Calls for review into authorities' handling of complaints about alleged childcare abuser Joshua Brown

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The Victorian government has refused to say whether it will examine the actions of the state's child safety regulators, as part of its review into the growing childcare scandal. The ABC yesterday revealed that authorities knew a childcare operator had investigated and substantiated two reports that Joshua Dale brown had been aggressive towards children, but he was still cleared to work with kids.

Transcript

00:00I'm angry at the system now. It's not just the centre, it is the system. It makes my

00:07blood boil.

00:08This father doesn't want to be identified. His child was looked after by Joshua Dale

00:13Brown at Papilio Early Learning Centre in Essendon. It's the last place the 26-year-old

00:19worked before he was charged with 70 sexual offences against eight children at a Point

00:24Cook daycare. The father had no idea that another child care operator had investigated and

00:30substantiated two allegations. Mr Brown had been aggressive towards children at the Point

00:36Cook Centre in 2023 and 2024. There needs to be some major changes made to the system in failing.

00:43The Education Department, the Victorian Children's Commissioner, Police and child care giant G8

00:49education all knew. The allegations were not sexual in nature and came after Mr Brown's

00:55alleged period of offending, but years before he was arrested. In that time he worked at

01:00a further 10 daycare centres, authorities having made the decision not to review his working

01:06with children check, despite the findings. The National Children's Commissioner says parents

01:11have a right to know about serious issues that could affect their child's safety.

01:15Where reportable conduct matters are substantiated, then I think we'd really need to look at greater

01:23transparency. If a person is found to have acted inappropriately, whether that's physical,

01:29sexual or in any other way, it's a red flag that says they're not appropriate to be working with

01:33children. With the Victorian Premier, the Deputy Premier and the Children's Minister unavailable,

01:38it was left to a Minister with no direct responsibility to answer questions, including whether the actions of

01:44Victorian authorities would be scrutinised as part of a review into the scandal.

01:49This is about two substantiated reports of aggressive behaviour that went to the Education Department,

01:54that went to Victoria Police, that went to the Children's Commissioner. These reports were not

01:58escalated. What do you have to say to that?

02:01The Commissioner is an independent body, but let's also be clear, in Victoria Police's examination

02:07and investigation. They will cover all of the areas that need to be covered and we need to ensure

02:14that they have the ability to do that. A government review into this scandal led by a former Labour

02:19Premier is underway. He's been given just six weeks to report back. There's been no commitment to release

02:25the review's findings and no commitment to broaden its terms of reference to include this new information.

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