Childcare costs more in Canberra than anywhere else in the country and several families have told the ABC that recent revelations are prompting them to reconsider to whom they entrust with their children.
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00:00Finding trusted childcare can sometimes feel like searching for a unicorn.
00:07Someone that will care for your child, love your child, educate your child and provide a safe space for them to come.
00:16Livy's mum Naomi thinks she's found it at this play school.
00:20At previous childcare centres where we've been it was dropping Livy off was a challenge, picking her up was a challenge.
00:27You could tell she just didn't really want to be there.
00:30Naomi was driven to the not-for-profit sector after other centres disappointed with allergy concerns and too much screen time.
00:38What did you do to your knees?
00:40We're not here to make money. Everything that we earn goes back into the children and providing the best program that we can for them.
00:47The sector has been flooded by government subsidies in the last decade, attracting some businesses that put profit over care.
00:55I'd like to be shot at these cowboys, and that's what they are. Leveraging off kids for profit.
01:03Landlord Brendan Ryan has been in the sector for more than 30 years.
01:07He was ripped off by a provider who now owes his company tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid rent.
01:13He says the ACT regulator, known as SEEKER, was powerless to act.
01:18Until somebody grabs it by the throat and puts in proper governance with proper systems of integrity and compliance, this is going to get worse.
01:28I wouldn't say it's a toothless tiger, but I would say that the national law needs to change for the whole country to be able to take action.
01:37The ACT Education Minister says she has confidence in the territory's childcare sector, despite an increase in the rate of serious incidents at long childcare centres in the last year.
01:48There were 285 serious incidents for every 100 centres in the ACT in 2023-24, compared to a national rate of 199.
01:59And ACT parents paid about $92 more for childcare than the national median rate.
02:05Property rates and rents are higher here in the ACT. We also have very high employment levels and higher wages.
02:13For its part, the NSW Government has launched an internal inquiry, but the ACT Government is yet to commit to its own investigation.
02:23Instead, the Education Minister is relying on a letter she sent to her federal counterpart four months ago, calling for action against unscrupulous providers.
02:34It's the biggest privilege in the world to be entrusted to care for someone's child. It's the biggest honour and the biggest responsibility.
02:41That trust no longer being taken for granted by many parents.