New Mandatory Safety Training for Childcare Sector
In a significant move to bolster child protection, childcare centres across the UK will close one hour early at 5pm on five separate occasions throughout the year. This initiative, commencing in February, mandates staff to undergo compulsory safety training developed by the Australian Centre for Child Protection.
The federal government has allocated $40 million from previously budgeted funds to facilitate these closures and the specialised training programme. This decisive action forms part of the revamped industry reforms, introduced in response to a disturbing spike in reports of alleged abuse that have plagued the sector in 2025.
Government and Ministerial Backing for Reforms
Early Childhood Education Minister Jess Walsh endorsed the strategy, stating, 'This is a sensible way for providers to manage new mandatory safety training.' She emphasised that the training will equip educators with the skills to identify and confidently report concerning behaviour in a timely manner.
Echoing this sentiment, Education Minister Jason Clare stressed the critical importance of upskilling childcare workers to ensure children's safety. 'We are doing this for a reason. There is nothing more important than our kids and keeping them safe,' Clare told the Daily Telegraph. He confirmed that the mandatory training will help childcare workers understand how to detect, step in, and report instances of child abuse.
The government acknowledges that the early closures will inconvenience many families but insists that centres will provide ample advance notice. Regulations stipulate that centres cannot close earlier than 5pm and must inform parents well ahead of the scheduled training dates.
Broader Context and Additional Safeguarding Measures
This mandatory child safety training was one of several measures agreed upon by Australia's education ministers following sickening allegations against Melbourne childcare worker Joshua Dale Brown. Brown, who worked at 24 facilities between 2017 and 2025, was charged with sexually abusing eight children all under the age of two.
This case is not isolated. In November 2024, Brisbane childcare worker Ashley Paul Griffith was sentenced to life in prison for sexually abusing children across multiple centres. Further incidents this year involved an educator in NSW charged with nine counts of child sexual abuse and a Queensland director accused of knowingly hiring a convicted child sex offender.
An ABC investigation revealed systemic failures, identifying nearly 150 childcare workers convicted, charged, or accused of abuse in recent years, which fuelled calls for sweeping reforms.
Consequently, a suite of additional measures is being rolled out, including a CCTV trial in up to 300 centres and the development of a national register of childcare workers. A pivotal change involves the implementation of a 'national continuous checking capability'. This system will utilise state and territory police databases to monitor the criminal histories of check-holders in 'near real time', addressing the current loophole where alleged offenders can retain their Working with Children (WWC) checks for years until renewal.
