Latest news with #RoyalCommissionintoInstitutionalResponsestoChildSexualAbuse
9 News
a day ago
- Politics
- 9 News
Urgent childcare reforms to capture offenders 'shopping around'
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here All states and territories have agreed to rush through urgent childcare reforms after allegations of abuse at centres across the country. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland, flanked by her state and territory counterparts, has announced "banned in one, banned in all" legislation to prevent someone banned from working with children in one jurisdiction from working in another. All jurisdictions have promised to implement these changes by the end of the year. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland announced urgent reforms to the working with children check. (Nine) "There is a firm commitment from all states and territories to pull out all stops, and we are working together as a team," Rowland said. The attorneys-general have also agreed to raise their criteria on who can apply for a working with children check in each state and territory. They will also strengthen information sharing to ensure that changes to someone's criminal history are captured and shared in real time under a National Continuous Checking Capability. The Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission is currently working on a pilot for this program. "It is notable that nefarious individuals have been shopping around the working with children, check system and exploiting loopholes," Rowland said. "These are complex reforms, and they won't be delivered overnight." Attorney-General Michelle Rowland was flanked by her state and territory counterparts. (Nine) These changes were first recommended in the 2015 Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Rowland admitted families have been let down by successive governments at all levels, but said "a moment of political will" has brought the recommendations forward now. "These are complex areas, but that is no excuse for saying this is too hard," she said. "The fact is that we have come together, noting that a significant body of work has occurred in the lead up to today's meeting." Rowland also knocked back suggestions of a national working with children check database, saying it was up to each jurisdiction to administer as laws differed in each state and territory. Joshua Dale Brown, 26, has been charged with 70 offences. (Supplied) These reforms come in the wake of allegations against childcare workers in NSW and Victoria. Joshua Dale Brown, 26, has been charged with 70 offences allegedly committed while working at childcare centres in Melbourne. David William James, 26, has been charged with 13 offences while working at out-of-school-hours care services in Sydney. Today's announcement by the attorneys-general comes in addition to work being done by the Department of Education to raise standards and safety within the sector. Minister for Education Jason Clare. (Alex Ellinghausen) Earlier today, the Department of Education slapped childcare centres across the country with compliance actions under urgent new laws that were pushed through parliament last month. An investigation by the federal education department, in collaboration with states and territories, found 30 childhood education and childcare services failed to meet national quality standards for seven or more years. The centres have 48 hours to notify parents of the compliance actions and have six months to bring their performance up to the national standard. Education Minister Jason Clare said he hoped today's announcement would help rebuild confidence in the childcare system. "This is not about closing centres down, it's about lifting standards up," he said. "Over the next six months, these centres will need to lift their game or they will face further consequences, including the cutting off of funding. The Department of Education will release the names of those 30 childcare centres once parents are notified by next week. (iStock) "This action puts those centres on notice that they need to put the safety of our children first." The Department of Education will release the names of those 30 childcare centres once parents are notified by next week. The compliance actions do not relate to any criminal allegations. Under new powers passed through parliament in July, the government can cut off funding to childcare centres that fail to meet the safety and quality standards, breach laws, or act in a way that puts child safety at risk. The compliance actions are the first time these new powers have been used. The country's education ministers will meet next Friday to discuss more measures to strengthen the childcare sector, including a national register of childcare workers, the role of CCTV and mandatory child safety training. Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732) . Kids Helpline 1800 55 1800. children national Australia crime child abuse education safety parliament Politics CONTACT US
Sydney Morning Herald
17-07-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
My job is to root out dodgy workers. These are the warning signs to look for in childcare
'There is evil everywhere under the sun,' wrote Agatha Christie. But the recent case of a Victorian childcare worker charged with over 70 child sex offences is a reminder that reality can be darker than fiction. That worker, Joshua Dale Brown, was employed across at least 23 centres over 10 years and was reportedly sacked from a childcare centre months before he started working at the centre that is the location of the alleged assaults. As a lawyer investigating employee misconduct in the childcare, aged care, and education sectors, I've seen how evil infiltrates workplaces. My role often involves advising employers on how to respond swiftly to allegations and remove perpetrators from the workplace, and when to refer matters to police. I've observed how easily offenders move between employers, avoiding accountability. In some cases, I've dealt with the same individual being terminated by two different employers. This is often enabled by deeds of release containing confidentiality clauses, which prevent former employers from sharing critical information, including allegations of serious misconduct. There is a smorgasbord of legal actions an employee can bring against an employer in Australia, including unfair dismissal laws covering any employee who earns under $183,100 and general protections claims that apply to every employee even during probationary periods. So contractual release agreements are often a practical way to resolve employment disputes. But what concerns me is when confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses – a convenient tool for getting rid of bad employees – are used with people who are clearly unfit to work with children. By preventing employers from disclosing the reasons for an employee's departure, these can conceal serious or criminal behaviour, leaving future employers in the dark. The problem of gag orders has gone unaddressed for too long. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was critical in 2017 of how some schools were concealing worker misconduct by using confidentiality clauses to protect their reputation in settlement agreements. The royal commission also found that non-disparagement clauses were preventing employers from giving negative references about former employees, allowing individuals who posed a risk to children to move between institutions undetected. Similar clauses are still used widely by some employers today. Employers must stop including, or accepting, confidentiality clauses in exit agreements where there are concerns about safety risks posed by a worker and ensure accountability and transparency. If that means the employer might need to defend an unfair dismissal claim, so be it. Employers can't risk enabling further misconduct or abuse. And it's not just the childcare sector that attracts perpetrators. I once acted for an aged care provider after allegations of sexual misconduct and sexual assault by a male worker emerged from elderly residents, most with dementia, and their families. Police confirmed a history of similar allegations at other facilities. After his dismissal, the worker filed an unfair dismissal claim. It was later revealed he had signed a deed of release with a former employer, preventing disclosure of earlier allegations.
The Age
17-07-2025
- The Age
My job is to root out dodgy workers. These are the warning signs to look for in childcare
'There is evil everywhere under the sun,' wrote Agatha Christie. But the recent case of a Victorian childcare worker charged with over 70 child sex offences is a reminder that reality can be darker than fiction. That worker, Joshua Dale Brown, was employed across at least 23 centres over 10 years and was reportedly sacked from a childcare centre months before he started working at the centre that is the location of the alleged assaults. As a lawyer investigating employee misconduct in the childcare, aged care, and education sectors, I've seen how evil infiltrates workplaces. My role often involves advising employers on how to respond swiftly to allegations and remove perpetrators from the workplace, and when to refer matters to police. I've observed how easily offenders move between employers, avoiding accountability. In some cases, I've dealt with the same individual being terminated by two different employers. This is often enabled by deeds of release containing confidentiality clauses, which prevent former employers from sharing critical information, including allegations of serious misconduct. There is a smorgasbord of legal actions an employee can bring against an employer in Australia, including unfair dismissal laws covering any employee who earns under $183,100 and general protections claims that apply to every employee even during probationary periods. So contractual release agreements are often a practical way to resolve employment disputes. But what concerns me is when confidentiality and non-disparagement clauses – a convenient tool for getting rid of bad employees – are used with people who are clearly unfit to work with children. By preventing employers from disclosing the reasons for an employee's departure, these can conceal serious or criminal behaviour, leaving future employers in the dark. The problem of gag orders has gone unaddressed for too long. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse was critical in 2017 of how some schools were concealing worker misconduct by using confidentiality clauses to protect their reputation in settlement agreements. The royal commission also found that non-disparagement clauses were preventing employers from giving negative references about former employees, allowing individuals who posed a risk to children to move between institutions undetected. Similar clauses are still used widely by some employers today. Employers must stop including, or accepting, confidentiality clauses in exit agreements where there are concerns about safety risks posed by a worker and ensure accountability and transparency. If that means the employer might need to defend an unfair dismissal claim, so be it. Employers can't risk enabling further misconduct or abuse. And it's not just the childcare sector that attracts perpetrators. I once acted for an aged care provider after allegations of sexual misconduct and sexual assault by a male worker emerged from elderly residents, most with dementia, and their families. Police confirmed a history of similar allegations at other facilities. After his dismissal, the worker filed an unfair dismissal claim. It was later revealed he had signed a deed of release with a former employer, preventing disclosure of earlier allegations.
The Advertiser
16-07-2025
- The Advertiser
'Lack of willpower' stalls childcare safety reforms
A former royal commissioner has accused state and federal governments of dragging their feet on safeguards that could have protected childcare abuse victims. Federal authorities have promised to fast-track a national register for childcare workers after Melbourne educator Joshua Dale Brown, 26, was charged with more than 70 sex offences against eight alleged victims aged under two. The offences allegedly occurred at the G8-owned Creative Garden centre at Point Cook, in Melbourne's southwest, between April 2022 and January 2023. Authorities say Brown worked at 24 facilities since 2017. They have recommended an additional 800 children who crossed paths with him be tested for infectious diseases after identifying additional centres where he worked. Investigators have blamed a two-week delay in releasing his complete work history on childcare providers not having centralised records, requiring detectives to execute search warrants to obtain handwritten records, shift rosters and other critical information. The issue harked back to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which in its 2017 final report found one of the great difficulties in most sectors dealing with children was poor record keeping and information sharing. Recommendations included the need for substantial improvement in teacher and worker registrations, an increase in the quality of institutions' record keeping, the ability to exchange information between facilities and for states and territories to keep better track of workers employed in their jurisdictions. Despite their acceptance of the recommendations, former royal commissioner Robert Fitzgerald said it had been difficult to get all nine governments led by the Commonwealth to act. "Ten years on from our recommendations around information sharing and record keeping, the job has not yet been done and it has not been done because the nine governments of Australia have not committed the willpower to get it done in a timely manner," Mr Fitzgerald told AAP. He accused some states and territories of being particularly slow in implementing significant recommendations. "These are all manageable. These are all achievable and my disappointment is that progress has been made, but the job should have been done," Mr Fitzgerald said. The former commissioner said every gap left in safeguarding the sector meant children were put at risk. Adequate record keeping and information sharing can inform subsequent employers of a history of concern, not necessarily convictions, and can provide authorities with an insight into any patterns of abuse. But the former commissioner has warned workers' rights can't be abandoned when it comes to sharing information about the conduct of individuals where there has been no substantiation of complaints or criminal action. The Victorian government has pledged to establish a register of early childhood educators in the next two months, which will link into the national registration system once it is established. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 A former royal commissioner has accused state and federal governments of dragging their feet on safeguards that could have protected childcare abuse victims. Federal authorities have promised to fast-track a national register for childcare workers after Melbourne educator Joshua Dale Brown, 26, was charged with more than 70 sex offences against eight alleged victims aged under two. The offences allegedly occurred at the G8-owned Creative Garden centre at Point Cook, in Melbourne's southwest, between April 2022 and January 2023. Authorities say Brown worked at 24 facilities since 2017. They have recommended an additional 800 children who crossed paths with him be tested for infectious diseases after identifying additional centres where he worked. Investigators have blamed a two-week delay in releasing his complete work history on childcare providers not having centralised records, requiring detectives to execute search warrants to obtain handwritten records, shift rosters and other critical information. The issue harked back to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which in its 2017 final report found one of the great difficulties in most sectors dealing with children was poor record keeping and information sharing. Recommendations included the need for substantial improvement in teacher and worker registrations, an increase in the quality of institutions' record keeping, the ability to exchange information between facilities and for states and territories to keep better track of workers employed in their jurisdictions. Despite their acceptance of the recommendations, former royal commissioner Robert Fitzgerald said it had been difficult to get all nine governments led by the Commonwealth to act. "Ten years on from our recommendations around information sharing and record keeping, the job has not yet been done and it has not been done because the nine governments of Australia have not committed the willpower to get it done in a timely manner," Mr Fitzgerald told AAP. He accused some states and territories of being particularly slow in implementing significant recommendations. "These are all manageable. These are all achievable and my disappointment is that progress has been made, but the job should have been done," Mr Fitzgerald said. The former commissioner said every gap left in safeguarding the sector meant children were put at risk. Adequate record keeping and information sharing can inform subsequent employers of a history of concern, not necessarily convictions, and can provide authorities with an insight into any patterns of abuse. But the former commissioner has warned workers' rights can't be abandoned when it comes to sharing information about the conduct of individuals where there has been no substantiation of complaints or criminal action. The Victorian government has pledged to establish a register of early childhood educators in the next two months, which will link into the national registration system once it is established. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 A former royal commissioner has accused state and federal governments of dragging their feet on safeguards that could have protected childcare abuse victims. Federal authorities have promised to fast-track a national register for childcare workers after Melbourne educator Joshua Dale Brown, 26, was charged with more than 70 sex offences against eight alleged victims aged under two. The offences allegedly occurred at the G8-owned Creative Garden centre at Point Cook, in Melbourne's southwest, between April 2022 and January 2023. Authorities say Brown worked at 24 facilities since 2017. They have recommended an additional 800 children who crossed paths with him be tested for infectious diseases after identifying additional centres where he worked. Investigators have blamed a two-week delay in releasing his complete work history on childcare providers not having centralised records, requiring detectives to execute search warrants to obtain handwritten records, shift rosters and other critical information. The issue harked back to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which in its 2017 final report found one of the great difficulties in most sectors dealing with children was poor record keeping and information sharing. Recommendations included the need for substantial improvement in teacher and worker registrations, an increase in the quality of institutions' record keeping, the ability to exchange information between facilities and for states and territories to keep better track of workers employed in their jurisdictions. Despite their acceptance of the recommendations, former royal commissioner Robert Fitzgerald said it had been difficult to get all nine governments led by the Commonwealth to act. "Ten years on from our recommendations around information sharing and record keeping, the job has not yet been done and it has not been done because the nine governments of Australia have not committed the willpower to get it done in a timely manner," Mr Fitzgerald told AAP. He accused some states and territories of being particularly slow in implementing significant recommendations. "These are all manageable. These are all achievable and my disappointment is that progress has been made, but the job should have been done," Mr Fitzgerald said. The former commissioner said every gap left in safeguarding the sector meant children were put at risk. Adequate record keeping and information sharing can inform subsequent employers of a history of concern, not necessarily convictions, and can provide authorities with an insight into any patterns of abuse. But the former commissioner has warned workers' rights can't be abandoned when it comes to sharing information about the conduct of individuals where there has been no substantiation of complaints or criminal action. The Victorian government has pledged to establish a register of early childhood educators in the next two months, which will link into the national registration system once it is established. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 A former royal commissioner has accused state and federal governments of dragging their feet on safeguards that could have protected childcare abuse victims. Federal authorities have promised to fast-track a national register for childcare workers after Melbourne educator Joshua Dale Brown, 26, was charged with more than 70 sex offences against eight alleged victims aged under two. The offences allegedly occurred at the G8-owned Creative Garden centre at Point Cook, in Melbourne's southwest, between April 2022 and January 2023. Authorities say Brown worked at 24 facilities since 2017. They have recommended an additional 800 children who crossed paths with him be tested for infectious diseases after identifying additional centres where he worked. Investigators have blamed a two-week delay in releasing his complete work history on childcare providers not having centralised records, requiring detectives to execute search warrants to obtain handwritten records, shift rosters and other critical information. The issue harked back to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which in its 2017 final report found one of the great difficulties in most sectors dealing with children was poor record keeping and information sharing. Recommendations included the need for substantial improvement in teacher and worker registrations, an increase in the quality of institutions' record keeping, the ability to exchange information between facilities and for states and territories to keep better track of workers employed in their jurisdictions. Despite their acceptance of the recommendations, former royal commissioner Robert Fitzgerald said it had been difficult to get all nine governments led by the Commonwealth to act. "Ten years on from our recommendations around information sharing and record keeping, the job has not yet been done and it has not been done because the nine governments of Australia have not committed the willpower to get it done in a timely manner," Mr Fitzgerald told AAP. He accused some states and territories of being particularly slow in implementing significant recommendations. "These are all manageable. These are all achievable and my disappointment is that progress has been made, but the job should have been done," Mr Fitzgerald said. The former commissioner said every gap left in safeguarding the sector meant children were put at risk. Adequate record keeping and information sharing can inform subsequent employers of a history of concern, not necessarily convictions, and can provide authorities with an insight into any patterns of abuse. But the former commissioner has warned workers' rights can't be abandoned when it comes to sharing information about the conduct of individuals where there has been no substantiation of complaints or criminal action. The Victorian government has pledged to establish a register of early childhood educators in the next two months, which will link into the national registration system once it is established. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
West Australian
16-07-2025
- West Australian
'Lack of willpower' stalls childcare safety reforms
A former royal commissioner has accused state and federal governments of dragging their feet on safeguards that could have protected childcare abuse victims. Federal authorities have promised to fast-track a national register for childcare workers after Melbourne educator Joshua Dale Brown, 26, was charged with more than 70 sex offences against eight alleged victims aged under two. The offences allegedly occurred at the G8-owned Creative Garden centre at Point Cook, in Melbourne's southwest, between April 2022 and January 2023. Authorities say Brown worked at 24 facilities since 2017. They have recommended an additional 800 children who crossed paths with him be tested for infectious diseases after identifying additional centres where he worked. Investigators have blamed a two-week delay in releasing his complete work history on childcare providers not having centralised records, requiring detectives to execute search warrants to obtain handwritten records, shift rosters and other critical information. The issue harked back to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, which in its 2017 final report found one of the great difficulties in most sectors dealing with children was poor record keeping and information sharing. Recommendations included the need for substantial improvement in teacher and worker registrations, an increase in the quality of institutions' record keeping, the ability to exchange information between facilities and for states and territories to keep better track of workers employed in their jurisdictions. Despite their acceptance of the recommendations, former royal commissioner Robert Fitzgerald said it had been difficult to get all nine governments led by the Commonwealth to act. "Ten years on from our recommendations around information sharing and record keeping, the job has not yet been done and it has not been done because the nine governments of Australia have not committed the willpower to get it done in a timely manner," Mr Fitzgerald told AAP. He accused some states and territories of being particularly slow in implementing significant recommendations. "These are all manageable. These are all achievable and my disappointment is that progress has been made, but the job should have been done," Mr Fitzgerald said. The former commissioner said every gap left in safeguarding the sector meant children were put at risk. Adequate record keeping and information sharing can inform subsequent employers of a history of concern, not necessarily convictions, and can provide authorities with an insight into any patterns of abuse. But the former commissioner has warned workers' rights can't be abandoned when it comes to sharing information about the conduct of individuals where there has been no substantiation of complaints or criminal action. The Victorian government has pledged to establish a register of early childhood educators in the next two months, which will link into the national registration system once it is established. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
