Heartbreak over escape
Mum’s anger as toddler walks out of childcare centre
A MUM has told of the frightening moment her two-yearold daughter escaped from a Werribee childcare centre.
Katrin Reed said she had been left shaken after Maisie got out of the Nido Early School in Werribee on Monday, just after 9.30am.
“Maisie escaped supposedly through a bathroom during routine maintenance of the yards and out a gate into the public carpark shared with a medical centre near a busy main road and multiple Covid testing centres,” Ms Reed said.
“She had escaped for three minutes, but luckily a parent who was dropping their child saw her – I am so grateful to that person who took my baby back to safety.”
Ms Reed said she was angry at the centre’s management team, who told her of the incident an hour after it occurred.
“A staff member that I have a good relationship with advised me, but it wasn’t even the centre manager, it was someone who wasn’t even at work when this occurred, which really upset me,” she said.
“I was absolutely heartbroken and beyond disgusted that it had taken an hour for them to inform me.”
She also alleged a similar incident occurred at least five months ago at the centre.
“This has happened to another child and it’s just so upsetting. I’m also angry at the fact it took them seven hours to send an incident report and they got basic details wrong, including her date of birth and the details of the witness,” Ms Reed said.
“It was so frightening and I want the centre to take responsibility for what has occurred as I don’t want this to happen to another child.”
An email sent to families by the childcare centre’s management on Monday said: “Unfortunately, we have experienced an incident at the service today where a child was left unsupervised for a period of three minutes.
“The service is working closely with the family, educators, and the Department of Education and Training to investigate the situation and make all relevant changes to process moving forward.
“We understand this may be upsetting for families and we wish to be as transparent as possible, while respecting the privacy of those involved.
“Please know that we are consulting with as many people as possible, including management and support office staff to identify any possible risks and will work swiftly to ensure any required changes are completed as soon as possible.”
Nido Early School was contacted for comment.