Who is Joshua Brown, the alleged Melbourne childcare rapist?
Working at 20 childcare centres across Melbourne, Brown apparently attracted no notice from regulators for almost a decade until he was charged with 70 counts of child sex abuse, including rape, this year.
When police raided the 26-year-old's home in Point Cook in May, he had a valid working with children check and no criminal record.
Minutes down the road from his house were his old Catholic schools, as well as the Creative Garden Early Learning Centre, where it's alleged he abused at least eight babies and toddlers and contaminated children's food with bodily fluids.
Brown's former classmates at Emmanuel College were shocked when the news broke on Tuesday. They described a 'loner' in high school with few friends but no obvious concerns.
Few people wanted to comment, and Brown's social media presence appeared to have been wiped clean since his arrest in May.
Brown grew up in Point Cook and remained in the area in a rented home which he shared with a male housemate and a cat, which is now sitting vacant. Nearby were at least five of the childcare centres where he worked, though authorities are still scrambling to update his full employment history, after this masthead revealed it was wider than first released publicly to families.
Brown was easily recognisable to parents for his distinctive Celtic arm tattoos and ginger-coloured hair, which he often dyed different colours. Some families spoke of his easy laughter. He worked at large childcare chains G8 Education and Affinity Education and often did short-stint relief work at other centres.
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9 News
3 hours ago
- 9 News
'My heart sank': Father learns of son's crossover with alleged childcare paedophile Joshua Brown
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here Exclusive: A Melbourne father has spoken out learning his toddler may have attended a childcare centre where alleged paedophile Joshua Brown worked, as the former childcare worker's employment history is revisited. A major police investigation saw Joshua Brown charged with 70 offences, including sexual assault, earlier this year. The charges relate to eight alleged victims at a Point Cook early education centre. Joshua Brown, 26, was arrested on May 12. (Supplied) About 1200 families were also contacted to send their children for precautionary testing for sexually transmitted diseases. Revelations emerged yesterday that Brown may have worked on more occasions than those listed on the government website. Melbourne father Daniel* did not initially think his family had been impacted, until an updated timeline revealed a crossover between his two-year-old son's attendance and Brown's employment at a centre in the city's west. "We didn't expect it, for us to be involved in it, and when we did find out my heart sank," Daniel said. "These are dates that the government weren't aware of, and yeah, it's just unfortunate that we had to find out that way," he told 9News. Premier Jacinta Allan said the website was being "constantly updated". (Nine) Because they were not initially contacted by the health department, Daniel claims his son was turned away from the test site and had to scramble to prove his toddler needed the test. "To make such big mistakes in this, with young children involved between, you know, five months to two years and, you know, to be cutting corners and, .... the communication breakdown has been very disappointing," Daniel told 9News. Police are investigating if any alleged abuse occurred at the 19 other facilities he worked at. Allan has assured parents the government is taking immediate action, yesterday appointing Jay Weatherill to review Victoria's childcare sector. "Jay Weatherill is the best person for this work, he is the best person to lead this work," she said. But critics have argued the former South Australian premier, who oversaw the worst child protection failure in the state's history, is not the right fit. "How on earth can we have confidence that this review will deliver the outcomes that Victorian families need?" shadow education minister Jess Wilson asked. *Name has been changed for privacy Melbourne national Australia Victoria child sex abuse CONTACT US Property News: The suburbs where workers on $300,000 can't afford a house.
SBS Australia
6 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Fast-tracked spot checks, funds-stripping powers but 'no silver bullet' to childcare woes
Childcare centres failing to meet standards could face random "spot checks" under expanded powers the federal government will move to legislate soon after parliament returns, Education Minister Jason Clare says. The legislation, Clare said, would give his department the power to pull funding from childcare centres "persistently failing" to meet safety and quality standards. "One of the big weapons that the Commonwealth has, probably the biggest, is the funding that we provide to childcare centres ... if they don't get it, they can't operate," he told Sky News on Friday. Centres not meeting minimum standards would also be unable to expand, Clare said, adding the bill would also allow department officials to make unannounced visits to centres where there is suspected fraud. "They won't need a warrant," Clare said. "They won't need the police to come with them when they're investigating fraud in childcare centres." Brown, 26, had a valid working with children check and was not known to police or subject to any complaints before his arrest in May. Every state and territory maintains separate working with children schemes with different rules and requirements. Victoria, Queensland, and NSW have all committed to reviewing or tightening their regimes, and Clare confirmed plans to strengthen the checks will be discussed at a meeting of state and federal attorneys-general in August. He said they would examine how to improve the criminal record check system. "Part of it is about information sharing across borders," Clare said. "Part of it is about making sure that it's updated in near real time." But Clare warned there was "no silver bullet" to solving problems in the sector. "There's a whole bunch of things that we need to do, and this work will never end," he said. "There are always going to be more things that we need to do here because there's always going to be people who are going to try and break through the net to try to do the dastardly things that we've seen other people do." Education Minister Jason Clare said early childhood education ministers would discuss the use of CCTV cameras at centres when they meet next month. Source: AAP / Dominic Lipinski/PA Clare also said that early education ministers would discuss the installation of CCTV cameras at childcare centres when they meet next month, following the announcement by childcare chain Goodstart Early Learning that it would install them across its 653 centres. "One of the things that having a CCTV camera in a childcare centre can do is if there's somebody that's potentially up to no good, they know the camera's there," Clare said. "It means it's less likely that they're going to act, so it's one of the things that we're looking at right now." It comes as a former royal commissioner has criticised governments for dragging their feet on creating a national regime for Working With Children Checks (WWCC). The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse called on the federal government in 2015 to "facilitate a national model" for WWCC. Robert Fitzgerald, one of five members of the royal commission, said the recommendation remained unfulfilled. "My view is that is shameful," the now-age discrimination commissioner told the Australian Associated Press. "Ten years on, that job should have been completed and the fact that it isn't means there are gaps in our child safeguarding regime." Clare said earlier this week the reforms had taken "too bloody long". — With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press
The Advertiser
8 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Fears alleged sex offender worked with more children
A childcare operator is urgently checking its records amid fears that an accused child sex offender may have been employed longer than previously thought. Joshua Dale Brown has been charged with more than 70 sex offences after allegedly abusing eight children aged under two at a Point Cook facility in Melbourne's southwest. Victoria Police are also examining evidence of alleged offending at a centre in Essendon. A list of the 20 centres he worked at since 2017, with dates ranges, has already been made public. The parents of 1200 children have been told to get them tested for sexually transmitted infections as a precaution. Affinity Education, which operates several facilities where Brown worked, including the Essendon centre, is now reviewing its records following reports he might have been employed longer than first thought. "Given the serious nature of the matter, we are currently reviewing our records in detail to ensure completeness," a spokesperson said. "Affinity Education continues to co-operate fully with authorities and remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of the children and families in our care." Meanwhile, a former royal commissioner has slammed governments for dragging their feet on creating a national regime for working with children checks. Brown, 26, had a valid working with children check and was not known to police or subject to any complaints before his arrest in May. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse called on the federal government in 2015 to "facilitate a national model" for working with children checks. Robert Fitzgerald, one of five members of the royal commission, said the recommendation remained unfulfilled. "My view is that is shameful," the now-age discrimination commissioner told AAP. "Ten years on, that job should have been completed and the fact that it isn't means there are gaps in our child safeguarding regime." Every state and territory maintains separate working with children schemes with different rules and requirements. Victoria, Queensland and NSW have all committed to reviewing or tightening up their regimes. A 2022 Victorian ombudsman report exposed "serious flaws" in the state's scheme after former Melbourne City Mission worker Alexander Jones was convicted of sexually assaulting a child in 2018. Jones was investigated for multiple alleged sexual offences in NSW but granted a permit in Victoria because his national police check was clean, as he had not been charged. People under investigation for serious offences can still hold a working with children check in Victoria. It can only be revoked upon criminal charges or a regulatory finding. Plans to strengthen the checks will be discussed at a meeting of state and federal attorneys-general in August. The federal government is also preparing to fast-track legislation in parliament this month to cut funding to centres with safety breaches. Federal frontbencher Clare O'Neil said she didn't have a good answer for why the royal commission's recommendations were left on the shelf. "A lot of these predators would pass a working with children check," she said. Families of the children recommended for STI testing are anxiously awaiting results. It's understood that at least two families were told to get their infants checked twice. They were first told to get their child checked for two diseases and then days later were warned about a third. The state's health department has expressed regret for causing any additional stress or anxiety. The allegations against Brown have cast a spotlight on educator-to-child ratios, which do not require more than one carer to be around a child at any given time, unlike the Netherlands' "four eyes" principle. A father whose two children attended the Point Cook centre wants CCTV installed throughout the facility. NSW has flagged a trial of CCTV cameras in centres, as an urgent Victorian review examines making the technology mandatory. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 A childcare operator is urgently checking its records amid fears that an accused child sex offender may have been employed longer than previously thought. Joshua Dale Brown has been charged with more than 70 sex offences after allegedly abusing eight children aged under two at a Point Cook facility in Melbourne's southwest. Victoria Police are also examining evidence of alleged offending at a centre in Essendon. A list of the 20 centres he worked at since 2017, with dates ranges, has already been made public. The parents of 1200 children have been told to get them tested for sexually transmitted infections as a precaution. Affinity Education, which operates several facilities where Brown worked, including the Essendon centre, is now reviewing its records following reports he might have been employed longer than first thought. "Given the serious nature of the matter, we are currently reviewing our records in detail to ensure completeness," a spokesperson said. "Affinity Education continues to co-operate fully with authorities and remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of the children and families in our care." Meanwhile, a former royal commissioner has slammed governments for dragging their feet on creating a national regime for working with children checks. Brown, 26, had a valid working with children check and was not known to police or subject to any complaints before his arrest in May. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse called on the federal government in 2015 to "facilitate a national model" for working with children checks. Robert Fitzgerald, one of five members of the royal commission, said the recommendation remained unfulfilled. "My view is that is shameful," the now-age discrimination commissioner told AAP. "Ten years on, that job should have been completed and the fact that it isn't means there are gaps in our child safeguarding regime." Every state and territory maintains separate working with children schemes with different rules and requirements. Victoria, Queensland and NSW have all committed to reviewing or tightening up their regimes. A 2022 Victorian ombudsman report exposed "serious flaws" in the state's scheme after former Melbourne City Mission worker Alexander Jones was convicted of sexually assaulting a child in 2018. Jones was investigated for multiple alleged sexual offences in NSW but granted a permit in Victoria because his national police check was clean, as he had not been charged. People under investigation for serious offences can still hold a working with children check in Victoria. It can only be revoked upon criminal charges or a regulatory finding. Plans to strengthen the checks will be discussed at a meeting of state and federal attorneys-general in August. The federal government is also preparing to fast-track legislation in parliament this month to cut funding to centres with safety breaches. Federal frontbencher Clare O'Neil said she didn't have a good answer for why the royal commission's recommendations were left on the shelf. "A lot of these predators would pass a working with children check," she said. Families of the children recommended for STI testing are anxiously awaiting results. It's understood that at least two families were told to get their infants checked twice. They were first told to get their child checked for two diseases and then days later were warned about a third. The state's health department has expressed regret for causing any additional stress or anxiety. The allegations against Brown have cast a spotlight on educator-to-child ratios, which do not require more than one carer to be around a child at any given time, unlike the Netherlands' "four eyes" principle. A father whose two children attended the Point Cook centre wants CCTV installed throughout the facility. NSW has flagged a trial of CCTV cameras in centres, as an urgent Victorian review examines making the technology mandatory. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 A childcare operator is urgently checking its records amid fears that an accused child sex offender may have been employed longer than previously thought. Joshua Dale Brown has been charged with more than 70 sex offences after allegedly abusing eight children aged under two at a Point Cook facility in Melbourne's southwest. Victoria Police are also examining evidence of alleged offending at a centre in Essendon. A list of the 20 centres he worked at since 2017, with dates ranges, has already been made public. The parents of 1200 children have been told to get them tested for sexually transmitted infections as a precaution. Affinity Education, which operates several facilities where Brown worked, including the Essendon centre, is now reviewing its records following reports he might have been employed longer than first thought. "Given the serious nature of the matter, we are currently reviewing our records in detail to ensure completeness," a spokesperson said. "Affinity Education continues to co-operate fully with authorities and remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of the children and families in our care." Meanwhile, a former royal commissioner has slammed governments for dragging their feet on creating a national regime for working with children checks. Brown, 26, had a valid working with children check and was not known to police or subject to any complaints before his arrest in May. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse called on the federal government in 2015 to "facilitate a national model" for working with children checks. Robert Fitzgerald, one of five members of the royal commission, said the recommendation remained unfulfilled. "My view is that is shameful," the now-age discrimination commissioner told AAP. "Ten years on, that job should have been completed and the fact that it isn't means there are gaps in our child safeguarding regime." Every state and territory maintains separate working with children schemes with different rules and requirements. Victoria, Queensland and NSW have all committed to reviewing or tightening up their regimes. A 2022 Victorian ombudsman report exposed "serious flaws" in the state's scheme after former Melbourne City Mission worker Alexander Jones was convicted of sexually assaulting a child in 2018. Jones was investigated for multiple alleged sexual offences in NSW but granted a permit in Victoria because his national police check was clean, as he had not been charged. People under investigation for serious offences can still hold a working with children check in Victoria. It can only be revoked upon criminal charges or a regulatory finding. Plans to strengthen the checks will be discussed at a meeting of state and federal attorneys-general in August. The federal government is also preparing to fast-track legislation in parliament this month to cut funding to centres with safety breaches. Federal frontbencher Clare O'Neil said she didn't have a good answer for why the royal commission's recommendations were left on the shelf. "A lot of these predators would pass a working with children check," she said. Families of the children recommended for STI testing are anxiously awaiting results. It's understood that at least two families were told to get their infants checked twice. They were first told to get their child checked for two diseases and then days later were warned about a third. The state's health department has expressed regret for causing any additional stress or anxiety. The allegations against Brown have cast a spotlight on educator-to-child ratios, which do not require more than one carer to be around a child at any given time, unlike the Netherlands' "four eyes" principle. A father whose two children attended the Point Cook centre wants CCTV installed throughout the facility. NSW has flagged a trial of CCTV cameras in centres, as an urgent Victorian review examines making the technology mandatory. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028 A childcare operator is urgently checking its records amid fears that an accused child sex offender may have been employed longer than previously thought. Joshua Dale Brown has been charged with more than 70 sex offences after allegedly abusing eight children aged under two at a Point Cook facility in Melbourne's southwest. Victoria Police are also examining evidence of alleged offending at a centre in Essendon. A list of the 20 centres he worked at since 2017, with dates ranges, has already been made public. The parents of 1200 children have been told to get them tested for sexually transmitted infections as a precaution. Affinity Education, which operates several facilities where Brown worked, including the Essendon centre, is now reviewing its records following reports he might have been employed longer than first thought. "Given the serious nature of the matter, we are currently reviewing our records in detail to ensure completeness," a spokesperson said. "Affinity Education continues to co-operate fully with authorities and remains focused on the safety and wellbeing of the children and families in our care." Meanwhile, a former royal commissioner has slammed governments for dragging their feet on creating a national regime for working with children checks. Brown, 26, had a valid working with children check and was not known to police or subject to any complaints before his arrest in May. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse called on the federal government in 2015 to "facilitate a national model" for working with children checks. Robert Fitzgerald, one of five members of the royal commission, said the recommendation remained unfulfilled. "My view is that is shameful," the now-age discrimination commissioner told AAP. "Ten years on, that job should have been completed and the fact that it isn't means there are gaps in our child safeguarding regime." Every state and territory maintains separate working with children schemes with different rules and requirements. Victoria, Queensland and NSW have all committed to reviewing or tightening up their regimes. A 2022 Victorian ombudsman report exposed "serious flaws" in the state's scheme after former Melbourne City Mission worker Alexander Jones was convicted of sexually assaulting a child in 2018. Jones was investigated for multiple alleged sexual offences in NSW but granted a permit in Victoria because his national police check was clean, as he had not been charged. People under investigation for serious offences can still hold a working with children check in Victoria. It can only be revoked upon criminal charges or a regulatory finding. Plans to strengthen the checks will be discussed at a meeting of state and federal attorneys-general in August. The federal government is also preparing to fast-track legislation in parliament this month to cut funding to centres with safety breaches. Federal frontbencher Clare O'Neil said she didn't have a good answer for why the royal commission's recommendations were left on the shelf. "A lot of these predators would pass a working with children check," she said. Families of the children recommended for STI testing are anxiously awaiting results. It's understood that at least two families were told to get their infants checked twice. They were first told to get their child checked for two diseases and then days later were warned about a third. The state's health department has expressed regret for causing any additional stress or anxiety. The allegations against Brown have cast a spotlight on educator-to-child ratios, which do not require more than one carer to be around a child at any given time, unlike the Netherlands' "four eyes" principle. A father whose two children attended the Point Cook centre wants CCTV installed throughout the facility. NSW has flagged a trial of CCTV cameras in centres, as an urgent Victorian review examines making the technology mandatory. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
