Can CCTV really stop children being abused in nurseries?

Key developments are emerging from the global stage. Can CCTV really stop children being abused in nurseries? 1 hour ago Share Save Add as preferred on GoogleVanessa ClarkeEducation correspondentBBCWarning: This story contains distressing content"Genevieve came into the world very, very small, but she had a real love of food," Katie Wheeler says with a smile as she talks about her daughter. "The day before she died was the first time she'd ever eaten summer fruit pudding - and she loved it.

She just loved everything. "In 2022, Katie and John Meehan's nine-month-old daughter, Genevieve, died at a nursery in Stockport, Greater Manchester. She had suffocated after being strapped face down to a beanbag and left for more than 90 minutes with minimal, if any, supervision.

The Details

A nursery worker was jailed for 14 years for manslaughter, with the judge calling her death "absolutely avoidable". Later that year, 14-month-old Noah Sibanda died at a nursery in Dudley, West Midlands. Noah had been wrapped tightly in blankets and a nursery worker placed her leg across his lower back.

Believing he had fallen asleep, the nursery worker then left him alone, but he was found not breathing two hours later. The worker was sentenced to three years and four months in prison for gross negligence manslaughter and the nursery owner was handed a suspended sentence of six months in prison for a health and safety offences. In recent months, other shocking cases have emerged.

Nursery worker, Vincent Chan, was jailed for 18 years for abusing children in his care in north-west London. And in Bristol, Nathan Bennett was sentenced to 30 years for a series of sexual offences against children. Family handout/Greater Manchester PoliceGenevieve was nine-months old when she died at a nursery in Stockport, Greater ManchesterNow, ministers in England have asked experts whether CCTV should be required in all nurseries, and a committee of MPs is also examining whether children in early years settings are properly protected.

What Experts Say

Across the rest of the UK, there are no plans to make CCTV mandatory. In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the decision to have CCTV is left to individual providers, with cameras allowed, but not required. Elsewhere, similar conversations are happening - Australia is currently trialling cameras in 300 childcare centres.

But both Genevieve and Noah died despite there already being CCTV in their nurseries - though it later helped bring the perpetrators to justice. So would a national roll out of CCTV really prevent abuse? And do recent high-profile cases suggest our nurseries are becoming less safe?

Why CCTV is being discussedIt was only when police reviewed CCTV footage of Genevieve's nursery that the truth about her death came out. Katie and John said they had initially been told she died in her sleep. "We'd still be wondering that to this day", John says, adding that without CCTV there would have been no trial and no justice.

The development has drawn wide international attention, with diplomatic circles watching closely.