00:00A personal message to childcare workers.
00:06We thank you for the work that you do for us.
00:09I'm one of that more than million Aussie mums and dads who rely upon you each and every day.
00:15But recent allegations of abuse and neglect in the sector have state and federal governments scrambling to boost safety measures.
00:22Education ministers meeting today agreeing to a national trial of CCTV cameras in up to 300 centres.
00:29The police tell us that this can be an important aspect in deterring bad behaviour.
00:34The trial will start in October, examining where cameras should be placed, how to keep the footage and protect it from being hacked.
00:41CCTV may well have a place but I would be worried about an over-reliance on that kind of technology because of the risks.
00:49Australia's largest not-for-profit early learning provider Good Start is already trialing cameras.
00:54CCTV is an important element but other things are much more important.
00:58The ratio of educators to children and having strong professional development and a reporting culture is what really keeps children safe.
01:05Ministers also agreed to establish a national register of childcare educators.
01:10This is not a silver bullet. None of this is. None of it's a guarantee.
01:15But it is an essential component in what we need to do if we're going to keep our children safe.
01:20The register is expected to include the educators place of work, employment history, their working with children check, any investigations into their conduct and their skills and qualifications.
01:32Educators absolutely support a register. They want to know that the people they're working alongside with little children have been properly vetted.
01:41These steps are welcome, they are necessary and they must be implemented urgently.
01:46More compliance checks, mandatory safety training for all staff and extra information for parents about the quality of centres are some of the other measures being introduced.
01:55But there is still more work to be done. Some within the sector say children will be safer if staffing ratios are fixed.
02:02We are just demanding for the bare minimum which is essential for the safety and for the wellbeing of the children.
02:10We've had systems that have leant towards protecting adults' rights while children remained at risk.
02:19And I think now we've all agreed we can't continue to do that.
02:23In lockstep to ensure children are safe in care.
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