A council nursery worker in Dundee who described themselves as a "geek" and a "researcher" of childcare has been cleared of misconduct after colleagues were judged to have colluded against her.
Carol Williamson was working at Barnhill Primary School Nursery in Broughty Ferry when she took a child's arm at the wrist as she brought them into the building in February 2020. While the infant didn't appear to be distressed by the action, other nursery workers witnessed the moment and reported it to senior staff, prompting an investigation.
However, a panel convened by the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) concluded that two colleagues had shown a "clear dislike" for her, muddying their evidence in a bid to build a case against her.
Williamson had faced three other allegations: telling the same child there was "nothing wrong with them"; and two other claims of roughly handling and shouting at another child. Those were found not proven after the panel concluded that the retelling of events by the pair, named as YY and WW, had been "exaggerated".
The hearing was told by one colleague that Williamson was "really good" with children. But YY and WW that the child held by the wrist had referred to her as "the scary lady". They jointly said that she had "frog-marched" another child through the nursery a month later - a claim later dismissed due to lack of evidence.
Giving evidence to the panel gathered by the care watchdog, Williamson said she was "a geek who liked to research" how to look after children. She told the panel - made up of a lawyer, a social services worker and an independent lay member - she had learned how to move children herself, having never been shown how to do so by staff at Barnhill.
Williamson, who is also a Children's Panel member, added that she disagreed with Dundee City Council's "hands off" policy for early years practitioners in what she said was a "hands-on" job - but denied being rough with children.
The nursery worker also claimed there may have been "collusion" between two members of staff at the nursery - named as YY and WW - in a bid to get her in trouble. They only reported the behaviour several days later, at a meeting Williamson had been at, but left beforehand.
SSSC representatives denied that the allegations against the nursery worker had been "exaggerated or unfounded". But the panel ruled that there was only enough evidence to support one of the four charges laid against Williamson, because YY and WW showed a "clear dislike" for their colleague.
A written decision published by the regulator said: "All witnesses said they would not move a child by holding the arm but there was nothing to suggest that holding a child by the arm, of itself, breached any policy or procedure.
"The Panel concluded that you had held AA by the arm as you led her to the writing area. However, it was not satisfied on evidence that she was caused to be upset by that or that it amounted to misconduct.
"The Panel formed the view that both YY and WW hold a clear dislike for you and that influenced the way they gave their evidence.
"The Panel formed the view that whilst there may have been some factual basis for what they said about you holding children by the arm, they had exaggerated matters and their evidence was manifestly unreliable and unfounded."
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