Secret rating system kept parents in dark about safety fears at NSW childcare centre

Case in which parents were not told centre was in the very high risk' cohort illustrates a glaring safety gap, critics argue

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A childcare centre in New South Wales was approved as meeting" government standards in the publicly available rating system, but flagged months later as a very high risk service" in a secret rating system maintained by the Department of Education, the Guardian can reveal.

The centre, which Guardian Australia is choosing not to name, was flagged by officers from the NSW early childhood regulator as being in the highest risk category of childcare services, after officials visited in May 2024 to investigate a complaint.