Childcare provider stripped of funding labels decision 'devastating'

Melbourne childcare provider stripped of funding labels decision 'devastating' Wed 1 Jul 2026 at 11:05am In short: Laugh & Learn Family Day Care Education & Training has said its loss of federal government funding due to serious safety breaches is "devastating". The service is the first in the country to be stripped of its funding, and it will cease to have provider approval for all its locations on July 4. What's next? The childcare operator says it will challenge the Commonwealth government's decision to defund the service. A Victorian childcare provider stripped of its federal government funding has responded publicly, labelling the decision "devastating" and vowing to challenge it. Laugh & Learn Family Day Care Education & Training, which operates nine family day cares in private Melbourne homes, became the first provider to lose funding since the introduction of new safety standards last year. The provider was found to have seriously breached safety standards at two of its family day cares, both in Craigieburn in Melbourne's north. The breaches related to exposing children to bleach and rat poison, and failing to properly secure a water feature. In a statement, the provider described the decision as "one of the most devastating days in the history of our family day care service". "This decision is not just about our service. It affects hardworking families who rely on affordable early childhood education and care, dedicated educators who have devoted themselves to nurturing and protecting children and, most importantly, the children who may lose the trusted relationships they have built with the educators they know and love," the statement read. The provider said it had immediately addressed and rectified concerns raised by the regulatory body. Circumstances 'not always black and white', provider claims The safety issues were flagged with Laugh & Learn Family Day Care Education & Training in April, following visits by officers from the Victorian Early Childhood Regulatory Authority (VECRA). However, 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 matters identified in our case related to compliance and environmental issues at a limited number of educator residences," Laugh & Learn's statement read. "The circumstances were not always black and white and, in some instances, involved isolated household situations rather than ongoing risks to children." The provider also highlighted that despite losing access to government funding, with families no longer to be able to use childcare subsidies to utilise its services, it remained permitted to operate and provide care. Laugh & Learn Family Day Care Education & Training indicated its intention to challenge the federal government's decision. "We respectfully disagree with this decision and will continue to pursue every available avenue of review," it said. The move to defund the nine centres will come into effect on July 4. Safety standards that enable the federal government to strip childcare providers of funding when they cannot guarantee child safety were introduced last year in the wake of the arrest of a worker charged with multiple allegations against children. Concerns about the safety of children at Victorian childcare services have been highlighted by recent cases, including an instance where safety breaches potentially enabled children to access a 12th floor balcony.