An evil nursery nurse strapped a baby face down on a bean bag for more than a hour and a half, causing the girl to suffocate to death.
Kate Roughley has been found guilty of the manslaughter of nine-month-old Genevieve Meehan, who was also tightly swaddled and covered with a blanket at the nursery.
But the trial heard several other bombshells about the 37-year-old's behaviour, which ultimately led to the jury of six men and six women at Manchester Crown Court to unanimously find her guilty.
The jurors heard Roughley was caught on CCTV telling the infant - affectionately called Gigi by her family - to go home and "stop your whinging." Later, she is heard saying to the baby: "Genevieve if we had any chance of being friends, you just blew it."
On another occasion at Tiny Toes Nursery in Stockport, Greater Manchester, Roughley's colleagues told Gigi's "anxious" parents their daughter was safe in their care. She wasn't - and just weeks later, the baby died of asphyxiation, brought on by a combination of pathophysiological stresses as a direct result of Roughley's actions in creating a "very unsafe sleeping environment".
With Roughley awaiting sentence, expected at the same court on Wednesday, the Mirror is now able to outline the most damning bombshells heard during her month-long trial.
Roughley's four words after finding Gigi lifeless
CCTV from the baby room - where the nine-month-old infant was left - was showed to jurors at Manchester Crown Court, capturing the horrifying moment Roughley realised she wasn't breathing. The nursery worker came into the room one hour and 37 minutes after Gigi was left face down, placing her hand on the infant's back and flipping her over.
She could then be heard saying, "S***, she's not breathing". A colleague replies: "What?" Roughley repeated: "She's not breathing" and then hurriedly walked out of the room.
Jurors were then told the colleague unfastened the strap and unwrapped the blanket before a manager came over to check the youngster and carried her to a play mat. Four staff members then gathered, trying to revive Gigi, at one point calling her name and carrying out chest compressions until paramedics arrived on May 9, 2022.
Gigi's parents assured child was safe
Even before enrolling Genevieve at the nursery - which Ofsted's website says is now closed - her parents were told by staff their baby was safe in their care. Mum Katie Wheeler told the court on Thursday how she and her partner, John Meehan, had wanted to send her to a different nursery which was full, picking Tiny Toes after hearing good reviews.
Ahead of enrolment, a man named Jonathan who introduced himself as the manager reassured her Gigi would be very safe, trying to relieve her anxiety about being separated. She said Jonathan informed her all staff "had regular first aid training". Ms Wheeler sought further reassurance when Genevieve attended a "settling in session", although sleeping arrangements were not discussed.
A week later, Ms Wheeler said she and her partner were "surprised" when the nursery told them Gigi had slept for 90 minutes after she was put down in a cot, as her daughter had previously struggled to sleep. Gigi died in the following weeks, the trial heard.
Roughley's chilling words to Gigi caught on CCTV
Sickening CCTV footage captured the moment Roughly appeared to have "taken against" Genevieve, affectionately called Gigi by her family – as she’s seen telling her to go home and "stop your whinging." Later, she is heard saying to the baby: “Genevieve if we had any chance of being friends, you just blew it”.
Yet, giving evidence, Roughley denied "persecuting" Genevieve, and said her care of her had been "no different to any other child". She told jurors she was "distraught and heartbroken" on finding the unconscious infant.
Asked by her barrister, Sarah Elliott KC: "What responsibility do you feel in relation to what happened?" She replied: "I do feel responsible for Genevieve's death given she was in my care that day. However, I don't feel my actions were the cause of the death."
Adult-to-child ratios in nursery 'gradually worsened'
By law, there should be appropriate numbers of adults to children in early years settings in the UK, such as one adult to every three children under the age of one. Roughley, though, told the court the ratio of the numbers of staff to children at the nursery "gradually worsened" during her time at Tiny Toes as the "number of children went up and the number of staff went down".
The court heard in April and May 2022 the staff to children ratios were at various times one to nine, two to 11, two to 13 and one to 16, considerably higher than the legal requirement. Defence barrister Sarah Elliott KC told jurors that Roughley was paid "£11 to £11.50 per hour" in May 2022 and suggested the nursery owners, Frank and Karen Pell, were making an "awful lot of money" from the business.
Senior colleagues at Tiny Toes, including the Pells and their daughter Grace, became "like a family to her" but Miss Elliott added: "There is no sign of them now."
Children's sleeping environments 'unsafe' at Tiny Toes
Detail heard at Gigi's inquest was shared during the trial at Manchester Crown Court. Senior coroner Alison Mutch had told last year's inquest "unsafe" sleeping conditions caused the baby's death.
"The cause of death offered by Dr Lumb was a combination of asphyxia and patho-physiological stress, imparted by an unsafe sleep environment," the coroner said.
The court heard there was a policy about monitoring babies regularly up to the age of six-months until the staff were familiar with them and their sleeping routines. The defendant, from Stockport, had said: “It was quite hard to do that particularly due to the sheer volume of children we had."
Roughley inexperienced working with babies
During the coronavirus lockdown, the toddler and baby rooms were merged. Roughley said she was asked to move to that section of the nursery, which remained open for children of key workers. “I went into the baby room after Covid,” she added. “You hadn’t worked with babies before then at all?,” her barrister, Sarah Elliott KC asked. “That’s right,” Roughley replied.
Roughley said she was later asked by senior management if she wanted to become a deputy manage, and she agreed, although no additional management tasks were delegated to her such as enrolling children, training other staff members or implementing monitoring systems for the children.
The accused then claimed when she first started working at the nursery at 18, the staff to child ratio was "less than what it ended up." She added: “The numbers got a lot worse over the years. Just gradually more children were being added each day and it was over a long period of time."
