Ban male nursery workers?

[BluntPlumHam]

I came across this article which has left me quite sick.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cze665j2y51o.amp

Said 18 year old was newly qualified nursery worker who’d SA’d and raped 3 year olds.

Nurseries are desperate for workers and I have noticed through friends and families that there is now an increasing number of men entering the profession.

Men traditionally haven’t performed this role and I often find it difficult to envisage what attracts a male to this profession to begin with when we have so many instances of men who run away from childcare responsibilities.

Although men entering the profession can be a positive outcome the other very concerning outcome and on the potential rise is this.

Sex offenders will target this profession no doubt as it gives them easy access to children.

men are significantly more likely than women to sexually assault children.
Official statistics consistently show that the vast majority of individuals convicted of, or reported for, child sexual abuse (CSA) are male. For example:

• In the year ending March 2019, the Crime Survey for England and Wales found that 92% of adults who reported experiencing CSA said the perpetrator was male only.
• In 2022/23, almost 99% of individuals convicted of child sexual abuse offences in the UK were men.
• Reports to the Australian Royal Commission by victims and survivors of institutional abuse revealed that 93.9% of the abuse was perpetrated by an adult man.

So just a blanket ban on them all together ?

It isn’t my personal opinion but I do think we ought to have measures in place to make nurseries more secure and safer. This thread is to invite discussion.

Also, kudos to those brave little 3 year olds who had the courage to tell their parents because they’ve saved a lot of potential victims in the future. My thoughts and wishes for a life time of healing for them and theirs.

99% of sexual assaults are committed by men does not mean that 99% of men commit rape and sexual assault. It is important to note the difference.

Excuse me? There is no need for that. I have done my research thank you and I am currently a DSL in a primary school with an early years unit. The fact is banning men from nurseries is disproportionate.

Presumably also primary school teachers and secondary school teachers as they would also be working with children? And any sports coaches. Sorry little boys, there will be no more rugby unless we can find a female coach as any man wanting to work with kids is a walking red flag.

The biggest threat to kids comes from
within their own homes. A male parent is far more likely to abuse his own child than that child being exposed to sexual abuse at school or nursery.

No - one of the main reasons the work is so underpaid is it is a caring role/vocation so “woman’s work” .

YABU +++++++++++
And prejudiced in the extreme.
Very worrying

Safeguarding procedures should be watertight whatever the sex of workers. I don't think male workers should be banned.

Did you say ban female nursery workers whenever that comes up in the news?

JollyJoy: I see you point and it's a very valid.

Paedophilia is overwhelmingly a male phenomenon with well below 1% being women.

I think around 60% of Muslims in prisons are there for sex crimes.

If the percentage is higher than 50%, then I think all members of that group should receive a blanket ban - I don't care about the few good ones.

Mothers only surely? Fathers being more likely to sexually abuse their children. Keep them out of the way, at least in the early, non verbal years.

I agree there is no need for personal attacks. But having responded to your original comment - I think it’s very worrying in your position for you to suggest that women are just as capable of abuse. I wouldn’t advocate a ban either but you do need to build the statistical reality into your risk assessment skills, given the responsibilities you hold.

That's a sensible idea.

No.

Nurseries just need to monitor everyone properly and make sure all staff stick to their policies (and have rigorous policies to start with).

And properly vet the people they hire.

Paying nursery staff better might help with recruitment and mean they aren’t so “desperate” for staff that they overlook obvious things.

The problem comes when providers think that policies and regimes are just “a box ticking exercise for Ofsted”, and don’t properly follow them.

It’s about not leaving them under a care of a random stranger who doesn’t care about them like a parent would. Unfortunately nurseries attract low skilled workers with minimal qualifications who go into childcare out of lack of other options. Very few people who actually want to be there.

Let’s just ban men.

it’s not just sexual abuse of children. They’re statistically most likely to be burglars, commit criminal damage, murder people and commit dangerous driving. This is before we get to school shooters, family annihilators etc etc.

i actually think there’s a stronger argument using your (flawed, shortsighted and a big mad) logic to stop men owning knives than there is to ban male nursery workers.

there are solid arguments for improving protections for vulnerable people including children but I’m not sure that sexiest stereotyping is the strongest argument for it. As I mentioned as men aren’t cooks or carers why on earth should we let them own knives! They can’t be using them to chop veg. They must be planning to stab people.

I will adapt an earlier post. If 60% of the muslim men in jail are there for sex offences, it does not necessarily follow that 60% of muslim men are abusers. That you do not distinguish between these two elements makes me think that you have perhaps been too influenced by the likes of Yaxley-Lennon.

It's actually quite easy to effectively ban men from your own life with immediate effect.

The random stranger thing is a bit of a red herring when it comes to CSA. Banning fathers, stepfathers, grandfathers etc might be more effective.

This one
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/clylww5ykkvo

YABU

But parents are also more likely to abuse them than a random stranger.

I don’t think a ban is enforceable but I wouldn’t have liked it if there was a male worker at my DDs nurseries.
I know men become primary school teachers and there was a male worker at my DDs after school club for a while, which doesn’t bother me. Nursery just seems different though because the children are younger so more vulnerable and they are usually in nappies or need help with toileting.

Yes I know women do abuse children but it’s staggeringly more likely to be a male doing it

How about the recent case where a female nursery worker deliberately killed a baby by strapping her face down on a bed because she wouldn't stop crying?
Women are evil too. Let's just hope ALL nursery and childcare settings learn from this and that children are NEVER left alone with an adult so they can have the opportunity to abuse them.

Going to nursery won’t stop that. They’ll still get abused when at home. The majority of parents don’t abuse their children.

I completely agree. Women should be able to
choose who provides their intimate care and the intimate care of their children. It’s that simple.

Men traditionally haven’t Men traditionally haven’t performed this role and I often find it difficult to envisage what attracts a male to this profession to begin with when we have so many instances of men who run away from childcare responsibilities.

Attitudes like yours and low pay is what turns men off the role.