Childcare giant closing three eastern Melbourne centres, throwing families and educators into turmoil

“When these large providers close, families pay the price.”

Matthew Sims
May 06, 2026

About 250 children will lose their childcare places when Australia’s largest for-profit provider, G8 Education, closes three centres across Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, leaving families scrambling for alternatives in an already stretched system.

🚪 Sudden shut: On April 29, G8 Education confirmed it would close 40 centres nationwide – about 10 percent of its services – after a managed transition period, citing economic factors such as changes in demand and lower birth rates.

Twelve Victorian centres are affected, including Community Kids Bayswater Early Education Centre, Casa Bambini Blackburn and Greenwood Scoresby.

“More flexibility”: How changes to childcare subsidies could boost access and bring more centres to Melbourne’s east

Delivered via an investment of $430 million over four years, the changes came into effect at the start of this month.

⛓️‍💥 Chain reaction: The Eastern Melburnian contacted centres in Scoresby, Bayswater and Blackburn about their enrolment demand following the announcement. A staff member at Sparrow Early Learning Centre said two children had enrolled from a nearby G8 centre in the past week, while Scoresby Village Childcare Centre reported an uptick in enquiries.

🤝 Smooth transition: The United Workers Union (UWU) has contacted more than 2000 members and non-members to support transitions to nearby G8 centres or provide redundancy and entitlements.

UWU early education co-ordinator Ffion Evans said workers in Melbourne’s east had “expressed shock and disappointment”, describing the closures as “arbitrary” given all three centres met National Quality Standards.

🗣️ “The closures further highlight the risk of leaving provision of the essential service of early education to private sector providers,” Evans told the Eastern Melburnian.

“An ongoing struggle”: The heartbreak of finding childcare in the eastern suburbs

With research showing the majority of a brain's development occurs during the first five years of life, access to childcare and adequate education is of the utmost importance. However, for some areas, it can be difficult to find a space.

⏭️ What’s next? The chief executive of the not-for-profit advocacy body for smaller childcare operators Community Early Learning Australia, Michele Carnegie, said the system should prioritise community-managed and smaller providers over large for-profit operators.

🗣️ “The current education and care market was designed to prioritise rapid growth over quality outcomes for children,” Carnegie said. “When these large providers close, families pay the price.”

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