Daylight saving and your child's sleep

This guide is general information only and isn't a substitute for medical advice. If you're concerned about your child's health, or they're unwell, please see a doctor.

Twice a year the clocks move and every parent of a young child braces. The good news: many children adjust within several days to around a week, and a little planning makes it a non-event. In Australia, daylight saving applies in NSW, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT, and not in Queensland, Western Australia or the Northern Territory (timeanddate.com).

The two changes, and which is harder

Clocks go forward on the first Sunday in October and back on the first Sunday in April (timeanddate.com). The autumn change (clocks back) is usually the tougher one for children who already wake early, because 6am becomes 5am overnight. The spring change (clocks forward) tends to help early wakers and challenge night owls.

The gradual approach

If your child is sensitive to change, shift their whole schedule (naps, meals, bedtime) by 10 to 15 minutes a day for four or five days before the changeover. By the time the clocks move, they're already most of the way there and the official change barely registers.

The do-nothing approach

For many children, the simplest option is to do nothing and just switch to the new clock time on the day. Keep bedtime and naps at the correct new-clock times and let a few days of good light exposure and consistent routine pull the body clock across. Most children are settled within about a week.

If your family straddles states, for example travelling from Queensland into New South Wales during daylight saving, treat it like a small time-zone change rather than a clock change: hold your child's usual body-clock timing for a short trip, and shift gradually only if you're staying longer. The underlying principle is the same every time, which is that light and routine reset the body clock far more reliably than fretting over the exact minute on the clock.

Tips that help either way

• Use light deliberately: bright morning light and outdoor play help reset the body clock; a dark room protects against early waking after the autumn change.
• Hold your bedtime routine steady, so the timing shifts but the cues don't.
• For the clocks-back change, good blackout is your best defence against a new 5am start.
• Don't over-manage it. Consistency for a week does most of the work.

Sources

• Time and Date, Daylight saving time in Australia
• Raising Children Network, Toddler sleep

Last updated: July 2026. Sources include Red Nose Australia and Raising Children Network where cited above. This guide is general information only. For individual concerns, see your GP or child health nurse.