No Jab No Play legislation evaluation

19 February 2024

In Western Australia (WA), No Jab No Play (NJNPlay) legislation came into effect on 22 July 2019. This legislation required children to be up-to-date with their immunisations to enrol in child care services, pre-kindergarten and kindergarten programs, with limited exceptions. In 2021, Curtin University was awarded a service agreement to conduct an evaluation aiming to:

  • compare the immunisation coverage of children before and after the NJNPlay legislationwas introduced
  • investigate the impact and identify any unintended consequences of the NJNPlaylegislation on families, early childhood educators and health professionals.

The evaluation included:

  • a descriptive analysis of immunisation coverage using annualised data from theAustralian Immunisation Register for 2017 to 2021
    online surveys and semi-structured interviews with families, early childhood educatorsand health professionals between May and September 2022.

The Department of Health is currently implementing recommendations from this report.

Read the report: Evaluating the impact of the No Jab No Play legislation (400KB).

Last reviewed: 19-02-2024
Produced by

Communicable Disease Control Directorate