The 18-month-old boy and two-year-old girl were taken to hospital, where they were found to be unharmed, and they were back the following day at Castle Meadow Day Nursery in Mowbray House, Nottingham. The nursery immediately suspended two members of staff and began a disciplinary procedure.
Solutions made to deter people from biting their fingernails should not be given to children aged under five, according to a scientist who works for a company that manufactures such products. They contain a severely bitter-tasting ingredient which, he said, would not be harmful to young children but would be very distressing for them.
Susan Hay, chair of Kinderquest, which runs Castle Meadow, said the nursery would not tolerate such behaviour from staff. She said the two nursery nurses had believed the anti-nail biting solution would get the children out of the 'hands in mouth' habit, as it had worked for them.
Mrs Hay said, 'The situation is totally regretful. We have a whistleblowing policy and are grateful that staff acted professionally and came forward to report it.
'From the moment we knew about the incident the two nursery nurses weren't with the children. A member of staff reported it to the nursery and regional manager in the afternoon. One of the girls had already gone home, but the other was suspended there and then.
'The children have not missed a day at the nursery and no other children have been withdrawn either.'
A disciplinary procedure is currently underway, where statements from other members of staff as well as the two suspended staff are being considered.
Ofsted and Nottingham-shire police have been informed of the situation and the police are conducting their own inquires to determine whether the incident was malicious or naive. 'There is no set date for questioning,' a Nottinghamshire Police spokesperson said. 'The police are continuing their investigation and are co-operating with the nursery.'
Mrs Hay said both staff members had been subject to rigorous checks before being employed at the day nursery, and she doubted whether the suspended workers, who were relatively young and inexperienced compared with the rest of the team, had acted maliciously.
However, she said the incident raised the question of staff maturity. 'I hope and pray this is not a sign of a downward spiral of the professional judgement capabilities of staff coming into the sector,' Mrs Hay said.
