A mother has claimed that her two-year-old daughter was sexually assaulted by a worker at a Victorian childcare centre but because there was no witness or CCTV of the alleged incidents, the educator is still working there and has not been charged.
Angela* told Guardian Australia her daughter, Emily*, had disclosed the alleged sexual offences in mid-December, when she was nearly three. She said that on multiple occasions Emily had named the educator and said the offences had taken place while her nappy was being changed.
Within hours of the disclosure, Angela contacted Victoria police’s sexual offences and child abuse investigation team, who encouraged her to take Emily to a doctor for a medical assessment as soon as possible.
Clinical notes from an appointment the next day show the doctor was briefed on the allegations before Emily entered the room. When the doctor asked her about daycare, Emily named the educator and said she did not want to go there any more. The doctor said Emily had begun to mumble when asked for more detail.
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The doctor then conducted a medical examination before urgently referring Emily to a paediatrician for further examination. According to the clinical notes, Emily’s parents were advised to keep her away from the childcare centre. The doctor noted that police were “involved already for investigation”.
Initially, Angela says, police told her not to report the allegations to the childcare centre. Two days after the doctor’s appointment, they sought a statement from the child on tape. But Emily was uncomfortable and unwilling to engage with officers, so no statement was taken.
Angela says that four days later an officer had told her they had consulted with senior colleagues and advised her that a magistrate would not be convinced Emily knew the difference between the truth and a lie. They encouraged Angela to tell the childcare centre about the allegations.
After Angela reported Emily’s allegations to the centre, the educator was temporarily suspended. The centre engaged a private firm specialising in workplace relations to conduct an investigation, as required by the Victorian government’s reportable conduct scheme.
A separate investigation was launched by the state education department to independently consider the allegations and to determine whether any regulatory action should be taken against the childcare centre.
In a signed statement submitted to both investigations in February, Angela provided contemporaneous notes of her discussions with Emily about what had allegedly occurred to her and detailed accounts of her behaviour and physical symptoms.
The investigators also assessed the doctor’s clinical notes. With Angela’s permission, the education department interviewed the doctor.
The state government investigator also assessed a letter from Emily’s “accredited mental health social worker”, which independently documented the child’s allegation. This letter did not name the educator.
The letter said Emily’s behavioural symptoms were “consistent with sexual assault victims”. It noted that Emily was “triggered going down the same street as the childcare centre” and had allegedly told her parents she did not want to see the educator again.
Despite this information, both investigations found the allegations were “unsubstantiated” due to “insufficient evidence”. Under the reportable conduct scheme, this category of finding acknowledges some “significant strong evidence” but not enough to meet the high threshold required to substantiate the claim.
Angela says an education department official told her she needed corroborating evidence, such as CCTV footage or a witness, to substantiate the allegations.
Surveillance cameras are not mandatory in childcare centres. There was no witness to the alleged incidents.
“If this level of evidence doesn’t meet the threshold, what ever could?” Angela said. “Does a perpetrator need to document their own abuse with photos or video … for an allegation to be substantiated?
“Are we truly saying that a child’s disclosure, medical corroboration and a PTSD diagnosis from a trauma specialist isn’t enough unless the abuse is caught on tape?”
While the allegations were not substantiated, Guardian Australia has confirmed that the same educator has had an allegation of improper non-sexual treatment of a different child upheld.
The incident, which occurred several years earlier and was outside the scope of Victoria’s reportable conduct scheme, involved an older child. Documents show the staff member was given training on acceptable behaviours and child safety.
In a letter to Angela, the centre’s chief executive said: “We are committed to maintaining a safe and supportive environment from all children and will continue to monitor and review our practices that do not align with this commitment.”
Last week the state government told Angela there was “insufficient evidence to prosecute or take regulatory action”.
“The outcome does not infer that [the child’s] disclosure was not recognised or taken seriously,” a senior investigator said in correspondence seen by Guardian Australia.
The department investigated whether the centre was ensuring the safety, health and wellbeing of children. It assessed the centre’s compliance history and said it would continue to be monitored.
These unsubstantiated findings do not feature on working-with-children checks, despite the acknowledgment of some “significant strong evidence”.
At present there is no way for childcare centres to share these findings with other providers who may seek to hire the educator in the future.
Days after receiving the education department’s findings, Angela questioned why police had not launched their own formal investigation.
In correspondence seen by Guardian Australia, Victoria police confirmed they had launched a preliminary investigation in the hope it could proceed without a recorded statement from the child. But this was “unfortunately” not possible as, in their view, the child had only disclosed the alleged offending to her mother.
“I completely understand your concerns and have done everything within legislation that I can do at this stage,” a Victoria police officer wrote.
Angela says Emily still talks about the alleged offending. She says her daughter, who is now three, remains “deeply traumatised”. But she believes Emily may be willing to make a statement with appropriate support, once she is comfortable with police.
Letters from Emily’s counsellor show she is being told she is brave for telling her story. Her social worker says with continued support at home, and in her new childcare centre, Emily “can learn to feel safe again”.
* Names have been changed to protect privacy
• In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. If you or someone you know is affected by sexual assault, family or domestic violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit www.1800RESPECT.org.au. In an emergency, call 000. International helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org.
