Ex-employee ‘gagged’ after leaving Lara Kidscape

A former employee of a Lara kindergarten says she was “gagged” after leaving her former workplace, as authorities confirm it an investigation into the centre continues.

Kidscape Lara still has its HEI branding. Picture: Alison Wynd

A former worker at a Lara kindergarten at the centre of a probe into multiple complaints from parents, claims she has been “gagged” from speaking out about issues at the business..

The ex-employee of Lara Kidscape, who the Geelong Advertiser has chosen not to name, says she was sent a “cease and desist” notice after posting an “honest” online review of her former workplace.

The Lara kindergarten has been under investigation by the Department of Education since April, following reports of “extreme” violence among children.

The former employee said she started working as an educator at the kindergarten when it operated as HEI Lara Centre.

She said she continued working under then new management when it was bought by Vantage Education for $1.2m in 2024.

The educator said she stayed on during the transition as she felt loyal to the families and workplace, but finally decided to resign after the stress got “too much”.

“The rooms still lack proper resources,” she said.

“I reached a point where I can no longer tolerate the environment – there’s been ongoing discrimination, and recently they tried to issue me a formal warning based on false allegations.”

She said she had contacted the union and the company had reversed the allegations.

She said after resigning she wrote an online review expressing her “genuine concern” about the centre.

Her complaints included noticing the chef, who was on maternity leave, had not been replaced but instead management “with no cooking experience” had been preparing meals.

“I’m genuinely concerned about how this is being handled,” she said.

“I’m not even sure if it complies with legal or regulatory standards.”

She said she was immediately sent a cease and desist notice, claiming she had breached her contractual obligations by “public sharing of confidential operational details, disparaging remarks regarding the service”.

The notice warned the review could be interpreted as “attempting to damage the employer’s relationship with its employees and families” within 12 months of her employment.

A Department of Education spokesman confirmed Lara Kidscape was still under investigation following multiple made by parents.

“The safety of children is our number one priority, and our early childhood regulator takes all notifications seriously,” he said.

“As the incident is under investigation, we are unable to comment further.”

In April, Kidscape chief executive Glenn Nguyen said many of the issues being investigated existed before the takeover and were being actively addressed.

Mr Nguyen said the Department of Education’s involvement was a standard regulatory process, rather than a targeted investigation, with many of the issues pre-existing Kidscape’s managment of the centre.

Kidscape Lara has been contacted for comment.

Originally published as Ex-employee ‘gagged’ after leaving Lara Kidscape