Overview

• A grandfather mistakenly collected a one-year-old from First Steps’ Bangor centre, with the child returned about two hours later after the error was discovered.
• The NSW Early Childhood Education and Care Regulatory Authority has opened an investigation, with detectives also probing the incident.
• The child’s mother blamed the centre for failing to follow pick-up protocols, while the grandfather’s family said he realised the mistake and brought the toddler back quickly.
• First Steps apologised, stood down the educator involved, and introduced measures including door checks for unfamiliar collectors, mandatory sign-in/out, second-verification by a responsible person, and photo ID cards for each child.
• Reporting notes previous regulator inquiries into other First Steps centres, as the United Workers Union highlights chronic understaffing as a key safety risk in early education.