Eight-month-old child receives severe burn after being left next to bottle warmer 

February 2026

An education and care provider in Ascot, Cachet Holdings Pty Ltd ATF Morgan Family Trust, has been ordered to pay $20,000 by the State Administrative Tribunal.  A Department of Communities investigation found it failed to take basic precautions that would have prevented an eight-month-old child from receiving a serious partial thickness burn.

The incident occurred in June 2025 when an educator at Mulberry Tree Child Care Ascot, placed the child next to a bottle warmer containing hot water, a well-known hazard to children.

When the child knocked the bottle warmer over, the resulting spill led to a severe burn on the child’s leg, reflecting a clear failure of the service to manage an easily preventable incident.

The Department has previously provided advice to the sector on minimising the use of hot water around children, with this penalty demonstrating its commitment to hold providers to account when children have unnecessarily been exposed to harm.

More information on the SAT order is available on the eCourts website.

Quotes from Angelo Barbaro, Executive Director, Regulation and Quality, Department of Communities:

 “It only takes a second for a child to be burned by hot water, but the consequences can be devastating and life-long.”

“The Department has already provided resources to the sector on minimising the use of hot water, meaning there is no excuse for being unable to manage this well-known risk”.

“Approved providers must actively ensure that robust practices for keeping children safe are in place and are regularly reviewed”.