Whistleblower Danyse Soester warns former premier Jay Weatherill ‘cannot be trusted’ to run childcare review

A mother who triggered a major child sex abuse probe is urgently warning parents that former premier Jay Weatherill “cannot be trusted” to run Victoria’s childcare review.

Danyse Soester is calling for ex-Labor premier Jay Weatherill to be dropped from Victoria’s review into child safety. Picture: Simon Cross

A childcare provider has revealed allegations were investigated against ­accused pedophile Joshua Brown including that he had “aggressively” manhandled children in his care.

It comes as a South Australian mother who challenged former Labor premier Jay Weatherill and triggered a major child sex abuse investigation a decade ago claims he “cannot be trusted” to run Victoria’s childcare review.

The review was launched this month following the arrest of Mr Brown, who was charged with more than 70 offences ­related to sexual assault and using technology to offend.

It has now been revealed that Mr Brown was also at the centre of two internal investigations unrelated to his child sexual abuse charges while employed at G8 Education from October 2021 to February 2024.

Page 10 of the Herald Sun on July 4, 2025.

In an email to families on Saturday, obtained by the Sunday Herald Sun, G8 Education said Mr Brown in 2023 allegedly “aggressively picked up and put down and did not ­uphold the dignity and rights of a child in his care” while the child was upset.

In another alleged incident, in 2024, Mr Brown “forcibly grabbed the arm of one child, the leg of another child and forcibly pulled off that child’s shoe”.

According to the email, Mr Brown was suspended during the second investigation and eventually resigned.

G8 Education assured families it informed the department, Victoria Police and families of both incidents at the time.

It comes amid new calls for Mr Weatherill, a former SA Labor premier who has been tasked with fixing safety protocols in Victoria’s childcare sector, to step aside.

Premier Jacinta Allan appointed Mr Weatherill to lead the inquiry this month, calling him the best person for the job, despite his government’s damning response to child protection failures in SA.

However, whistleblower ­Danyse Soester, whose advocacy work forced the Weatherill government to apologise for a child sex assault cover-up, said she believed he “cannot be trusted” to run the review.

Mr Weatherill was forced to apologise following an inquiry prompted by Ms Soester for the failure to notify parents that an after-school-care staff member had been ­arrested for the sexual assault of a seven-year-old girl.

The probe, known as the ­Debelle Inquiry, also led the Education Department to admit to “a sobering chronicle of failure at every level of the department”.

“Jay Weatherill refused to front (a parliamentary inquiry) and answer any questions,” Ms Soester said.

“He wanted to tick a box and have it buried and it all go away.”

The concerned mother had sparked the investigation after challenging a directive that she and other parents were to ­remain silent about the rape at their children’s school.

Mr Weatherill was also forced to apologise for “failing in this most fundamental duty” of keeping children safe following a probe into SA’s state care.

The call comes after alleged childcare sex offender Joshua Brown was named to the public. Picture: Supplied

Melbourne dad Hayden Glaister said he was “appalled” by the news of Mr Weatherill’s appointment, which he described as a “hollow gesture to placate rightfully outraged parents rather than a serious effort to address the horrific failures that allowed these crimes to happen”.

“As a parent of a child at Creative Garden during Joshua Brown’s employment, I’m furious with the failures of the childcare system and the authorities tasked with its oversight,” he said.

He also raised concerns about Mr Weatherill’s Labor Party affiliation, saying parents needed “proper investigation and reform” and “not potential political manoeuvring”.

“Our children, Victoria’s children, deserve the best possible protection, and, as it stands, I do not believe that this review will do that.”

Mr Weatherill said the review was “an opportunity to strengthen the systems that support families, educators, and communities across Victoria”.

“I accepted this role because every child deserves to be safe, nurtured, and protected, especially in the places where they learn and grow,” he said.

“I have dedicated much of my working life to reform in this sector and ensuring the safety of every child in every early childhood setting, because nothing is more important.”

Ms Allan has defended Mr Weatherill, who leads the Minderoo Foundation’s Thrive by Five early learning campaign.

“He knows the questions to ask, he has seen where the system hasn’t supported children, he can see where vulnerabilities have lay in the past,” she said.

Opposition education spokeswoman Jess Wilson also raised doubts over Mr Weatherill’s appointment as she called on the premier to recall parliament to pass reforms immediately. “Jay Weatherill has admitted that his own government failed to adequately protect vulnerable children in South Australia, so how can Victorian families have confidence in him leading this review into improving child safety in Victoria?” she said.

Originally published as Whistleblower Danyse Soester warns former premier Jay Weatherill ‘cannot be trusted’ to run childcare review