A system under strain: what Victoria’s ECEC inquiry interim report reveals about safety, governance and the future of the sector

A Victorian parliamentary committee has tabled its interim report into the state’s early childhood education and care sector, providing one of the most comprehensive examinations of governance, safety and system performance in recent years.

The Select Committee Inquiry was established in the wake of serious child abuse allegations against educator Joshua Brown, who worked across multiple services while holding a valid Working with Children Check.

In recent months, the Inquiry has examined quality, safety and compliance, workforce training and conditions, the performance of the Victorian Regulatory Authority, and the structural conditions that have shaped the sector.

Drawing on 99 submissions, five days of public hearings, and evidence from witnesses including service providers, unions, regulators, advocacy bodies and community organisations, the report presents a clear conclusion:  the Brown matter is “one symptom of broader systemic issues within the sector which have been allowed to develop through inadequate support, oversight and accountability”. 

Evidence presented to the Committee consistently points to a set of interconnected challenges shaping the sector:

• Ongoing concerns regarding quality and safety, particularly within large-scale for-profit models
• Rapid expansion of private provision outpacing regulatory capacity
• Workforce shortages and burnout linked to low pay, high workload and limited recognition
• Variability in training quality and oversight of Registered Training Organisations (RTOs)
• Limitations in Working with Children Check systems, including gaps in information sharing
• Concerns around the application of staff-to-child ratios, including “under the roofline” practices
• Constraints within regulatory oversight and enforcement functions
• Cultural safety gaps impacting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children.

The Committee emphasises that these issues do not exist in isolation. Instead, they interact in ways that increase system risk, particularly where workforce fatigue, inconsistent training and limited oversight converge.

In response to the Brown revelations, the Victorian Government commissioned an independent Rapid Child Safety Review, which made 22 recommendations spanning immediate and longer-term state and national reforms.

The Victorian Government accepted all 22 recommendations and has since implemented key reforms including:

• improvements to the Victorian Working with Children Check framework
• establishing the Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority from 1 January 2026 as an independent sector regulator, replacing the Quality Assessment and Regulation Division of the Department of Education
• working with Education Ministers to implement a series of reforms to the National Law, including a national register of early childhood workers, and improvements to information sharing.

The Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA) has expanded powers to:

• Suspend individuals from working in ECEC services
• Take disciplinary action against providers
• Suspend a service’s quality rating during an investigation
• Share compliance intelligence on individuals with providers and recruitment agencies.

At a national level, further reforms have come into effect, including the paramountcy principle (which made the safety, rights and best interests of children the paramount consideration for all decision-makers under the National Law), mandatory child protection and child safety training, and a new offence for inappropriate conduct.

In December 2025, the Australian Children’s Education and Care Quality Authority made several recommendations as part of its rapid assessment of child safe practices. These include:

• Strengthening the NQF to address inconsistencies and misinterpretations, including clarifying when “under-the-roofline” ratios can be used
• Requiring approved providers to demonstrate their understanding of their role in relation to child safety and due diligence in employing staff
• Requiring the design of buildings and outdoor spaces to facilitate supervision of children at all times and remove opportunities to isolate children
• Improving access to guidance materials and practice support for specific roles.

Evidence and issues presented to the Committee highlight several critical themes now shaping the future of the sector:

• Child safety as the paramount consideration - From 27 February 2026, changes to the National Law came into effect, making children’s safety, wellbeing and rights the primary consideration in all regulatory decisions.
• Workforce conditions as a safety issue - Evidence from educators highlights the direct link between workforce conditions and child safety outcomes. High stress, staffing pressures and limited support reduce capacity for effective supervision and engagement.
• Increased scrutiny of for-profit provision - Rapid growth in parts of the sector has outpaced oversight. The Committee heard concerns that commercial pressures may, in some cases, impact staffing, quality and safety.
• Reform of training and qualification pathways - Concerns were raised about inconsistencies in RTO quality, limited practical training and over-reliance on educators “working towards” qualifications.
• Regulatory oversight under pressure

The former regulatory model was criticised for delays, inconsistent enforcement and limited intelligence sharing.

The Victorian Inquiry reflects broader national dynamics. Similar reviews across jurisdictions point to:

• Fragmented regulatory systems
• Persistent workforce shortages
• Inconsistent application of child safety expectations
• Increasing complexity in children’s needs
• Ongoing pressures within a predominantly market-based system.

The Interim Report presents both a warning and an opportunity. It highlights a system that has expanded rapidly without adequately strengthening governance, workforce and regulatory oversight. It also reinforces the need for coordinated national reform, rather than isolated state-based responses.

At the same time, it outlines a pathway forward, one grounded in stronger oversight, national alignment and a clear commitment to child safety as non-negotiable.

The Committee will continue its work ahead of a final report due in July 2026. 

Source

Victorian Parliament, Select Committee on the Early Childhood Education and Care Sector in Victoria – Interim Report.