Childcare Recruitment Reference Checks: What Victorian Centre Directors Actually Need to Ask

Most childcare reference checks in regional Victoria are perfunctory — a phone call confirming dates of employment and a vague endorsement that the candidate was "great to work with." These checks confirm almost nothing and provide false comfort.

A well-conducted reference check is your last opportunity to verify what the CV and interview suggested — and to discover what they didn't reveal. Here are the specific questions that extract genuinely useful information.

OPEN WITH CONTEXT SETTING

"Thanks for taking my call. I'm the Centre Director at [Centre Name] in [Town] and I'm considering [Candidate Name] for a [Role] position. I have about ten minutes — is now a good time?"

Confirm the referee's relationship: "Can you confirm your relationship to [Candidate] and the dates of their employment with you?"

Never skip this — occasionally references provide false referees, and confirming the relationship on the record reduces this risk.

THE QUESTIONS THAT REVEAL RETENTION RISK

"If you had a relevant vacancy today, would you re-employ [Candidate]? Without hesitation, with reservations, or not at all?"

The re-employ question is the most predictive single question in a reference check. A hesitation or a "with reservations" answer requires immediate follow-up.

"What was [Candidate]'s strongest contribution to your team?" This reveals what they genuinely did well — and whether it aligns with what they told you in the interview.

"In what areas did [Candidate] have room to develop?" A reluctance to name any areas of development is a yellow flag — every employee has development areas, and referees who can't name any are often giving an uncritical endorsement rather than a genuine assessment.

"How did [Candidate] handle stressful situations — a difficult family, a child incident, understaffing?" This directly assesses the candidate's behaviour in the high-pressure situations childcare regularly involves.

"Is there anything else you'd like me to know about [Candidate] that would help me make a good decision?" This open question sometimes surfaces information that more directed questions don't — and a meaningful pause before answering is worth noting.

HOW VHIRE CONDUCTS REFERENCE CHECKS

Vhire conducts a minimum of two verbal reference checks on every preferred candidate using structured question protocols before presenting the reference summary to the centre director.

Contact Vhire at info@vhire.com.au or visit vhire.com.au/hire-staff.