EPEC Education

Your Hosts:

• Dr Mary Anne Hall – CEO, EPEC Education. Former Approved Provider of 17 Outside School Hours Care and Long Day Care services, Mary Anne draws on 20 years of frontline and leadership experience to deliver practical, child-safety-focused training.
• Annie Smeaton – Partner in Employment Law, Cooper Grace Ward Lawyers, Annie has over 25 years experience supporting leaders to navigate complex and sensitive situations across the Early Childhood, Education and Health sectors.

In the care sector, safeguarding children starts with who and how you hire, how you manage staff, and how you act when concerns arise — often under challenging and emotionally charged circumstances.

Join Dr Mary Anne Hall in conversation with Annie Smeaton, Partner at Cooper Grace Ward Lawyers, as they share practical strategies for recruiting safely, addressing staff-related concerns, and making decisions that balance your duty of care with your legal obligations.

This Webinar will discuss:

• Recruitment & Screening: How to design child-safe job ads that act as barriers  to unsafe applicants, spot red flags in applications, and legally ask the right interview and reference questions.
• Managing Risk: How to respond to staff failing in their duty of care — even without direct evidence of abuse. Installing and utilising CCTV for Child Safety purposes within the parameters of the law.
• Transparency & Complaints: How to respond to complaints from parents, and how to balance your legal obligations with your duty of care to the children in your service.
• Termination Decisions: What situations warrant instant dismissal, and navigating Fair Work obligations when duty of care demands urgent action.
• Legal Boundaries: Understanding discrimination laws, privacy rules, and your rights when investigating staff conduct.

This Webinar is most suitable for Approved Providers, Directors, Nominated Supervisors, Family Day Care Coordinators, and anyone responsible for recruiting, managing, or supervising staff in Early Childhood Education and Care and/or Outside School Hours Care settings.