Parents contacted by cops as they probe man who worked with children in Sydney’s north and CBD

More than 1000 families are living any parent’s worst nightmare, after finding out their child attended after-school care centres where an alleged paedophile lurked.

Police have confirmed more than 1000 families have been contacted.

More than 1000 Sydney families are confronting one of the most harrowing situations any parent can face, after finding out their child attended one of multiple after-school care services where an alleged paedophile lurked.

The male worker, who cannot be identified due to strict court orders preventing his identity or former workplaces being revealed, was charged by federal police in October last year and continues to be held behind bars with bail refused.

The man has been charged with more than a dozen offences, including multiple charges related to the aggravated use of a child under 14 years old for the production of child abuse material, and possession of child abuse material.

Australian Federal Police confirmed on Thursday that police had contacted the parents and carers of kids who may have had contact with the man, informing them of the investigation spanning Sydney’s CBD and northern suburbs.

“Based on information currently available, investigators believe the alleged behaviour of the man involves a very small number of children, however, the parents and carers of any child who may have had contact with the man has received a letter,” an AFP statement read.

Police have reached out as part of an ongoing child protection investigation involving a man previously employed in roles working with children. Picture: NewsWire / Gaye Gerard

The Daily Telegraph is aware that families at a school-based out-of-school-hours (OOSH) centre on Sydney’s upper north shore are among those contacted on Tuesday night.

In the letter they received, the alleged offender’s gender and nature of the charges levelled against him were omitted.

“I am writing to let you know that the Australian Federal Police, with the assistance of the NSW Police Force are investigating an allegation of inappropriate conduct towards children by a former employee of (the centre),” the email read.

“Records indicate this person worked at (the centre) at the time that your child attended.

“Based on information currently to hand, Police believe it is highly unlikely the alleged behaviour of the employee directly involved your child (or children) however, we are writing to ensure you are informed of these allegations so you can continue to support your child (or children).”

A father of two young girls, aged 8 and 10, enrolled at the school’s OOSH said when he contacted the principal, she confirmed that she had only been made aware of an issue at the co-located centre one day before parents were contacted.

The principal “didn’t know the full contents of the email” and was not informed of the nature of the allegations, and told the father that the school, students and staff had not been interviewed by police.

“The thing that really upset me in the email (from police) is that they said it was ‘highly unlikely’ my kids are involved, but ... how do you know if no-one’s asked them?” he said.

Adding to parents’ unease, he said, the centre itself has had “zero” communication with families about the investigation, and “fobbed off” his phone call.

“You pay for someone to look after your kids, and you trust that they’re going to be okay, that they’re going to be safe,” he said.

“I think it’s crazy that everyone’s been told to keep quiet … Keeping it from (parents) is not the right way to go about this.”

Premier Chris Minns defended the decision of authorities to only recently alert parents, saying it was often imperative for investigators to keep operations “clandestine” in order to achieve a conviction.

“A lack of notification is usually related to ongoing inquiries,” he said.

“These cases are difficult, they’re difficult to prosecute, the briefs are difficult to gather in terms of available evidence and we want to make sure that justice is done.”

However, Mr Minns acknowledged the letter sent to parents informing them of the alleged offender’s potential contact with their children would be “confronting”.

Child abuse researcher and registered psychologist Daryl Higgins said while the notification was necessary, it should have come from the school, “scaffolded” with “a demonstration” for what the conversation with your kids “looks like in practice”.

Professor Daryl Higgins, the director of ACU’s Institute of Child Protection Studies

“Ideally the communication should come from the school, not the police,” he said.

“If you’ve never practiced asking those open-ended questions yourself, how is that when you’re faced with one of the scariest situations you could confront as a parent, you’re left out on your own?”

Professor Higgins recommended affected families access resources from the National Office for Child Safety, including the organisation’s One Talk At A Time campaign.

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