Amid claims of abuse, neglect and poor standards, what is going wrong with childcare in Australia?

By Gabrielle Meagher, Professor Emerita, School of Society, Communication and Culture, Macquarie University
Marianne Fenech, Professor, Early Childhood Governance, University of Sydney

On Monday, an ABC’s Four Corners investigation reported shocking cases of abuse and neglect in Australian childcare centres. This included examples of children being sexually abused, restrained for hours in high chairs, and fed nutritionally substandard meals such as pasta with ketchup.

While acknowledging there are high-quality services operating in the community, the program also showed how centre-based childcare is big business, dominated by for-profit providers, who may not be meeting…

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