At Mother Duck Childcare and Kindergarten, nothing matters more to us than the safety, wellbeing, and dignity of every child entrusted to our care.

In recent weeks, you may have seen growing media attention on safety concerns in the early childhood sector. The ABC News article, “How to check your childcare centre is safe” (17 March 2025), has prompted many families to ask important and necessary questions about what to look for in a high-quality service — and how to know if their centre is truly a safe place for their child to learn and grow.

This is a conversation we welcome at Mother Duck.

Transparency, trust and accountability are the cornerstones of our approach. We know that families want reassurance and clear information — not only that their child is being supervised, but that every visitor, educator, and experience is guided by strong, proactive safeguards.

In the ABC article, several key safety areas were identified, including:

• Active supervision
• Educator qualifications and stability
• Positive behaviour guidance
• Safe visitor and incursion management
• Risk management and background checks

Over the coming weeks, we’ll be publishing a series of short blogs exploring each of these key safety areas in more detail. We’ll explain how Mother Duck exceeds regulatory requirements, what everyday practice looks like in our services, and how our commitment to safety is woven through every part of the day — with every child, every educator, every time.

We hope this blog series not only reassures you, but also empowers you to feel confident, informed, and supported as a parent or caregiver.

If you ever have questions about our practices or policies, our Centre Leadership Teams are always available to talk. At Mother Duck, your child’s safety isn’t just our responsibility — it’s our promise.