A scathing inquiry into New South Wales' early childhood education and care (ECEC) sector has found systemic weaknesses that allowed predators to work in the industry and abuse children. The final report, published on Wednesday by a NSW upper house inquiry, concluded that the proliferation of for-profit services and a lax regulatory approach had enabled such abuses.
Key Findings of the Report
The report highlighted that operators backed by private equity have "no place" in the sector. It also criticized the state's regulator for early education for failing to respond appropriately to services with extensive histories of non-compliance, breaches, safety incidents, and persistently poor ratings.
Greens MLC Abigail Boyd, who chaired the inquiry, wrote in her foreword that the sector was "in crisis." She stated, "While the sector is entrusted with the safety, wellbeing and development of our youngest children, the evidence before this committee revealed a system under profound strain – one that is failing too many children, families and educators."
Context and Background
The inquiry was established in March last year and held public hearings between August and October. These hearings followed growing national concerns after reporting by the ABC's Four Corners and several high-profile arrests of childcare workers for alleged child abuse, including Ashley Paul Griffiths, Joshua Dale Brown, and David William James.
A Guardian Australia investigation last year revealed that most childcare workers reported for child abuse allegations are allowed to continue working because police and regulators struggle to block them if the claim does not result in a criminal conviction.
Regulatory Failures
The inquiry found that some ECEC services had "working towards" ratings, meaning they did not meet standards in one or more of seven assessment areas, for years without being shut down by the NSW Early Childhood Education and Care Regulatory Authority. Long day care services were more than twice as likely to have such ratings (9%) compared to not-for-profit and public services (4%).
Community Early Learning Australia, an industry peak body, submitted that the sector had been "incentivised to deliver services that meet minimum standards in order to maximise the number of licensed places, rather than prioritising children and educators' wellbeing."
Profiteering and Recommendations
Boyd described a "race to the bottom, where everybody can get rich – except the people actually educating, caring for and nurturing children – has hopefully reached the limits of its predatory expansion." The report's recommendations aim to "curtail profiteering" and include a clear finding that private equity-backed services have no place in the sector.
The crossbench and opposition-led inquiry recommended the government introduce a policy to reduce the percentage of large for-profit providers in favor of not-for-profit, government-run, and community-run services. It found for-profit providers were of lower quality and less safe for children. This includes providing favorable lease arrangements for services on state and local government land.
Impact on Availability
The inquiry found that developers were influencing decisions about where services were established, negatively impacting availability in lower socioeconomic and regional areas.
CCTV and Supervision
Regarding CCTV in childcare centres, the inquiry found it useful but "no substitute for adequate staffing and supervision." Experts raised concerns about hacking, data storage, and potential AI misuse to produce illegal material. A national trial of CCTV is underway.
Additional Recommendations
The report recommends preventing apprentice and trainee childcare workers from being left unsupervised with children and that services rated "working towards" or lower not be allowed to take student placements or open new centres.
Government Response
Deputy Premier and Early Education Minister Prue Car said the government would consider the recommendations and respond in due course. She noted the report acknowledged the government's commitment to deliver 100 new public preschools by 2027 to help rebalance the early learning sector.
A spokesperson for the NSW Early Learning Commission, which replaced the previous regulator in December 2025, said the findings reflected issues already being addressed through reforms. The Commission will consider the recommendations and continue working with government, providers, and families to strengthen outcomes for children.
