Bills to overhaul childcare regulation debated

The legislation follows a rapid review into systemic failures in child safety and implements recommendations agreed upon nationally by education ministers. 

The three bills, the Early Childhood Legislation Amendment (Child Safety) Bill 2025, Social Services Regulation Amendment (Child Safety, Complaints and Worker Regulation) Bill 2025 and the Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority Bill 2025 have all passed the Legislative Assembly and now go to the Legislative Council for consideration. 

In his second reading speech Minister for Education Ben Carroll said several serious incidents of sexual assault and abuse of children in early childhood education and care settings had come to light in several jurisdictions over the past three years. 

‘These shocking allegations have highlighted the urgent need for further action by governments and the education and care sector to improve the safety and quality of education and care nationally,’ he said. 

Key reforms include establishing the safety, rights, and best interests of children as the overriding principle in all early childhood services; mandatory child safety and child protection training for all educators and staff; new rules for digital devices in early learning environments; and creating new offences for inappropriate conduct and for providing false or misleading information to recruitment agencies.

“ 'These shocking allegations have highlighted the urgent need for further action by governments and the education and care sector.' ”

Ben Carroll, Minister for Education

Member for Kew Jess Wilson said the children of Victoria had been failed by the current system. 

‘Every parent in Victoria should have the confidence that when they drop their child off at child care, they will be safe – that the system that we as legislators have put in place, that this government oversees, will keep them safe. But unfortunately that confidence has been shattered, because the system is broken,’ she said. 

Mathew Hilakari, Member for Point Cook, said he questioned whether large-scale for-profit operators were ‘fit and proper to be providing this education and care’ and that’s why they needed to be regulated. 

‘Profit and care, in my view, are like oil and water; by themselves they simply do not mix. High-quality regulation can be the emulsifier that brings them together,’ he said.

“ 'Unfortunately that confidence has been shattered, because the system is broken.’ ”

Jess Wilson, Member for Kew

Member for South-West Coast Roma Britnell said the creation of an independent early childhood education and care regulator separate from the Department of Education was a critical reform, because ‘for too long the department has been both the operator and the regulator, a clear conflict of interest that has been undermining trust and accountability’. 

Lauren Kathage, Member for Yan Yean, said the measure would be in place for the start of the 2026 school year. 

‘I want to assure parents that the work that we are doing means that we will have the most rigorous inspection regime in the country, by authorised officers. We will have more unannounced compliance visits – more than double. We will more than double the unannounced compliance visits on centres,’ she said.  

The full debate is available to read in Hansard.

A Select Committee will also inquire into and report on the Early Childhood Education and Care sector in Victoria. Go to the Committee's website to read the terms of reference or to make a submission.