Sydney childcare worker photographed 'sitting' on child while reading them a book

Sydney childcare worker photographed 'sitting' on child while reading them a book
Photo credit: 9 News

A Sydney childcare worker has been photographed appearing to sit on top of a four-year-old boy after he was "disruptive."

The photos were shared with parents via a daily journal app. The mother of the boy in the picture says she called the director of the centre the next morning to ask what was happening.

"I asked her what is going on in the images, why is my son being restricted?" Joanne Tourni told nine.com.au.

"Why is [the worker's] back towards him, it seems like he is being forced to sit there. This isn't acceptable," she said.

Tourni says the centre denied the worker was sitting on her son.

"They are saying she was sitting and he was next to her," she told 9 News.

"Who sits a child like that and turns their back towards them? That was what affected me the most," she said.

The director then allegedly told Tourni her son had been talking and not paying attention, so the worker had sat him on the couch next to her.

"Whether he was playing up or not I just think what she did was the wrong approach. There was another educator taking photos. They could have encouraged him to do something else, or hold the book and turn the pages," said Tourni.

She has made a formal complaint about the centre to the New South Wales childcare regulator.

A spokesperson for the New South Wales Department of Education confirmed they had received a complaint, and would be investigating, although they could not comment on specific  cases.

Newshub.