An investigation has revealed that tens of thousands of children across Australia are attending childcare centres that do not meet national standards. Around one in 10 childcare centres has never been rated, and many others fail to meet required benchmarks, raising concerns over the quality of care.
A report by Four Corners has uncovered flaws in the current regulatory system and highlighted a shortage of childcare workers. Some centres have resorted to hiring unqualified staff, further lowering the overall care standards. With centres only reassessed every four years on average, and some exploiting the system, parents cannot always trust that their child’s centre is meeting the necessary standards or that staff are properly trained.
All childcare centres are required to have a quality rating. These range from “exceeding” standards to “meeting,” “working towards,” and “significant improvement required.”
Gabrielle Meagher, a professor who has studied privatized social service systems, says government policy and the patchwork of state regulators have failed to keep up with the rapidly growing sector, now valued at more than $20 billion annually. She noted that “10 percent of all centres don’t have any quality rating, and most of them are for-profit.”
Emerging childcare chains, some of which continue to open new centres, are often allowed to operate even when many of their existing facilities only “work towards” meeting quality standards.
One such example is 3 Bears childcare centres, owned by Dinh Trang. Despite more than 300 violations over the course of a decade, the centres remained operational. Breaches included over-enrolling children, moving them to evade inspections, and allegedly leaving children in a van for three hours without water to avoid authorities. The centres maintained a “working towards” rating, despite these serious concerns.
By September 2023, the situation worsened. One child suffered a knee injury requiring surgery, but staff took no action, leaving the family to call for an ambulance. In another case, a child with a severe allergy reaction was only treated with moisturiser, instead of proper medical care. Text messages revealed a troubling culture of coercion, with staff being rewarded for over-enrolling children and threatened with pay cuts if numbers didn’t increase. Some staff were also instructed to wear their hair in a French twist and facial make-up for an extra dollar per hour.
Mr. Trang has denied all the allegations, and it took until mid-2024 for the New South Wales (NSW) regulator to close the service.
NSW Greens MP Abigail Boyd criticized the quality rating system, calling it “a joke.” She explained that the term “working towards” is essentially a failure to meet the minimum standards, yet centres with this rating continue to operate year after year.
Four Corners has found that up to 47,000 children are enrolled in for-profit childcare centres that fail to meet national quality standards, compared to just 8,500 children in non-profit centres.
Striving for Better Care
To achieve an “exceeding” rating, a centre must pass seven quality areas, including its educational program, health, safety, well-being, physical environment, and staffing arrangements. However, only 14 percent of for-profit centres meet this standard, while more than double that number of non-profit centres exceed the standards.
Ashley Sy, an early childhood education graduate with years of experience in both for-profit and non-profit centres, described how some centres, even those rated “exceeding,” often fall short in practice. She recalled one centre that, despite its top rating, used highchairs as restraints for children.
“Children were strapped into highchairs with the tables in front, just to keep them still,” Ms Sy said. “It was appalling to see.”
Many centres use their quality ratings to attract families and justify high fees. Some even leverage these ratings when selling the centres to secure a higher price.
Ms Sy also noted how some centres go to great lengths to “game” the system. “There are materials children can’t use regularly that are brought out only for the assessment and rating period. I’ve heard of centres buying new furniture just for the inspectors,” she said.
Weak Oversight and Accountability
National standards for childcare centres are set by the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA), but the body has no enforcement power. Responsibility for inspections and penalties falls to state and territory regulators, some of whom issue fines, while others rely on warnings.
In a recent report, the Productivity Commission recommended stronger oversight and more transparency in the childcare sector. It pointed out that despite regulators having enforcement powers, no action is often taken when a centre is rated “working towards” and repeatedly fails to meet the required standards.
