# The committee handover checklist

> What to hand over, who signs, who must be told, and what a new committee checks first.

Web page: https://ecec.org.au/resources/committee-handover-checklist

Published Monday 26 October 2026. Last checked Monday 26 October 2026.

This checklist helps a committee hand over well when its members change.

It is for a preschool run by a NSW incorporated association, which may also be a registered charity.

## Before outgoing members leave

- Members who leave must hand the association’s documents to the public officer within 14 days.
- A former public officer must give those documents to a committee member within 14 days.
- Each change should go in the register of committee members.

A handover pack can hold:

- the constitution, and the minutes and registers
- the accounts and the latest financial statements
- the funding agreement and the department’s guidelines
- staff contracts, and which award covers each person
- the service’s policies and procedures
- the logins the service holds, such as the bank and the ACNC Charity Portal

## Who signs

- The committee must appoint a public officer, who must be over 18 and live in NSW.
- If the public officer leaves, the committee must fill the role within 28 days.
- The new public officer must tell NSW Fair Trading.
- The public officer is always one of the people who can sign documents. That does not make them a signer at the bank.
- The association must have at least 2 authorised signatories, who can sign official documents.
- The committee may appoint other members as authorised signatories.
- When signatories change, the committee should tell its regular contacts.
- So check who can sign at the bank, as well as who signs documents.

## Who must be told

- If it is a registered charity, tell the ACNC when someone joins or leaves the committee.
- The ACNC calls committee members Responsible People.
- Tell the ACNC as soon as you reasonably can.
- The latest is 28 days for a medium or large charity.
- A small charity has up to 60 days.
- The state regulator still needs to hear of changes too.
- In NSW, the regulator is the NSW Early Learning Commission.
- A person with management or control may join or leave. The provider then tells the regulator within 14 days (section 173(1)(b)).
- Not every committee member counts as one.
- Check each person’s role against the Commission’s guidance.
- Those who do have the same legal duties as the provider.
- Each new one fills in the fitness and propriety form before the notice.
- Those in child-related work in NSW also give a current Working with Children Check.

## The new committee’s first meeting

- Each member should know the constitution and their legal duties.
- Existing members should make sure new members know their duties under the law.
- Members must disclose any interest that conflicts with their duties.
- The annual general meeting must be held within 6 months after the financial year closes.
- The committee should check and sign off payments often, at least at each meeting.

Questions to ask:

- Which decisions sit with the director, and which with the committee?
- Who holds each login, and who else can reach it if they leave?
- When is the next annual general meeting?

## Sources

- [NSW Fair Trading, Running an incorporated association, updated 1 April 2026](https://www.nsw.gov.au/business-and-economy/incorporated-associations/running-an-incorporated-association)
- [NSW Fair Trading, Management committee obligations, updated 16 May 2025](https://www.nsw.gov.au/business-and-economy/incorporated-associations/running-an-incorporated-association/management-committee-obligations)
- [Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission, Notifying the ACNC, read 26 October 2026](https://www.acnc.gov.au/for-charities/manage-your-charity/notifying-acnc)
- [ACECQA, Notification types and timeframes, updated 7 October 2026](https://www.acecqa.gov.au/resources/applications/notification-types-and-timeframes)
- [Notifying the NSW Early Learning Commission of persons with management or control, updated 2 October 2026](https://education.nsw.gov.au/early-childhood-education/operating-an-early-childhood-education-service/setting-up-a-new-service/notifying-the-regulatory-authority-of-persons-with-management-or)

This is general information for NSW community preschools, current at the date shown. For advice on your own service’s position, ask a qualified adviser.

Committee handover is part of the Forum’s governance discussion: [book a place](https://ecec.org.au/?utm_source=resources&utm_medium=site&utm_content=committee-handover-checklist#tickets), $500 + GST ($550 total) per person.

## Contact

A form on the website. The Forum team reads every message and replies by email within two business days. Ask us on the [contact page](https://ecec.org.au/contact).