Accused paedophile David James was investigated and suspended in June 2024 after a colleague reported witnessing him inappropriately touching a child under 10 at a Primary OSHCare centre.
Despite the seriousness of the allegation and reports to police, Office of the Children’s Guardian and the regulator, his working with children check was unaffected so he continued to work at other out of school hour centres with children.
While the 26-year-old was stood down from services operated by Junior Adventures Group (JAG), which owns Primary OSHCare and other brands including Helping Hands, he remained on the books and was still paid his part-time wages. Other providers, unaware of the incident, kept him employed on a casual basis.
Mr David James was charged in October over the alleged abuse at Outside School Hours Care (OSHC) facilities between April 2021 and May 2024.
The case has thrust private equity firm Quadrant into the centre of another childcare scandal, this time involving the booming OSHC sector.
Over seven years, Mr David James worked at nearly 60 different OSHC services across Sydney, including multiple centres operated by Quadrant-owned JAG, which also runs the brands OSHClub and Helping Hands.
Quadrant also owns Affinity Education, one of Australia’s largest early learning providers, currently under intense scrutiny after a string of abuse allegations.
Affinity centres have also been at the centre of disturbing physical abuse incidents, including reports of toddlers yanked by the arms, children used to clean up vomit, broken bones, vomiting after contact with exposed metal hooks, and a baby slapped across the face repeatedly by an educator “for fun.”
Mr David James’ case also highlights serious flaws in childcare regulation, with services in the dark when serious allegations are alleged.
At JAG’s Helping Hands Lane Cove East, regulatory documents reveal a serious breach by two unnamed educators, who in March 2023 grabbed and pulled a child by the legs after trying to hide in the hall.
AFP Acting Assistant Commissioner Brett James at a press conference about the charges against David James.
The centre failed to notify the regulator or parents of the incident within the prescribed time frame of 24 hours.
The regulatory letter resulted in a formal caution to the educators and mandated staff training on incident report compliance.
Mr David James also worked at a number of Camp Australia centres, which is the country’s largest provider with nearly 500 services and is owned by a consortium of corporate investors led by private equity firm Allegro.
A Camp Australia spokesman said “there is no evidence nor information indicating any offence has been committed at our services”.
At Camp’s Artarmon centre regulatory documents list a series of unrelated breaches in November 2023 including children left unsupervised while moving between two play areas, blind spots, stairs and an open gate leading to a busy road.
The spokesperson said the centre responded to the breaches with a detailed risk assessment and the matter was closed in February 20025 with no further action.
He said the company would work with the government and the regulator to strengthen the governance of the sector.
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