It is implied by governing organizations that Australia is presently experiencing its first national curriculum reform, when as the title suggests it is the second. However, until now Australian states and territories have been responsible for the education curriculum delivered within schools. The present national curriculum reform promises one curriculum framework for health and physical education (HPE), currently under review. This paper explores the history of Australian curriculum reform in the HPE key learning area, revealing that the present review offers an opportunity to focus on the vital ‘implementation’ stage which seems to be continually overlooked.