Help protect and bring justice to vulnerable daycare children.
The Petition
This Petition will be sent to:
- Hon. Paul Papalia CSC, MLA,
Minister for Police; Corrective Services; Defence Industry; Veterans Issues - Hon. Sabine Winton BA BPS MLA,
Minister for Early Childhood Education; Child Protection; Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence; Community Services - Ms Elizabeth (Libby) Mettam MLA,
Leader of the WA Liberal Party; Shadow Minister for Health; Mental Health; Disability Services; Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence; Child Protection - Hon Dr Anne Aly MP,
Minister for Early Childhood Education; Minister for Youth
Help protect and bring justice to vulnerable daycare children, like Lincoln
Content Warning: Sensitive topics including child sexual assault
Lincoln* was almost 3yrs old when he returned from daycare with an anal injury saying someone hit him in the bottom, he later disclosed he was hit with a stick in both genitalia regions. Lincoln returned from daycare a few days later with blood on his nappy. Lincoln complained of sore genitalia for weeks. Another child from the centre bled from their genitals down both legs to their feet following a bath after returning from the centre. Hospital examinations over 7 days
post-incident reported the bleeding was ‘unexplained’. The hospital also found a mark on a childs genitalia suggestive of internal injury.
These were two of four children from the same daycare centre whose families made allegations of sexual abuse within weeks of each other. The four alleged incidents went on to be investigated by the Child Abuse Squad with state
Police. Lincoln was one of four children that were part of Child Abuse Squad investigation at the same daycare centre. Lincoln’s psychologist made statements regarding his clear and specific disclosures of a strong sexual nature, his response and presentation in therapy. The psychologist also explicitly expressed concern about disclosures, reports, and statements of children that have not been deemed credible by authorities, leaving children and families suffering ongoing trauma and potential public safety risks.
The Detective closed his case and filed it with ‘no offence detected’. He went further to state that ‘the information gathered throughout the investigation would strongly suggest no offence occurred’.
There was no protection and there is no justice for daycare children like Lincoln.
Lincoln is not the only child in Australia that has raised sexual assault allegations, tried to voice their concerns and was not listened to. Ashley Griffith was charged with over 1600 offences against children, across multiple daycare centres spanning 10 years. Ashley Griffith was caught by the Australian Federal Police only through photographs found on the dark web that were traced back to a room in an Australian daycare centre.
Two police reports were made against Ashley Griffith at the same police station in the preceding 12 months. In one instance, a little girl told her parents that Ashley touched her private parts, sadly the police found that no offence occurred and went as far as to state that she did not look like a child who had been interfered with.
Only 35% of daycare offenders are carers, they can be anyone including men or women, family of staff members, bus drivers, visitors etc. Offences in daycare centres can occur anywhere not just during nappy changes (Finkelhor et al., 1988).
These statistics are alarming. Daycare centres must be held accountable for their actions or lack thereof. Daycare centres remain vulnerable due to inadequate regulations. Recent events have underscored this issue further.
Parents need to consider this when they consider how to choose child care near me or a daycare centre near me.
We cannot stand idle while our children are at risk
By signing this petition, you are joining a collective voice demanding safer environments for our children where they can learn and grow without fear of harm or exploitation. If, after the utmost protective measures are implemented they do make allegations of sexual abuse they deserve rigourous investigation.
Please sign this petition today!
Petition by,Jane
Appeal Letters
We are writing to the Ministers responsible for daycare centres and police investigation standards.
Because of the inherent risks of predators, prevalence of sexual abuse in children and the inherent vulnerability of toddlers our children should be protected at daycare by mandatory parent and child sexual abuse education, tighter screening measures and cameras throughout the centre. When allegations of abuse are made, investigations should be thorough, they should have a voice in the justice system and should have child sexual abuse developmental experts provide opinion when the outcome is no offence detected.
Continued failure to provide these measures is effectively government funded and PROTECTED sexual abuse.
To:
The Minister for Early Childhood Education; Child Protection; Prevention of Family and Domestic Violence; Community Services
Australian daycare centre sexual abuse incidents are alarming. The Ashley Griffith case of over 1600 cases (when two confirmed unsubstantiated police reports were made) and the 4 unresolved allegations of abuse at a daycare centre in Perth highlight how pertinent it is to protect these children.
Pre-verbal children are vulnerable, voiceless and unable to provide evidence that leads to convictions and thus deserve greater protection.
We need robust protocols established for handling suspected cases of sexual abuse, similar to those implemented by schools and other institutions scrutinised by the Royal Commission on Institutional Abuse, Disability, and Aged Care.
We urge lawmakers and relevant authorities to take immediate action towards implementing stringent reforms in all daycare centres across the country.
What the community is demanding:
- A nationwide system to track sexual abuse allegations in daycares
- Daycare facilities adhere to the same standards of transparency and accountability as schools.
- Daycare centres adopt more stringent recruitment and screening procedures
- Daycare centres must be mandated to disclose all staff, including agency workers, to parents.
- Enhanced security measures, including increased camera surveillance throughout the centre at least in play areas
- Expedition of mandatory sexual abuse reporting requirements for daycare workers in Western Australia
- National guidelines need to be developed for mandatory training for parents, children and staff addressing signs and management of suspected child abuse
Sincerely,
[Your name]
To:
The Minister of Police
Australian daycare centre sexual abuse incidents are alarming. The Ashley Griffith case of over 1600 cases (when two confirmed unsubstantiated police reports were made) and the 4 unresolved allegations of abuse at a daycare centre in Perth highlight how pertinent it is to protect these children.
Pre-verbal children are vulnerable, voiceless and seem unable to provide evidence that leads to charges and convictions and thus deserve a voice in the legal system.
The law needs to accommodate their voice.
- Clarification around ‘unsubstantiated’ and where sexual harm does not meet the criteria to meet standards in the criminal justice system, a professional opinion is sought on the likelihood of whether or not a child has been harmed*
- Professional opinion should be sought from forensic psychologists, psychologists with experience and training in child development and sexual abuse, paediatricians and speech pathologists should be involved in the investigation of all daycare child cases. Expert developmental knowledge is critical.
- Senior police are retained
- Police should have more powers to investigate child sexual abuse cases in daycares, while also considering individual rights and privacy concerns.
*recommendation from Bravehearts Abbey project Discussion Paper Published in June 2016, Abbey’s Project Discussion Pape
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Supporters
Vicki Turton
Please help these children. Adults are the ones with the power. Listen.
Pauline Bradley
There needs to be more scrutiny of people applying for jobs in child care. I thought you had to have a working with children certificate which should include a police check. I am sick of people not doing their jobs and passing the buck.
Sue James
This is dreadful and needs to be stopped and investigated .
You never know who your children are with and they need protecting .
Project Rescue Children
Regrettably we see the worst of the worst predators who always target employment opportunities that allow easy access to children. When we entrust our most vulnerable individuals to the care of daycare workers, we naturally expect them to be kept safe. Unfortunately, comprehensive case studies have unequivocally demonstrated a concerning rise in incidents of child sexual abuse and rape within daycare centers, with many such cases either going uninvestigated or being concealed. It is imperative for both authorities and daycare center owners to take proactive steps to prevent such abuse, including conducting educational workshops for staff, implementing stricter employee screening processes, enforcing a two-person rule, prohibiting staff from using personal phones, and employing preventive measures such as security cameras and open layouts. Every allegation of abuse must be thoroughly investigated without delay. As the incidence of these cases continues to increase, it is essential that collective action be taken now not in the future, to ensure the safety of children within daycare facilities.
Jane Jackson
Had I known the reality of the risks, I would have chosen facilities with surveillance cameras, training for parents carers and children and immediately presented to the hospitals specialist child sexual abuse services and/or sought support from organisations like 1800 RESPECT or 1800 BRAVEHEARTS.
We all share the same desire: to shield our children from harm. Yet, the statistics are sobering. Reports reveal that a staggering 1 in 10 men self-report committing sexual offences against children. Shockingly, a significant percentage of female-perpetrated child sexual abuse occurs within organisational settings, such as daycare centres.
We cannot be idle, we must act now.