THE approved provider of Alexandra Hills Early Education says it has accepted responsibility for a serious supervision incident that led to a $15,000 court fine and has since overhauled its Bush Kindy program with extensive new safety measures.
G A Holdings (Qld) Pty Ltd as Trustee for A G Holdings Unit Trust was fined $15,000 and ordered to pay $1,750 in costs in Cleveland Magistrates Court on June 8 after a 23-month-old child left a Bush Kindy excursion unnoticed and was unsupervised for up to 23 minutes before being located and returned safely.
The incident occurred on September 25, 2024.
During the court hearing, Magistrate Michael Holohan found the excursion risk assessment undertaken by the service was insufficient.
The Queensland Department of Education submitted that the offences had the potential to result in serious injury or death.
In a statement provided to this publication, the approved provider said it accepted the court’s findings and acknowledged its responsibility.
“We accept the findings of the Court and acknowledge our responsibility as the Approved Provider in relation to this historical incident,” the provider said.
“The safety and wellbeing of children is, and always will be, our highest priority.
“While we are extremely grateful that the child involved was located safe, unharmed and returned to our care, we recognise that the incident should not have occurred.”
The provider said the incident occurred during a Bush Kindy excursion and was self-reported to the Department of Education on the same day.
“As soon as the child was identified as being unaccounted for, educators commenced searching and the child was located shortly afterwards by a nearby resident and returned safely to the service,” the statement said.
The provider said neither the service nor the approved provider had previously been the subject of any investigation, prosecution or compliance action under the National Law before the incident.
Following the incident, Alexandra Hills Early Education immediately suspended its Bush Kindy program and undertook what it described as a comprehensive review of supervision practices, excursion procedures, policies and risk management systems.
The service said it had since introduced a range of additional safeguards, including revised excursion procedures, enhanced risk assessments, increased educator-to-child ratios, reduced group sizes, mandatory staff retraining, competency assessments and stricter supervision and head-count requirements.
Additional measures included family information sessions, site walkthroughs, specialist Bush Kindy training, enhanced educator induction processes and ongoing audits of excursion practices.
“We are not proud that the incident occurred, but we are proud of how we responded,” the provider said.
“We accepted responsibility, cooperated fully with the Department, invested heavily in improvements, and used the experience to build what we believe is now one of the most robust Bush Kindy programs within our organisation.”
The provider said the current Bush Kindy program was “significantly different” from the program operating at the time of the incident and now incorporated multiple additional layers of oversight and accountability.
It also stressed the incident related to a single historical event that had been investigated, addressed and rectified.
“There are no current restrictions on the service’s operations and no ongoing concerns regarding the centre’s ability to provide safe, high-quality education and care,” the statement said.
The provider said it remained committed to transparency with families and continuous improvement.
“Perhaps the most significant reflection of the confidence rebuilt following the incident is that the child involved remains enrolled at Alexandra Hills Early Education today and continues to attend the service,” the provider said.
“We remain grateful for the constructive and respectful relationship maintained with the family throughout this process.”
The provider said the court process had now concluded but its focus on safety improvements would continue.
“To families who may be concerned, we want them to know that we have listened, learned and acted,” the statement said.
“The incident prompted a significant review of our practices and strengthened our commitment to ensuring the highest possible standards of supervision, safety and care for every child entrusted to us.”
The Department of Education successfully prosecuted the matter under the National Law governing early childhood education and care services.
