Education ministers have agreed on a suite of new moves aimed at keeping kids safer in early childhood learning centres. Photo: File.
Mobile phones will be banned from childcare centres, CCTV cameras will be trialled and a national register of childcare workers will be set up, under new reforms agreed to by the nation’s education ministers.
Federal, state and territory education ministers met in Sydney on Friday (22 August) for a special purpose meeting on child safety in early education and care.
It follows recent news of shocking cases of sexual abuse of children in some Victorian childcare and early childhood education centres, and further revelations of wider abuse in other centres around the nation.
The ministers emerged from the meeting with agreement on several measures in response to these incidents, in a bid to help protect children in care.
Those measures are:
- A national register of childcare workers;
- National mandatory child safety training for all workers in early education and care centres;
- A national assessment of CCTV and a trial of cameras in up to 300 centres across the country later this year;
- Banning of mobile phones in childcare centres from September, with proactive enforcement by state and territory regulators;
- The provision of more information for parents so they know the conditions of the centres their children are attending.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said more measures would follow, but it was hoped this step would make a positive difference.
“Is it everything we need to do? No, of course it is not. But it is the next thing we must do and we have agreed to do today,” Mr Clare said.
“This is not the end. The awful truth is this work will never end because there will always be bad people who try to poke holes in the system and find vulnerabilities.
“I thank again my state and territory colleagues for the work we have done together today.
“I think the work we have done will make a real meaningful difference.”
CCTV cameras will be introduced from October this year, with $189 million of Commonwealth funding to kick the rollout off, with a focus on helping small, medium and not-for-profit operators install them.
National child safety training will start next year, developed by the Australian Centre for Child Protection.
And a National Educator Register that will be mandatory once set up.
“We are very conscious in everything that we do here that training people who work in our centres to be able to spot a person who might be hiding in plain sight, up to bad things … could be the most crucial and important thing that we do here to help keep our kids safe,” Mr Clare said.
“On the national register, work on that will begin immediately.
“It will require changes to the national law and legislation and we will pilot that and trial that in December of this year, with it rolling up from February of next year.”
Random inspections of centres from the federal Education Department officers will also increase.
Mr Clare was at pains to stress that most childcare workers were decent people who “dedicate their lives to one of the most important jobs in the world” and were just as “shocked and sickened” as all Australians were over the reports of child abuses in centres.
“You are the best asset that we have here and thank you for everything that you do for us and our kids,” he said.
ACT Early Childhood Minister Yvette Berry described the outcome of the meeting as a “momentous day” for early childhood education, adding that the Commonwealth funding commitment was hugely significant.
“This is the most funding I have seen invested in the sector since the national quality framework over a decade ago,” she said.
The United Workers Union welcomed the measures, but said staffing levels at childcare centres – which the ministers have agreed to look at – should also be a priority.
The union’s early education director Carolyn Smith said it was a matter of safety.
“Educators have been unable to devote their full attention to the education and care of children because of widespread understaffing,” she said.
“Recent tragic child safety issues further highlight a sector that has faced rapid growth but has been unable to put in place the necessary safeguards around staffing.
“Educators will broadly welcome moves at state and federal levels to improve coordination across jurisdictions, introduce a mandatory register, bring in national safety training and tighten regulations around child safety.
“However, they see understaffing as a fundamental issue that needs to be addressed in any reforms to the sector.
“In this light, we note the announcement of a CCTV trial. We will continue to flag our concerns around the cost and risks of a CCTV rollout coming at the expense of sensible staffing decisions.
“It is great news that education ministers have asked the Early Childhood Regulator to examine ratios, which should include examining a staffing loophole used by providers, called the ‘under the roof’ ratio.
“This loophole needs to be closed to address very real concerns about children’s wellbeing and safety.”
