Genevieve Meehan’s parents urge PM to act reform nursery safety

The parents of a nine-month-old baby girl killed at a nursery have delivered a letter to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer calling for a series of safety reforms “to prevent this from ever happening again”.

Genevieve Meehan died from asphyxiation when she was strapped to a beanbag and left unattended at the Tiny Toes nursery in Cheadle Hulme, Stockport in 2022.

John Meehan who launched Campaign for Gigi with his wife Katie said safety reform in nurseries was “vital” as “we can’t have other parents suffering in the way we’ve had to”.

Minister for Early Education, Olivia Bailey MP, said the government is working on “new guidance on CCTV and digital devices” and strengthen safeguarding requirements.

The nursery’s deputy manager at the time, Kate Roughley, was found guilty of manslaughter and jailed for 14 years in May 2024.

The couple have described figures obtained by the BBC that show there were almost 20,000 reports of serious childcare incidents in England’s nurseries between 2019 and 2024 as “horrifying”.

Gigi’s father said the aim of handing in the letter to Downing Street was to demonstrate to the government “this is an absolute urgent priority”.

He said: “These goals really need to be implemented now… we’ve had commitments from the government previously what we now need is the will to really make these challenges come in.

“The end goal really is about the improvement of child safety in nursery environments so certainly looking at a more robust off-steady inspection process the use of CCTV in nurseries and also improvements around safe sleep.”

He said: “It’s absolutely vital because we can’t have other parents suffering in the way that we’ve had to suffer and children’s lives being taken from them in the way that Genevieve’s was.”

• Compulsory CCTV in nursery settings
• Unannounced inspections by Ofsted to be routine in early years settings
• Review of CCTV footage during Ofsted inspections
• Clear, statutory safe sleep guidance for early years settings
• Mandatory safe sleep training for all nursery staff and Ofsted inspectors and
• Clear statutory guidance as to the use of sleep products in early years settings

Bailey, who was appointed Minister for Early Education in September, said: “Gigi’s death was a devastating tragedy that should never have happened, and my thoughts are with her parents, John and Katie.

“The safety of our children comes first, which is why we are strengthening safeguarding across early years, including more frequent and higher-quality Ofsted inspections.”

She added: “We are moving forward with new guidance on CCTV and digital devices through an expert panel, working with The Lullaby Trust to make safer sleep requirements clearer, and have recently strengthened safeguarding requirements in the Early Years Foundation Stage while reviewing what further changes are needed, with every concern raised through the Campaign for Gigi carefully considered.”