Two top executives at one of Australia’s biggest childcare chains have resigned following a string of scandals, including dozens of sex abuse charges being laid against a former employee.
Affinity Education Group said chief executive Tim Hickey and chief operating officer Nishad Alani had stepped down from their roles and left the organisation, which runs 250 centres across Australia under brands including Papilio, Kids Academy and Milestones.
Affinity Education Group chief executive Tim Hickey has stepped down from his role effective immediately. (ABC News: Simon Amery)
In July, Melbourne man Joshua Dale Brown, who worked at centres including ones run by Affinity, was charged with more than 70 offences, including the alleged sexual abuse of eight children as well as the transmission of child abuse material.
Mr Brown’s lawyers said they expected further charges to be laid against the 26-year-old. He has not entered a plea.
Investigating Australia’s childcare crisis
The ABC has also revealed other serious incidents at Affinity centres, including a child being repeatedly slapped in the face, as well as staff concerns about a toxic culture.
An Affinity spokesperson said the company’s senior advisor on compliance and quality Glen Hurley was appointed to replace Mr Hickey on Tuesday.
“Affinity remains deeply committed to providing safe, high-quality care to the families across our entire network and supporting our dedicated, professional team who nurture and educate the children in their care with compassion and integrity,” the spokesperson said.
Affinity runs 250 childcare centres in Australia, including centres under the brand name Papilio Early Learning. (ABC News: Andrew Altree-Williams)
Sexual assault support lines:1800 Respect National Helpline: 1800 737 732Lifeline (24-hour crisis line): 131 114Full Stop Australia: 1800 385 578Bravehearts: counselling and support for survivors of child sexual abuse: 1800 272 831Child Wise: counselling provider: 1800 991 099
Mr Hickey’s departure comes after a bruising appearance before a New South Wales parliamentary inquiry in September.
The NSW inquiry heard that after Affinity Education Group was purchased by Quadrant Private Equity in 2021, the rate of breaches at its centres spiked from 30 per cent above the state average to 70 per cent.
“I don’t work for private equity, I work for Affinity, and my job is to sustain profitability in our centres so that we can reinvest back into the educators, back into the centres,” Mr Hickey told the inquiry.
Milestones Early Learning is also a childcare franchise owned by Affinity. (ABC News: Andrew Altree-Williams)
It comes after the ABC revealed Affinity Education Group centres were slapped with more than 1,700 regulatory breaches between 2021 and 2024.
Under questioning, Mr Hickey — who earned a $625,000 base salary — was unable to tell the NSW inquiry whether his bonuses were docked because of the safety breaches.