St Anthony's Early Learning Centre Minchinbury

SERIOUS SAFETY AND COMMUNICATION CONCERNS – NEGLECT - UNPROFESSIONAL SERVICES DIRECTOR- PARENT EXPERIENCE ⚠️<br>As a parent, I strongly recommend that families consider this review carefully before enrolling their child. This is based on my own experience with the centre and the concerns I personally observed.<br>SAFETY was my biggest concern. My son experienced repeated falls on three consecutive days, and I repeatedly raised concerns about hazards and asked what could be done to minimise the risks. Unfortunately, I did not feel that the risks were being adequately addressed.<br>I also observed that younger and older age groups were being mixed together, particularly in the morning. My son was under two, and children from different age groups were placed together in the smaller 0–2 room. On one occasion, my son was slapped by an older child.<br>I also had concerns about the limited space in the 0–2 room. There were cupboards and other fixtures around the play area, and with a large number of children in a relatively small space, I was concerned about the possibility of children running into objects or falling when risks were not closely managed.<br>Another major concern was communication. I raised safety concerns and expected clear, accurate and timely communication. However, I experienced situations where information provided to me about incidents and my child's belongings did not match what I later observed myself.<br>I also found it frustrating that when I communicated concerns by email, I did not always receive a written response. I was encouraged to discuss matters verbally instead. As a parent, I believe important concerns regarding a child's safety, incidents and wellbeing should be properly documented and responded to clearly.<br>My experience also left me feeling that responsibility was sometimes being directed towards other circumstances or people rather than there being a clear focus on what happened, why it happened, and what could be done to prevent it happening again.<br>I understand that childcare educators are busy and that children can have accidents. I am not expecting a completely risk-free environment. What I expect is proper supervision, appropriate risk management, clear communication and action when repeated safety concerns are raised.<br>I initially had a positive impression of the centre. However, my experience changed considerably over time, and I became increasingly concerned about the safety, supervision, risk management and communication I experienced.<br>KEY CONCERNS:<br>🚨 SAFETY CONCERNS<br>🚨 REPEATED FALLS<br>🚨 HAZARDS NOT ADEQUATELY ADDRESSED<br>🚨 MIXING OF DIFFERENT AGE GROUPS<br>🚨 LIMITED SPACE FOR YOUNGER CHILDREN<br>🚨 SUPERVISION AND RISK-MANAGEMENT CONCERNS<br>🚨 INCONSISTENT OR INACCURATE COMMUNICATION<br>🚨 LACK OF TIMELY WRITTEN RESPONSES<br>🚨 CONCERNS ABOUT ACCOUNTABILITY<br>🚨 PROFESSIONALISM AND NEGLIGENCE COMMUNICATION CONCERNS<br>I am sharing this because I would want another parent to know about my experience before making such an important decision for their child.<br>Please look beyond the first impression and the initial conversations when considering a childcare centre. My experience was very different once my child was enrolled, and I believe families should ask detailed questions about supervision, room arrangements, age-group mixing, incident reporting, hazard management and how safety concerns are handled.<br>This is my personal experience as a parent, and I am sharing it so other families can make an informed decision.