Nursery World - Missing links

What should a nursery do if a child is absent without explanation? Mary Evans provides an update on what can be a thorny child protection issue A leading children's charity has called for the establishment of nationally agreed guidelines on the actions early years settings should take when a child is unexpectedly absent.

A leading children's charity has called for the establishment of nationally agreed guidelines on the actions early years settings should take when a child is unexpectedly absent.

The call from Cathy Henchion, NCH's Safeguarding Officer, comes in the wake of the tragic case of three-year-old Michael McGarrity, who survived for six weeks trapped at home with his dead mother in their high-rise flat in Leith, Edinburgh.

The alarm was raised after Michael's council-run nursery, which is attached to Fort Primary School, contacted the toddler's grandmother to enquire about his unexplained absence after failing to make contact with his mother, who was an asthmatic and former drug addict.

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