A mother has shared her horror after receiving a phone call informing her that a stranger had collected her daughter from nursery. Jody Riley, 37, from Formby, was working in a nearby café on Wednesday, June 10, when she received the alarming call from Kids Planet Crosby, where her toddler Rosie McDonald attends.
Panic Attack and Confusion
Jody told the ECHO: 'My phone rang at around 2.20pm and it took a while for the staff member to tell me what had happened, but she eventually told me somebody had picked Rosie up and they were still investigating it.' She added: 'They let me know she was back at the nursery safe and everything felt like a blur from there. I had a panic attack and I had to try and calm myself down to go and get her. Getting that call is every parent's worst nightmare and I feel like I've had a taste of what that is like now.'
How the Mistake Happened
Jody was informed that it was another child's grandad who had mistakenly picked up her sleeping two-year-old Rosie and driven away with her for at least 10 minutes before the error was spotted. She said: 'Rosie is a light sleeper and wakes up when you pick her up so I've just been trying to piece everything together because none of it makes much sense to me. I don't understand how he was able to get through two security doors, enter the toddler room, pick up my sleeping child, and then leave the building, strap her into his car and drive off with her without anyone noticing it wasn't his child.'
Jody and her partner Gary McDonald, 40, both run their own businesses and usually collect Rosie from nursery at either 3pm or 5pm. Jody said that when she arrives to pick up Rosie, facial recognition technology grants her access, after which she has to knock on the toddler room to fetch her daughter. She explained: 'You have to walk past the office and they tell you where your child is. Apparently his granddaughter was downstairs in the nursery garden so I don't understand how this has happened or how he's been able to walk out of the room with no one stopping him or seeing who had picked her up.'
Aftermath and Concerns
By the time Jody got to the nursery, Rosie was upstairs, back in the room, and when they brought her down to see her mother, she was shouting 'mummy' and wrapping her arms around her. Jody said: 'You could just tell she knew something had happened and it definitely wouldn't have been nice for her because she's really clingy with me and her dad.' Jody revealed she is still awaiting answers as to how such an incident was permitted to occur. She said: 'The staff were shook up and couldn't apologise enough but they didn't have any answers for me. At that stage I was still mid panic attack and in shock so I wasn't asking all the questions I could because I just wanted to see my daughter.'
She added: 'Obviously I knew she was safe which was the main thing, but in a situation like that you start to worry about everything. I just kept thinking about how long she was missing for before either the nursery or the man noticed and I wouldn't wish that feeling on anyone. I barely slept last night and I feel like the more I process it and the more it sinks in the more questions I have. I still can't figure it out.'
Family's Decision
Jody revealed Rosie wouldn't be going back to the nursery and she would be caring for her full-time for the time being. She explained: 'She'd only been there for a few months because we really struggled getting her a nursery place. Trying to balance work with looking after her will impact me massively because I won't be able to get her into another nursery now until at least September. At the minute I just want to keep her with me at all times because even though she's fine and happy, I feel so shaken up.'
Nursery's Response
A spokesperson for Kids Planet said: 'We can confirm that an incident occurred at our Crosby setting in which a child was mistakenly released to a grandparent who is known to staff, has passed all required security vetting and who is an approved collector for a different child, who was also onsite at the time. The child was returned safely to the nursery within minutes, and we are in direct continuous contact with the families involved to offer our sincere apologies and to provide ongoing support while a full investigation takes place.'
The spokesperson added: 'The safety and wellbeing of the children in our care is our highest priority, and we take this unprecedented matter extremely seriously, which is why we have implemented immediate measures including supervised working for the team and additional security protocols, as well as working to revise our policies and training. In line with our safeguarding procedures, we have made immediate self-referrals to Ofsted and the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO) and are cooperating fully with both organisations. As this remains an active investigation, we are currently unable to offer further comment.'
