Goodstart Early Learning Rostrevor

Over the past 18 months, our experience at this centre has been deeply disappointing, and I feel compelled to share it so other families can make informed choices. Safety Concerns: Once our daughter began walking, she had frequent and sometimes serious falls — including hitting her head on concrete due to poorly placed equipment. At 14 months, we even found her standing alone on an adult chair. At one point she had 5 bruises on her face from various incidents. These incidents raised serious questions about supervision. Understaffing: We regularly witnessed non-compliant staff-to-child ratios, once seeing just two educators with 15 babies. Things only improved after I made a formal complaint. Sun Safety & Clothing: Despite repeated concerns in the summer, our daughter was often found outside with no hat, and was photographed in full sun without a hat. Paint-stained clothing (that could not be removed) was almost daily — smocks were never used, despite claims they were “offered.” Security Lapses: My mum picked up our daughter many times before the centre ever questioned her identity — a major security oversight that should not happen. Food & Snacks: The food was disappointing — mostly store-bought. Excessive afternoon crackers also interfered with dinner. Requests to limit them were ignored. Other Concerns: • Inappropriate use of pens on my daughter’s hands by educators • Poor hygiene — often picked up without shoes/socks (even in winter, picking her up with freezing feet) or with wrong socks • Adult bandages used on sensitive skin despite warnings due to bad reaction • Rude and careless admin — an error on our exit date caused us to lose CCS for a week While some issues may seem minor, the constant accumulation over 18 months revealed a serious lack of care, poor management, and little willingness to improve. We’ve since moved to another centre.