A paedophile nursery worker was cleared by an investigation overseen by a local authority three years before he was arrested. In February, Vincent Chan was jailed after pleading guilty to 56 offences, including assault by penetration on three-year-old girls in his care at a Bright Horizons nursery on Finchley Road in north-west London. After his conviction, prosecutors described him as a “prolific sexual predator”.
The Guardian can now reveal that Chan was the subject of an earlier safeguarding investigation, carried out by Bright Horizons, with the oversight of Camden council. It followed what were described as “significant concerns” raised with the nursery in 2021 about Chan’s conduct and behaviour by the parent of a young girl, including concerns about what her daughter was saying to her about Chan. Bright Horizons referred the matter to Camden council, which advised the nursery to investigate.
Chan was put on duties that involved no contact with children while the investigation by Bright Horizons took place. After it was completed, Chan was cleared to return to his role caring for young children in the nursery. A year later, in 2022, Chan filmed himself sexually abusing three-year-old girls at the Bright Horizons nursery.
Chan was first arrested in June 2024, initially on suspicion of child cruelty, after nursery staff discovered videos Chan had filmed of distressed children in his care. After Chan’s devices were searched by police as part of this investigation, they discovered that he was a prolific sexual offender, with tens of thousands of child abuse images on his computer. He had also committed sexual offences in his previous job as a teaching assistant at St Mary’s Church of England primary school in Dollis Park, north London, including upskirting female pupils.
In February this year, Chan was sentenced to 18 years in prison. The revelation that Camden council and Bright Horizons were aware of concerns about Chan three years before his arrest, and that there had been an investigation into his behaviour, will raise questions about whether there were earlier opportunities to stop him. It will also raise wider questions about whether existing safeguards for nurseries are adequate.
In early 2024, prior to Chan’s arrest, other parents say that they raised concerns with Bright Horizons about Chan’s conduct at work. They say they warned Bright Horizons that their children were telling them that Chan shouted at them, was “angry” and a “bad man”. These parents say these concerns were dismissed.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
