The quality and safety of some larger childcare services has been called into question after Melbourne worker Joshua Dale Brown was charged with dozens of sex offences, including allegedly sexually abusing eight children.
Brown is known to have worked at 24 facilities between 2017 and his arrest, with several centres added to the list initially compiled by police.
Three parents are preparing to launch legal action against G8 Education, which oversaw the centre where the accused worked while he allegedly abused the children.
The first claim is expected to be filed in Victoria's Supreme Court as early as next week, Arnold Thomas & Becker principal lawyer Jodie Harris said.
"The level of trauma has been quite intense," she said.
"Some families are unable to return to work because they can no longer entrust their children to childcare. Others are grappling with ongoing uncertainty, fear and guilt."
Ms Harris said the firm was also acting for three families whose children attended Milestones Early Learning Greensborough, one from Milestones Early Learning in Tarneit and one family linked to Kids Academy Waratah Estate in Mickleham.
All three were among the centres added after the initial revelations.
The National Children's Commissioner said the fragmentation of oversight for childcare between state and federal governments means there is no clear line of accountability.
"Different levels of government have different responsibilities, but ... this is a shared responsibility across the federation and we failed. We failed to keep children safe," Commissioner Anne Hollonds told AAP.
She said the public's trust and confidence in the childcare system has taken "a big hit" and there's outrage and anger even among those who aren't parents.
The For Parents collective, which formed in the wake of the allegations, said parents across Australia are shaken.
"This news deepens the grief, fear and anger many are feeling, and it raises serious questions about how our current systems protect children and families," they said.
The parenting group says the system is broken and needs to evolve to meet the needs of modern families, sparking a co-ordinated push for childcare subsidies to be paid directly to families who choose not to send their children to traditional daycare centres.
For Parents co-founder Jen Fleming believes government grants should be widened to include grandparents, nannies, au pairs and co-working spaces that allow parents to keep children close.
The childcare subsidy helps families manage childcare costs but access and the amount is dependent on specific eligibility criteria, with federal childcare subsidies predicted to exceed $16.2 billion in 2025/26.
Federal Education Minister Jason Clare said the government was not considering widening the subsidy to include care provided by grandparents.
Rachel Wilson, a professor of social impact and education at the University of Technology Sydney, described expanding subsidies for families as potentially opening a "Pandora's box" due to a lack of provisions.
She was unaware of any governments currently offering a system like the one proposed.
The only way to restore trust in the system is to implement recommendations from reviews, including the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, Ms Hollonds said.
"This is what needs to happen, and you can't risk the safety of our children, because the federation is complex," she said.
1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732)
National Sexual Abuse and Redress Support Service 1800 211 028
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