Should men be banned from working in nurseries?

Male priests have abused little boys.

Scout Masters have abused little boys.

We haven’t banned men from these positions.

When this case came to light, were there 'red flags' that could/should have been noticed?

Nursery staff take photos all the time, mostly to record developmental milestones, communicate with parents, etc. I am not sure that behaviour would have necessarily caused me alarm so I am glad someone was vigilant.

One estimate suggests there are fewer than 8,162 male practitioners out of a total of approximately 408,134 early years practitioners in the UK.
So even one male abuser compared to eg four female would produce a higher proportion of men.

Statistically, approximately 92% of sex abusers generally are male.

There will be many caring, kind male workers in Early Years but there must be more checks and supervision of these most vulnerable small children .

Oh I have just done a bit more reading, the photo was absolutely a red flag as it was mocking the child.

Allira I agree 👍

lemsip

A big fat YES from me!
employed just to fit the new 'woke' way of everything! Those poor small children/babies at the mercy of paedophiles!

Absolutely agree. I would never allow my child to be looked after by a man. (I do accept of course that there have been some female offenders.)
I would not put a child into nursery until he or she could talk. And I would never, ever let anyone else change my baby’s nappy.

Yep, I'll say it again, get the checks and supervision sorted.

Maremia

Yep, I'll say it again, get the checks and supervision sorted.

Agreed 👍🏻

Blimey misandry is alive and kicking on GN 🤬

As far as I csn see he was fully checked, checks are only helpful if you have been caught.

Discussing the risks presented by men is not misandry, it is reality.
The risk presented by men is also one of the reasons used to ensure we have single sex spaces. Unless that is misandry too?

Galaxy

Discussing the risks presented by men is not misandry, it is reality.
The risk presented by men is also one of the reasons used to ensure we have single sex spaces. Unless that is misandry too?

Of course not.

But banning men from working in caring professions, including nurseries because they are men is definitely misandrist.

Sort out the checks, act on so called red flags

Like I posted upthread we still have scout masters and priests, both professions have been found wanting when it comes to abusing children (young boys)

I wonder if 'checks' include viewing a candidate's online profile?
Perhaps that should be included for people applying for such sensitive positions?

Maremia

I wonder if 'checks' include viewing a candidate's online profile?
Perhaps that should be included for people applying for such sensitive positions?

Good call 👍🏻

Priests and scout leaders aren't generally providing personal care for children who can't yet communicate verbally.
I thought most employers checked your online activity, it is why we tell teenagers that once you have put something on social media it is there forever.

We had two Nanny’s for our boys, if we had found a Manny (mid 80’s) I would have been happy to have him.

Galaxy

Priests and scout leaders aren't generally providing personal care for children who can't yet communicate verbally.
I thought most employers checked your online activity, it is why we tell teenagers that once you have put something on social media it is there forever.

Yes.
That's usually the first thing any Head will look at when selecting candidates for an educational/care setting.

Often, sensible teachers and other workers with children will reveal the bare minimum in their online profile.

I don't think you necessarily pick up a truly full picture from someone's online activity.

Galaxy Thu 04-Dec-25 13:15:45
"The risks are much higher for males. Yes of course there are incidents involving women but males are a higher risk".

What is your evidence that male nursery workers ( ie caring for very young children) pose a higher risk of sexual abuse than females Galaxy? Male nursery workers form a much lower percentage of the workforce. Female nursery workers have also been convicted of sexual abuse so the figures are available over many years. I am not sure the pro rata of number of convictions is higher for men than for women. Do you know the figures?

Employers are not able to recruit based on sex, that is illegal. The answer is safe recruitment and safe systems in nurseries to monitor the care of children and the performance of the workers caring for the children. Something went badly awry in this nursery as another member of staff reported this man as a result of their personal observations. The internal governance processes were evidently poor and not up to scratch.

Quote Galaxy Thu 04-Dec-25 18:34:59
"Discussing the risks presented by men is not misandry, it is reality. The risk presented by men is also one of the reasons used to ensure we have single sex spaces. Unless that is misandry too?".

This nursery was not a single sex nursery- that is not the norm. Nurseries are not required by law to ensure safe spaces for either female or male sex children separately in their establishments. Protection of women only space, e.g membership pf the WI, toilet provision etc is an adult issue in context of transsexuals and not relevant to the safe care of pre school children in nurseries surely?

Perhaps men shouldn’t be allowed to be school teachers, doctors, scout leaders or priests?

I have no issue with males working in whatever profession they choose and are good at!

Such blanket discrimination.

Cossy

Perhaps men shouldn’t be allowed to be school teachers, doctors, scout leaders or priests?

I have no issue with males working in whatever profession they choose and are good at!

Such blanket discrimination.

No, there should not be a blanket ban, o course.

But these babies and toddlers were particularly vulnerable as they were far too young to be aware that what was happening to them was wrong and to be able to verbalise it to a parent.

More scrutiny, more supervision.

I have no issue with males working in whatever profession they choose and are good at!

It's not a question of being good at a job or profession. It's a case that these people, in a position of trust, should be above reproach.

Allira that applies to women and men.

I just do not think it is ok to demonise all men due to the actions of one 🤷‍♀️

GrannyGravy13

Allira that applies to women and men.

I just do not think it is ok to demonise all men due to the actions of one 🤷‍♀️

My feelings precisely.

GrannyGravy13

Allira that applies to women and men.

I just do not think it is ok to demonise all men due to the actions of one 🤷‍♀️

92% of sex offenders are men, GravyGravy.
Less than 4% of women are paedophiles.

The statistics speak for themselves.

I do remember, after one particularly distressing case, a colleague saying that she would never leave her children with a male carer.
Perhaps it skews one's judgement but really, some have no idea. Most cases do not get as much publicity as this one, which is particularly horrendous.