Shocking claims baby bashed at Brisbane childcare centre

A Brisbane family say they are taking legal action against a childcare centre, claiming their baby boy was left battered and bruised by an older child.

A Brisbane family is pursuing legal action against a childcare centre, claiming their baby boy was left battered and bruised by an older child.

Seven-month-old Jack Swindells was lying on a mat waiting for a nappy change when staff left him unsupervised momentarily and a four-year-old scratched, bit and beat him.

Jacks mother, Angela Swindells, told ABC’s 7.30 that staff contacted her saying her son had been scratched on the head during his second visit to the centre on Brisbane’s northside.

“I was at work and took the call from the daycare – they told me that Jack had been scratched on his head, and it was normal policy for them to call when anything [like that] happens. So I just said, ‘OK, no problem’,” she said.

Ms Swindells was horrified to see the true extent of Jack’s injuries that afternoon when she went to pick him and his older sister up.

A Brisbane family claims their son Jack was left battered and bruised by an older child while at daycare. Picture: ABC 7.30/Angela Swindells

A Brisbane family claims their son Jack was left battered and bruised by an older child while at daycare. Picture: ABC 7.30/Angela Swindells

She claims staff tried to assure her that an educator was in the room at the time of the incident, which lasted ‘mere seconds’.

“I was furious. He had black eyes, he’d been hit with a wooden jigsaw puzzle piece that had left an imprint on the back of his head, he had bite marks on his arms, scratches all over his face,” she said.

“When I took my son to the doctor [they] told me that his injuries... would have been sustained over several minutes.”

Only when Ms Swindells complained to the centre did they discover that the infants had been temporarily left alone in a room with older children, unsupervised.

An email from the childcare centre stated that the ‘extremely remorseful’ educator supervising at the time is writing a critical reflection on the incident.

“This took place when she went to change a child’s nappy; despite having adequate staff for the amount of children, we must be more mindful of when to carry out other tasks.’

“No nappy changes will be carried out when the dynamic of children left in the room may cause an issue, unless an educator is present. We will not underestimate what can happen in a short period of time.”

Ms Swindells lawyer, Sharntiesha Hogan from Shine Lawyers, said their caseload has involved an increase in injuries sustained at childcare centres across Australia, including one where a child broke their back.

“Across the board, we’re typically seeing incidents where children are falling from heights. So falling from tables or chairs, incidents where children are falling from play equipment and injuring themselves, and where children being physically attacked by other children,” Ms Hogan said.

“For example, we have one incident where a child fell from a tree and they’ve actually broken their back from that.

“And the common factor across all of those incidents really comes back to the lack of supervision.”

A Brisbane family claims their son Jack was left battered and bruised by an older child while at daycare. Picture: ABC 7.30/Angela Swindells

A Brisbane family claims their son Jack was left battered and bruised by an older child while at daycare. Picture: ABC 7.30/Angela Swindells

According to the ABC, 2021-22 data shows there were 27,551 confirmed breaches of the national laws at approved early-childhood education services across the country, with a 10 per cent increase in confirmed breaches over the last five years, most frequently related to failing to protect children from harm and hazards and inadequate supervision of children.

Federal Early Childhood Education Minister Anne Aly told 7.30 that the government did not know why that was the case, pointing to there being more children in care and more early childhood education and care providers.

“We have asked ACECQA (Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority) to review childcare safety standards and look into child safety,” she said.

As childcare workers seek a 25 per cent pay rise experts say interventions is needed urgently to address the ‘broken’ system.

Professor Susie Garvis from Griffith University’s Institute for Educational Research said critical staffing shortages have led to safety standards being compromised in Australian childcare settings.

“It is beyond a crisis. And unless something is done, we will not have an early childhood education system in Australia anymore,” she said.

“Early childhood educators are one of the worst paid professions, but the work that they do is one of the strongest contributions to society.”