Criterion HS310
All practicable steps are taken to ensure that noise levels in any ECE activity room do not unduly interfere with normal speech and/or communication, or cause any child attending distress or harm.
Guidance
How to show you are complying
To support children’s wellbeing and communication, you must take all practicable steps to ensure that noise levels in any ECE activity room do not unduly interfere with normal speech or cause distress or harm.
You can take practicable steps to address noise levels when designing or modifying the ECE activity room and when it is operating. These practicable steps can relate to noise levels affecting your service from activity outside your service (such as road traffic and neighbouring activity) and from activity within your service (such as children and air conditioning equipment).
Design & modification
Good planning and thoughtful design can go a long way in minimising noise issues before they arise. Both noise levels and reverberation affect how well people can communicate. When designing or modifying your service environment, aim to minimise reverberation and prevent external noise from entering the space.
Reverberation is to the persistence of sound in a space after the original sound source has stopped. It occurs when sound waves reflect off surfaces such as walls, ceilings, and floors, causing a prolonged echo effect. Excessive reverberation can interfere with clear communication, particularly in large or acoustically hard environments.
Some practicable steps you can take to reduce noise in indoor areas include:
locate access doors and opening windows where they are not exposed to environmental noise
use a lobby, indirect or staggered access doors to reduce noise entering from outside
provide a mechanical ventilation and temperature control system if doors and windows need to be kept closed to reduce noise entering from outside
use acoustic absorption materials such as ceiling tiles, carpets, curtains, soft furnishings, and acoustic panels
design fixed furniture and fittings to reduce reflections between parallel walls and reverberation
use soft-close doors and rubber stoppers.
Operation
The manner of operation and management of your service is important to control noise levels. Some practicable steps you can take to reduce noise include:
monitor and respond to noise levels
schedule high-energy activities away from quiet zones
limit background music and avoid amplified sound unless necessary
establish clear expectations with children about acceptable noise indoors, supporting them to self-regulate in a developmentally appropriate way
keep doors and windows closed if required to reduce outdoor noise entering the building
maintain acoustic absorption materials and replace when required.
After licensing, you should continue to monitor and manage noise levels. Changes such as new activity programming, or nearby construction can all contribute to rising noise.
If these situations occur, consider:
attempt to ascertain the length of time the noise might occur
how the risks to children and adults will be mitigated
how this information will be communicated to parents.
When assessing whether you comply with HS310
Questions we are likely to ask
What steps do you take to manage noise levels?
We are likely to look at, measure or count
How noise is managed.
The impact of noise on children.
The tools below are here to support you, but you do not have to use them. You can use other tools or methods that work better for your service.
World Health Organisation information about the impact of noise is below.
Noise – World Health Organisation
Designing Quality Learning Spaces | Designing Schools in New Zealand
Designing Quality Learning Spaces | Designing Schools in New Zealand PDF 5KB
Reverberation can be measured as reverberation time (RT) at different sound frequencies (Hz). For unoccupied learning spaces in primary schools, the RT (500Hz/1000Hz average) is typically between 0.4 and 0.5 seconds. For smaller spaces, RTs should be at the lower end of the range.
Managing noise levels matters because loud environments can affect children’s learning, health, and behaviour. Too much noise makes it harder to hear and understand speech, which is key for language development and social interaction.
It can also reduce focus, increase stress, and over time may lead to hearing problems for both children and staff. Long-term exposure can cause fatigue and irritability, impacting behaviour and engagement in learning.
Doing more than the minimum can shape better outcomes for children. Here are some ideas or examples you might like to consider.
You may want to include noise management in your regular health and safety reviews, and update your policies and practices as needed.
Practical tips
To support a calm and communicative environment, you should create designated quiet zones for rest and emotional regulation. Using rugs, cushions, and soft toys can help absorb sound, and you should avoid placing noisy equipment.
Engaging children in noise awareness activities—like sound walks or quiet games—can also be a fun and educational way to build awareness.
Some services use a device such as a traffic light that indicates when noise volumes are too high, and children can be reminded to lower the noise levels.
Providing staff with training on noise management and communication strategies is another valuable step. This makes sure your team is equipped to respond to noise concerns and support children effectively.