Victorian Childcare Provider Defunded Over Serious Safety Breaches

A childcare provider in Victoria has become the first to be stripped of Commonwealth funding since the government legislated new safety standards for the sector last year.

Laugh & Learn Family Day Care Education & Training operates nine family day cares out of residential homes in Melbourne and was found to have seriously breached safety standards at two of them, both in Craigieburn.

The breaches included exposing children to rat poison and bleach, and failing to secure a water feature.

ABC News understands all nine locations will be defunded as a result.

It is the first time the federal government has used its power to cut off funding to a child care service on the basis of a safety breach.

Since the legislation took effect the government has issued notices to 115 centres.

Of those, 47 have fixed safety issues raised in the report. Another seven have relinquished their licence to operate.

Education Minister Jason Clare said the laws passed last year did not amount to an "idle threat".

"What we are dealing with here is not just the risk of sexual predators in centres — it's general safety hazards," he said.

"The most powerful weapon we have to wield here is taxpayers dollars.

Multiple strikes for provider

Laugh & Learn Family Day Care were initially reprimanded in April by the Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA) after two of its day care locations were deemed an "immediate risk" to children.

Officers who attended the centres noted a number of hazards, including an unsecured bookshelf, obstructed emergency exits and unsecured water features.

They also found bleach, paint and rat poison were accessible to children in "various rooms".

The regulator ordered both centres to close down until the safety concerns could be fixed and issued formal warnings to two educators.

Documents uploaded to the Department of Education enforcement register show Laugh & Learn Family Day Care Education & Training failed to fix the safety issues identified by the regulator.

The cancellation of its provider approval will take effect on July 4.

Parents of children enrolled in the family daycare were notified of the noncompliance action on Wednesday.

The additional powers were legislated last year after the childcare industry was rocked by the arrest of a worker charged with multiple offences against children.

The legalisation allows the government to cut off funding for centres deemed unfit in terms of safety and quality. It applies to all forms of early educator care eligible for the child care subsidy.