photos and video are allowed, who is authorised, prioritising club personnel or volunteers with a WWCC, getting consent of the child and their parent or carer, keeping photos in a sporting context, how images are stored and deleted, and rules for sharing them publicly.
• Alternatively, the club can engage a professional photographer with a valid WWCC or equivalent.
• Play by the Rules also suggests identifying official club photographers, for example with a high-vis vest, or telling members that an official photographer will be active at a given day and time.
• All staff and volunteers should be told the club's photography and filming policies at induction.

Sources: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024); Play by the Rules, Taking and Sharing Images at Sport (June 2025).

Sport Integrity Australia says the club must:

• tell parents, carers and children that a photographer will be there
• make sure parents, carers and children consent to both the taking and the publication of the photos or video
• check the photographer's identity, that they hold a Working with Children Check, the validity of their role, and the purpose and use of the images
• issue identification, such as an official photographer vest, to be worn at all times
• give a clear brief on appropriate image content and behaviour
• tell children who the photographer is, where they can and can't be photographed, and allow them to withdraw consent
• specify where photography is prohibited, including toilets, changing areas and first aid areas
• tell the photographer which children do not have consent
• remind the photographer never to be alone with a child; individual photos should be taken in an open area where supervision is possible
• confirm the club consents only to photos for the event or activity
• clarify who owns the images and how long the photographer keeps or uses them; new purposes need additional consent.

Source: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024).

Under Sport Integrity Australia's Children and Young People Safe Practices (mandatory under a sport's Safeguarding Children and Young People Policy):

• Never take images in changing rooms or toilets. This applies to everyone: participants, coaches, parents, administrators, officials, employees, volunteers, and children themselves.
• Never take images of unsupervised children. Another adult must be present, so no one-on-one photo sessions.
• Only take images directly related to the child's participation in sport, with the child in their sport attire (including safety equipment where practical).
• Do not post images that may be considered revealing or inappropriate, or that focus on private or intimate areas of the body.
• Do not include personal details with an image: no name, address, email, phone number or interests.
• Only publish images the child and parent or carer have consented to, and show the child the image first to check they are happy with it.

The guidelines also note that a child under a care and protection order, where the state or territory is the legal guardian, cannot be photographed unless consent has been gained from the relevant Minister.

Source: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024).

Sport Integrity Australia says some sports, due to the nature of their uniforms and activities, such as swimming, gymnastics and athletics, can present a higher risk of potential misuse. Images of these sports should:

• focus on the activity rather than a particular child or young person
• avoid showing the full face and body of a child or young person; instead show children in the water, or from the waist or shoulders up
• avoid images and camera angles that may be more prone to misinterpretation or misuse.

More generally, it suggests considering action shots that do not show a child's face or identifying details, and considering whether the uniform or pose could be seen as inappropriate or sexualised.

Source: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024).

Sport Integrity Australia's guidelines say:

• If parent or carer consent is not gained, images of the child should not be taken, and should not be used until consent is gained.
• Provide identifiable markers, such as coloured wrist bands, to children who do not have consent to have their images taken.
• Tell any official photographer which children do not have consent, how to identify them, and to avoid taking images of them.
• Make sure these children do not feel excluded, and consider other activities or actions to include them.

Source: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024).

Sport Integrity Australia's guidelines say images and video of children and young people must be stored securely:

• Hard copies are stored securely or returned to the parent, carer or child.
• Electronic images are kept on a club-approved device in a protected folder with restricted access.
• Images are not stored on unprotected portable equipment such as memory sticks or portable hard drives. Images on laptops or phones should be password protected and accessible only to those who need them for their role.
• Images (hard copy or digital) are destroyed or deleted once no longer required.
• Best practice is to inventory all images (file name, people in the image, date created and date to be destroyed) and keep records of who has access.
• If the club relies on equipment supplied by volunteers, it must put practices in place to protect the images, including the storage media in the cameras.

When sharing, only use images according to the consent given, for official purposes relating to the sport. Play by the Rules also advises minimising the chance of people being identified, for example by not naming them. Photos posted online can be copied and reused for unintended purposes.

Sources: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024); Play by the Rules, Taking and Sharing Images at Sport (June 2025).

Sport Integrity Australia says that where events involving children and young people are live streamed, the club or organisation should:

• give parents and carers details of the event and where it will be live streamed
• get written consent from parents and carers for their child to take part in the live streamed event; for regular streams such as weekly games, one consent form at the start of the season can cover all the games
• not film a child whose parent or carer has not consented
• decide how to accommodate children whose parents have not consented. The guidelines say the sport is best placed to make that decision.

Source: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024).

Play by the Rules says laws on photography and filming in Australia are limited. They generally relate to voyeuristic images, surveillance devices and image-based abuse (sharing or threatening to share intimate images without consent).

At events in public areas, there are no laws restricting photography of people, including children, as long as the images are not illegal. Sport Integrity Australia lists images as illegal if they are:

• indecent (such as "up skirt" or "down-blouse" photos)
• taken covertly in change rooms or toilets
• taken or used for sexual pleasure
• for the purpose of observing a person's genital or anal region
• protected by a court order (such as child custody or witness protection)
• defamatory
• taken of a person for commercial purposes (to endorse or sell a product) without their knowledge and consent.

It is also illegal to produce, share or distribute child sexual abuse images, including images of someone's own child. In public areas, organisers cannot impose extra photography rules on the public, but should tell participants, parents and spectators that photos can be taken without prior consent.

At private venues (a club's own facility, or school or council venues), the venue owner can restrict, ban or require permission for photography anywhere in the venue.

Sources: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024); Play by the Rules, Taking and Sharing Images at Sport (June 2025).

• At events in public areas: the law does not stop you taking photos, but Sport Integrity Australia says that if a person asks for their photo not to be taken, the request should be respected.
• If a club's policy applies to you (for example you are a member or at the club's own venue): where someone is taking photos or filming against the club's policy, they should be asked to stop and delete any images they have taken. For an unknown person, the event organiser or management should ask them to respect the club's safeguarding policy, stop and delete the photos.
• Adults and members: Play by the Rules says if someone raises a concern about being included or wants an image removed, respect that request if it is reasonable in the circumstances.
• Children: a child or young person who does not wish to be photographed or filmed should not be.

Sources: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024); Play by the Rules, Taking and Sharing Images at Sport (June 2025).

Sport Integrity Australia's guidelines say everyone in the club (staff, volunteers, children, young people and parents or carers) should be given the name and contact details of the person to report to, and told how to make a report. Concerns can be about how images are being taken, who is taking them, where, or if someone is uncomfortable being photographed.

• Report to the person responsible at the club, such as the Child Safe Officer, Integrity Officer or Complaints Officer. In a sport signed up to the National Integrity Framework, the complaint is addressed under its Complaints, Disputes and Discipline Policy.
• Concerns about a professional photographer can also be reported to their employer or, for a self-employed photographer, the Consumer Affairs Agency.
• If there are concerns or suspicions about potentially criminal behaviour, this should include referral to the police.
• Sport Integrity Australia's Safe Sport Hotline is 1800 161 361.

Source: Sport Integrity Australia, Photography and Filming of Children and Young People in Sport (February 2024).