How Qld childcare centres are changing to protect children from predators

Child protection warrior Hetty Johnston says the risk of men to children was “simply too high” and that she wouldn’t hire any male workers if she owned a childcare centre.

Child protection warrior Hetty Johnston.

Queensland childcare centres are taking security measures into their own hands amid sickening child sex abuse allegations that has prompted a leading advocate to declare she wouldn’t send her child to a daycare with male staff.

This week’s arrest of a Melbourne childcare worker on 70 charges of alleged child sex abuse has also prompted Education Minister John-Paul Langbroek to call an urgent roundtable of sector stakeholders in Cairns for July 9.

Queensland parents shouldn’t expect immediate state-based reform, with the government to wait for a wide-ranging review of the Blue Card system and nationally-driven reforms to standardise working with children checks.

But some centres in Queensland — and across the country — have taken it upon themselves to install CCTV and initiate personal phone bans in order to keep children safe and put parents at ease.

This includes Australia’s largest not-for-profit childcare chain Goodstart, which has installed CCTV in 13 of its Queensland centres with plans to roll it out to the remaining 200 in the state. The company did not provide a timeline for the rollout.

Minister for Education and the Arts John-Paul Langbroek. Picture: Liam Kidston

There is not yet a state mandate on CCTV to watch over the 208,710 Queensland children in centre-based and family day care, unlike New South Wales which will require every centre to have cameras by September 1.

It’s understood installing CCTV in centres can cost up to $50,000, excluding storage and monitoring of the footage.

Child protection warrior Hetty Johnston said the risk of men to children was “simply too high” and that she “wouldn’t send my child to a daycare where a man is employed”.

“If I owned a childcare centre I wouldn’t hire males to work there,” she said.

“I know that is insulting to men and the majority of men are not a problem but until every worker is equipped to recognise warning signs of abuse and keep children safe then every risk must be minimised.”

Ms Johnston has been pushing state and federal governments for a national training plan designed to teach childcare workers how to best safeguard children.

She will present her training plan — which has been crafted in collaboration with experts like eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant — to stakeholders including educate and justice department executives.

Mr Langbroek said the alleged incidents in Victoria were the “worst nightmare of any parent dropping their kids at childcare”.

Ashley Paul Griffith is facing more than 1600 charges.

“The alleged incidents in Victoria are the worst nightmare of any parent dropping their kids at childcare,” Mr Langbroek said.

“A historic Queensland Commission of Inquiry, a Blue Card Review, an overhaul of residential care and bolstering the early childhood regulatory watchdog are all part of our plan to make our kids safer in care,” he said.

“A national approach is the best way to keep children safe but this is too important to wait, we are moving forward with significant work to improve safety of Queensland kids in care.”

State and territory governments have responsibility for child protection and enforcement in childcare centres while the Commonwealth funds providers.

The Blue Card system review, led by the Queensland Family and Child Commission, was sparked by pedophile Ashley Paul Griffith who was last year convicted of 307 offences including abuse of 65 young girls at 11 Brisbane childcare centres over a 20-year period.

The review, launched in January, will be completed in October at the earliest.

An interim report has already found early childhood educators were dissuaded from speaking up about potential child sex abuse because centres were concerned about their reputation or running into legal trouble.

It also highlighted complex and crowded regulations could have impacted training for staff to effectively respond to child sexual abuse.

The state government has also highlighted it implemented extra child safety protection training for staff in all early childhood services in April — the first state to do so.

An extra $12.7m was also set aside in the latest budget so the Early Childhood Regulatory Authority can employ 29 extra full-time compliance officers.

Attorney-General Deb Frecklington will also move too fast track legislation to develop a reportable conduct scheme that will mandate abuse reporting in Queensland.

“It’s clear from the horrific events in Queensland, and now the alleged offences in Victoria, that we need an urgent national approach to improve child protection systems,” she said.

“Child protection doesn’t stop at one centre or one state and that is why I raised what was happening in Queensland at the last meeting of the Standing Council of Attorneys-General.”

Mr Twyford, in his capacity as Child Death Review Board chairman, said he was open to considering any child protection measures.

“The Child Death Review Board’s review of system responses to child sexual abuse is looking at what improvements might be needed to laws, policies and practices across early childhood education and care systems,” he said.

“The review is ongoing and I am open to considering any measures which would help to keep children safe.”