A childcare worker convicted of inappropriately disciplining two children at a north Canberra childcare centre has been handed a 12-month good behaviour order and fined $400 for a smack that caused a young child to fall to the ground.
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Una Masters, 61, was among four workers police charged last October over allegations of excessive force on up to 20 children aged between one and four at Northside Community Service's Civic Early Childhood Centre.
Masters pleaded guilty in the ACT Magistrates Court to four charges related to two children for four offences that took place between January 2014 and February last year.
A sentencing hearing on Wednesday heard on the first occasion, a young girl cried for 10 minutes after Masters firmly smacked her on the bottom.
Several months later she smacked the same girl on the back of the head, causing her to fall forward to the ground.
Another day, she smacked the child 10 times to wake her up and told her she was "a naughty girl".
In a separate incident, Masters grabbed a young boy and smacked him on the back of the hand.
Her defence lawyer Alyn Doig urged the magistrate, Peter Dingwall, not to record convictions, saying childcare work was the only job Masters had held and her employment with the childcare centre had been terminated after a lengthy suspension.
Mr Doig argued while Masters acknowledged wrongdoing, there was a culture at the childcare centre that was in part responsible for the offences.
"She admits her responsibility, she's sorry for her actions, she's shocked she finds herself in this situation.
"There's a particular cultural ethos that's responsible for this."
Prosecutor Jane Campbell said there was no evidence of such a culture and it was clear other staff had told Masters she should not smack the children.
Ms Campbell said Masters' shock, surprise and remorse appeared to relate more to her loss of employment than to the effect her behaviour had on the children, their parents and the childcare profession.
Mr Dingwall found no evidence of a culture at the childcare centre that may have contributed to Masters actions, but said even if there had been, it would not lessen her culpability.
He noted her otherwise good character, early guilty plea and lack of criminal history.
However, he said the offences involved a significant breach of trust and were not a one-off incident.
Mr Dingwall doubted any sentence imposed by the court would have a greater degree of specific deterrence for Masters' than having her actions publicly exposed.
He recorded convictions on each of the offences and fined Masters $400 for the smack that caused the child to fall to the ground.
She was also ordered to serve the good behaviour order and pay court costs.
Masters was the first of the four workers arrested to be sentenced. Three other women are still before the courts.
The allegations are understood to have come to light in April last year when new management took over the centre.
Chief executive Simon Rosenberg previously told Fairfax Media that the leadership team then immediately contacted police, the ACT government and Care and Protection.
The staff members involved were stood down as soon as the Northside Community Services' leadership was made aware of the allegations.
