A professional night nanny with more than 20 years of experience has been identified as Sandra Davidson, after a coroner ruled she administered a sedative antihistamine to an eight-week-old baby, leading to his death. The baby was found unresponsive in his cot in the early hours of 15 January 2024.
Toxicology tests later revealed chlorphenamine – the active ingredient in Piriton – in the infant's bloodstream. Inner West London coroner’s court found, on the balance of probabilities, that Davidson had given the drug to sedate the baby, described as “unsettled and fussy”. A half-empty bottle of liquid Piriton was discovered at Davidson’s home during a police search.
The Metropolitan Police did not seize bottles from the scene or check cabinets for medication, despite toxicology tests being routine in sudden infant deaths. A prevention of future deaths report said forensic opportunities were lost, and the detective inspector in charge accepted that checking medicines would have been reasonable. Davidson was not arrested or interviewed until October 2024, by which time all forensic evidence had been compromised.
Davidson was linked to the family through the Night Nannies agency, which works with self-employed nannies. The agency said it no longer works with Davidson and backed the coroner’s call for a national register of nannies. The sector remains largely unregulated, sparking calls for mandatory background checks.
On the night of the death, Davidson was caring for the baby from 9pm to 7am. He was found unresponsive at 6.15am; despite CPR, he was pronounced dead at 7am. The coroner noted that the home environment was in order with no signs of injury or neglect.
