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News.com.au
15 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Former colleague of Joshua Dale Brown says they raised concerns over unsupervised children
A former worker at a centre where Joshua Brown is accused of abusing children said she raised concerns about children being unsupervised at the centre three years ago, claiming some even wandered into empty rooms and played in bathrooms with no one noticing. The woman, who asked not to be identified, worked with Brown at Creative Garden Early Learning Centre Point Cook in 2022, Victoria. In an email to the Victorian Department of Education, seen by the worker criticised the practices and procedures at the centre, saying 'supervision itself was lacking', and 'it wasn't uncommon for a child to wander into the empty room next door without anyone noticing, or for children to be playing with water in the bathrooms unsupervised also, or one educator to be left alone outside with over 20 children during the rest time'. Unrelated to the police case against Brown, she said she was 'worried about the safety of the children at this service as well as the staff who are not being supported very well'. The worker said she witnessed 'many times' when the room was left 'out of ratio or just on', despite the amount of children with additional needs who required more supervision. 'I am worried about the safety of the children at this service as well as the staff who are not being supported very well.' The woman reached out after news of Brown's alleged offences at the centre. 'I don't feel comfortable coming out in public about this and I'll be contacting the right channels but I feel like it needs to be known I did placement at the centre the guy from the news was at for the longest time in 2022 (Creative Gardens Point Cook) at the time he was there,' she wrote. 'I feel sick'. The Victorian Department of Health have been contacted for comment, but said the active police investigation into Brown prevented them from commenting. G8 Education, who runs Creative Garden Early Learning Centre has been contacted for comment. Brown is facing 70 charges in total, including sexual penetration of a child, producing child abuse material and recklessly contaminating goods to cause alarm or anxiety. No pleas have been entered. Detectives raided the 26-year-old's home, allegedly uncovering a cache of child abuse material. The disturbing discovery set off an intensive effort to identify eight children, some as young as five months old, whom Brown is accused of abusing and filming. The allegations centre on Brown's time at the Creative Garden Early Learning Centre in Point Cook between 2022 and 2023. However Brown worked at 20 childcare centres across Melbourne since 2017, which are now listed on the government website. revealed Brown is accused of contaminating food with body fluid, sparking an urgent health warning to 1200 families who are now having their small children tested for sexually transmitted diseases. A new wave of parents have since been thrown into the hell of wondering whether their children have been exposed to an alleged sex abuser after centres across Melbourne alerted families Brown had also worked at their centres. Childcare providers confirmed they were working with police, handing over rosters and other employment details to help investigators track the movements of Brown. Distressed parents have contacted desperate for dates to know whether their children have come into contact with him. Police sources described the active investigation as a 'moving beast' as they examined the records, including photos of Brown at work on particular days and helped navigate the dissemination of information to parents across Melbourne.
ABC News
19 minutes ago
- ABC News
Police shoot man dead during siege in Victoria
A man has been shot dead by police following a seven-hour standoff north-west of Ballarat in Victoria.
ABC News
20 minutes ago
- ABC News
Rate relief, food payments and water funding in new $75m Victorian drought package
The Victorian government has announced a $75 million drought assistance package for farmers struggling through the state's long dry spell. It is the biggest and most significant announcement the government has made during this drought and includes council rate relief for farmers, with a rebate of about 40 per cent for producers in 12 of the worst-affected areas of the south-west. The funding also includes $2 million for food and grocery support, with up to $1,000 per household, $6.3 million to cover government "red tape" fees and $25 million for water management. "We've been listening to farmers and communities who do it tough," Premier Jacinta Allan said. "This support delivers real help, right now." The state's peak farm lobby group, the Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) welcomed the support but said it should have come earlier. "A lot of farmers will tell you [the drought support package] has come too late," VFF president Brett Hosking said. The government has now announced a total of $144 million for farmers during the extended dry conditions. The state's south-west has been worst affected with 15 months of record low or below-average rainfall until last month. Almost $36 million will go towards rate relief for farmers in the council areas of Ararat, Moyne, Colac Otway, Pyrenees, Corangamite, Southern Grampians, Glenelg, Surf Coast, Golden Plains, Warrnambool, City of Geelong and southern parts of West Wimmera. The government says that equates to a 40 per cent rate reduction. "This isn't about dollars, it's about backing the people who feed our state and the regional communities that keep our state strong." Ms Allan said. The government has also committed $24 million to water infrastructure to better prepare for droughts. It will be used to extend the East Grampians rural water pipeline and to expand emergency water supply options, groundwater bores and domestic water access. "We are investing in both short-term solutions and legacy infrastructure to improve resilience and water security for farmers and their communities," Agriculture Minister Ros Spence said. Despite recent rain, the state is still feeling the effects of drought, with a cold winter resulting in very little growth in pastures for hungry livestock. Ararat lamb producer Charlie de Fegely said the funding was surprising and welcome news. "This is fantastic, because people are desperate for water, given the very long dry spell," he said. Mr de Fegely said a secure water supply would enable farmers to retain livestock during drought. "Tragically, breeding ewes are being sold simply because people don't have water," he said. Mr Hosking said it would take time for farmers to recover. "There is no feed in the paddock, particularly for cattle and even for sheep there is not the feed to support them in the paddock, and farmers are still hand feeding," he said. The Country Women's Association (CWA) will manage the household payments of up to $1,000 for farmers in the south-west. Catchment Management Authorities will receive $1 million to run drought employment programs, which help people receive payments while working on projects that help the environment. There is also $6.3 million for fee and duty relief, which Brett Hosking said would help, although he had questions about the details. "It's removal of red tape funding on things like biosecurity levees that you pay on the sale of livestock will hopefully be waived and I think the government is still working out the details on that one," he said.
