Family day care under scrutiny as NSW parliamentary inquiry into child care begins

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4 days ago

More than six years after the death of seven-month-old Jack Loh at a family day care centre in NSW, his parents say the system that failed him is still putting children's lives at risk.
"It is shocking and offensive to know that through all the pain and suffering that has been endured, reports written and charges laid, children are still falling prey," the family told ABC Investigations.
"Jack was a beautiful boy, our first child, a window into the future, and we loved him so dearly.
"On the 4th of March 2019, that future was cut short when his educator decided to put him to bed, face down, wrapped, wearing a bib, in a basket too small for his body.
"On a hot day in an unventilated room, he cried out, but she did not go in.
"She left him unsupervised for an extended period, and it was during this time that he died."
An inquest in December 2021 found his death was caused by an undiagnosed heart condition and unsafe sleeping conditions.
The coroner also noted that the service's private financial arrangements created incentives for educators to take on extra children, in breach of child-to-educator ratios.
"It reflects a practice of a provider prioritising profit over quality of care," the coroner said.
This week, a NSW parliamentary inquiry into childcare, chaired by Greens MP Abigail Boyd, will begin public hearings into systemic risks in the childcare sector, including the adequacy of regulation and enforcement.
"Our NSW parliamentary inquiry will look closely at regulatory inaction, as well as the inadequacy of policy settings, and put forward recommendations to re-establish trust in early childhood services in NSW," Ms Boyd said.
"It is only by hearing from the full range of stakeholders and experts, particularly from those working directly in the sector, that we will understand the full extent of the issues we're grappling with and be able to chart the path towards meaningful reform."
For Jack's parents, the scrutiny is long overdue.
His case exposed the dark underbelly of family day care services, where educators operate in their own homes, with minimal oversight.
Family day care makes up just 5 per cent of Australia's early childhood education and care system, but insiders, experts, and regulatory documents paint a picture of a sector beset by troubling incidents and structural risk.
It has been linked to child deaths, hygiene breaches, unqualified staff, and childcare subsidy fraud, including providers who claimed subsidies for non-existent children.
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In February this year, a child died at a family day care service in Skye in south-east Melbourne.
Victoria's early childhood watchdog, the Quality and Assessment and Regulation Division (QARD), said as a precaution, it issued an Emergency Action Notice to Bambini Child Care requiring the service to complete sleep and rest risk assessments, check compliance with sleeping arrangements, and stop providing family day care until deemed compliant.
"The premises at Skye remain closed," it said in a statement.
Bambini did not respond to questions.
In the quarter to March 2025 alone, around 72,000 children attended family day care services across the country.
According to the peak body for family day care services, Family Day Care Australia (FDCA), unlike centre-based care, family day care is not a "homogenous model".
"It is, by contrast, a rich tapestry of unique care environments, reflective of its communities and the needs of the children and families it supports," FDCA said in a statement.
Child safety advocate and childcare consultant Chey Carter, a former educator, says the [family day care] model carries inherent risks that require rigorous oversight.
"When a single educator is caring for multiple children without on-site supervision or peer accountability, it creates a vulnerability, both for the children and the integrity of the system," Ms Carter said.
Gabrielle Meagher, an emeritus professor at Macquarie University and a leading expert in childcare and privatised social services, says the sector has undergone a dramatic transformation.
Her analysis shows nearly two-thirds of all family day care services are now for-profit, up sharply over the past decade.
Analysing data from the Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority (ACECQA), which oversees national quality ratings, Professor Meagher found almost one in four family day care services failed to meet minimum national quality standards, which measure standards for safety, supervision, staffing, and education.
Even more concerning, 16 per cent have never been assessed at all.
"It has taken many years for regulators to begin to get some control over the sector, and it seems clear that providers who are unlikely to be able to meet the standards are still being allowed to enter."
She said 72 per cent of family day care services experienced gaps of four years or more between ratings, and nearly a quarter had not been rated for more than six years.
"When services repeatedly fail to meet the national standards, the regulatory system is not working well enough," she said.
"I understand that families and children can suffer if a service is shut down — but they also suffer if services don't provide high-quality care and education."
The peak body, Family Day Care Australia, rejects suggestions that a service rated "Working Towards NQS (National Quality Standards)" is failing or of poor quality.
"There are many examples of very good services with 'Working Towards NQS' ratings, and of course, those that need to do better," it said.
Family day care is delivered in private homes, with an educator caring for up to seven children.
Oversight is handled by external "coordination units," which are responsible for training, compliance, and monitoring.
Because the care takes place behind closed doors, experts warn there is often little scrutiny of who lives in the home or who comes and goes, which can create serious risks, particularly when educators are working alone without co-workers or on-site supervisors.
"Families should be able to trust that when they send their child to care, the provider has been thoroughly vetted," Ms Carter said.
"The risks in family day care are different — you've often got one adult alone with several children in a private home, with little to no day-to-day supervision.
"When people with the wrong intentions are approved to run these services, the outcomes can be devastating."
In Melbourne, children were exposed to convicted child sex offender Ordan Velkoski, who lived in a family day care residence run by his wife.
According to court records, Velkoski was regularly present in the home while children were in care. In 2018, he was convicted of multiple indecent acts involving young girls, including one who had attended the service from the age of one.
When the girl was four years old, Velkoski showed her his penis and told her to touch it, according to the judge's sentencing remarks.
In NSW, a family day care service entered into an enforceable undertaking with the regulator after police found a machete and drugs during a raid on the premises.
The man arrested was the educator's son, who lived at the home.
As part of the agreement, the provider agreed to take steps to protect children from harm and hazards, and to notify police if her son visited the house.
Family Day Care Australia said there were strict mandatory vetting requirements, and "fit and proper" assessments in place for all adults residing in family day care residences.
"We support these measures and potential amendments that can enhance the efficacy of these requirements," it said.
Nevertheless, there are dozens of cases across the country of disturbing lapses.
Ms Boyd said after looking through the thousands of pages of documents she obtained from the NSW government under a parliamentary order, she was shocked to learn what was going on in family day care centres.
"I've seen hundreds of breaches, serious concerning breaches, going unaddressed for months if not years before the regulator finally, reluctantly takes action and maybe shuts them down.
"In the meantime, our children have been left in the hands of those who the regulator knows have been doing the wrong thing, with parents kept in the dark," she said.
At Kids R Us in NSW, 19 educators were found working without valid Working With Children Checks.
Inspectors flagged multiple safety breaches, including children being transported by an unapproved educator assistant without parental consent or proper documentation.
Other issues included a mouldy baby bouncer, a child left to sleep in a bouncer with a bottle of milk, and another placed in a cot wearing a hooded jacket, all in breach of safe sleep guidelines.
The service provider's approval was cancelled on March 1, 2023, after being suspended in July 2022, and later issued with a show cause notice.
At Great Western Family Day Care, also in NSW, regulatory documents reveal a staggering 269 breaches between February 2018 and July 2023.
Some of the more shocking findings were of children being left unsupervised, knives and pesticides being left within reach, a bucket of toxic cleaning fluid being accessible to children, plastic bags within reach of toddlers, expired first aid supplies, and missing or inadequate medical plans for children with allergies.
Inspectors also documented serious and repeated violations of safe sleep practices.
In November 2023, the regulator issued a show cause notice and cancellation order, saying, "I am of the opinion that there are systemic non-compliance issues in respect to the operation of your service … [which] constitutes an unacceptable risk to the safety, health or wellbeing of children."
It cited widespread failures including inadequate safety measures, poor record-keeping, a lack of understanding of basic regulations, and an absence of proper policies or governance.
It said the coordination unit, which was supposed to train, supervise, and monitor dozens of educators, had not only failed in its legal obligations but had exposed children to repeated and avoidable harm.
In the past year, the regulator has undertaken 24 visits to Great Western and has been working with the approved provider to lift quality and has placed a number of conditions on its service approval.
In a statement, Great Western acknowledged breaches between February 2018 and July 2023 and said it had worked with the Department of Education and external consultants to address them.
"As a result of our ongoing work and the implementation of strengthened programs and procedures, our service was assessed and received a Meeting rating on 14th November, 2024."
Another family day care service on the central coast of NSW was also issued a Show Cause Notice in February 2023 following years of serious and repeated breaches that the regulator said placed children at unacceptable risk.
The regulator imposed conditions, including capping the maximum number of family day care educators at 20 and requiring the approved provider to engage an independent consultant to assist in compliance with the law.
According to regulatory documents obtained by the ABC, a family day care operator racked up 211 breaches between May 2017 and November 2022, with authorised officers identifying systemic failures across multiple visits to both the principal office and educators' homes.
Another family day care service was issued a show cause notice after repeated breaches, including a dog roaming on the premises, a car used to transport children without fitted seats and faulty seatbelts, and evidence of inappropriate discipline, including an educator grabbing a child by the wrist.
Inspectors also noted incomplete enrolment records and failures in basic documentation.
In Victoria, 17 per cent of family day care centres failed to meet the minimum national quality standards, with two currently rated Significant Improvement Required, meaning they are unsafe for children.
One of those services, Playhouse Family Day Care, was downgraded in April 2024 after previously holding a "Working Towards" rating since 2019.
Just two months earlier, in February 2024, it was issued an emergency action notice for a series of serious breaches, including failing to vet residents and assistants, ignoring Working With Children Check requirements, and breaching multiple safety regulations for sleep risk assessments.
Some educators lacked current first aid, anaphylaxis, or asthma training.
Omega Family Day Care, rated Working Towards in 2022, was downgraded to Significant Improvement Required in March 2025, reflecting continued non-compliance and escalating safety concerns.
The Victorian regulator did not respond to a series of questions but said in a statement, "the regulatory authority will prohibit an educator from providing education and care at their family day care residence when there is risk to children."
The NSW regulator said in a statement it took swift action when children's safety was at risk, including suspensions, closures, and legal action. It said urgent reforms were underway to strengthen laws, increase penalties, and create a more transparent, accountable system.
"We know more needs to be done. We are committed to a safe, high-quality early childhood education and care sector."
In response to questions about serious incidents and breaches in family day care, FDCA said such cases could stem from policy gaps, individual failings, inadequate oversight, or unforeseen external factors, and that better resourcing and training are critical.
For Jack Loh's parents, the recent media and public scrutiny of childcare is long overdue.
"We know the system is not working, we know it has been infiltrated by fraudulent operators and those for whom profit is the only priority however it is the responsibility of the Department of Education to regulate the sector — to enforce the abundance of rules already in place and they have been completely ineffectual in this regard," the family said.
"In this daycare model, profit and commercial interests are at odds with the safety and well-being of our children.