Victorian childcare centres failing families

Every fortnight a Victorian childcare operator fails so badly it is given a government warning, with babies dying, toddlers escaping onto busy roads and children left behind in centres and family day care.

Every fortnight a Victorian childcare operator fails so badly it is given a government warning, with babies dying, toddlers escaping onto busy roads and children left behind in centres and family day care.

Since 2020, more than 130 childcare operators across Victoria have been sanctioned for putting kids at risk, with the highest number of incidents in Point Cook, Truganina and Tarneit, where working families are desperate for safe, affordable care.

Despite families paying record fees, and the government pouring billions into the sector, serious incidents continue to mount.

Children have escaped from childcare, been disciplined inappropriately, cared for by criminals, housed in unsafe premises and exposed to harm, newly released data from the state enforcement action register shows.

So far in 2025, four enforcement notices have been issued, with 38 centres sanctioned in 2024 - the highest in five years.

The 2025 sanctions include an emergency action notice for Bambini Child Care, with parents warned children were at “immediate risk” in February.

More than 50 family day care centres operated by Bambini were shut temporarily while safety audits were completed after the death of a baby.

Playground of Brighton Child Care/kinder centre Bambini Juniors. Picture: Supplied

Victoria’s childcare shame file includes centres operated by chains where accused abuser Joshua Brown worked, including Creative Garden (run by G8), Leopold World of Learning, Greenwood and Explorers Early Learning. The Creative Garden Centre in Wallan was sanctioned for failure to keep proper staff records and keep children from harm in 2021 and

the Creative Garden Centre in Cheltenham was issued with an order for inadequate supervision in 2020.

In May last year, Only About Children in Eynesbury was probed over a spate of incidents including a girl being hit, punched and kicked, and children being left unsupervised to play with scissors and scale fences.

Also in 2024, Goodstart Learning in Carrum Downs faced an investigation after a staff member “forcefully” picked up three young children.

Productivity Commission data also shows more than 660 children were locked in or out of childcare services, or couldn’t be unaccounted for in the last financial year. Another 4647 children were injured, became ill or experienced trauma while in care, with emergency services called to childcare services 834 times in 2023-24.

In total, there were 6142 serious incidents at approved childcare centres, family day care, before and after school care and preschools across the state.