An 18-month-old baby was badly scalded with boiling water he opened a safety gate at nursery and knocked over a bowl of hot water onto his face.
Reuben Adams was injured by the boiling water used to warm a feeding bottle at Bridge End House Nursery in the Fixby area of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.
His mother Sarah Jane Walker, 29, was left ‘hysterical and distraught’ after she was phoned by the nursery manager on Tuesday to say he had been injured.
Reuben Adams (pictured) was injured by the boiling water used to warm a feeding bottle
She said: ‘I was working in Huddersfield town centre when I got a call from the nursery manager at 3.30pm. I was told he had been burned.
‘I put the phone down and went as fast as I could to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary where an ambulance had taken him.
‘I got there and Reuben’s key worker and nursery manager were there. He was in an awful state.
‘I got hold of Reuben and took him out of the nursery nurse’s arms and they left.
‘I was in hysterics. I was crying. I didn’t want him to see me so upset. He was given morphine and transferred to Pinderfields General Hospital. My mum was there.
Reuben was ‘in an awful state’ at hospital and has been given morphine to clean his wounds
‘He has had some more morphine to clean the wounds. On Tuesday night he couldn’t sleep and I was with him all night.
‘The doctors have been round and examined him. He will be in for a few days.’
Asked what the prognosis was, she added: ‘I have no idea. We are just taking it day by day. Ofsted (which regulates nurseries) have been informed of the situation.’
And asked whether nursery staff had been in touch since the accident, she said: ‘I’m too upset to talk to them at the moment but they have not contacted me.
‘Reuben is my only baby and I’m mortified that this has happened in the care of a qualified Ofsted registered nursery that I researched before registering him.
‘I had put my trust in this nursery so I could go to work to give Reuben everything possible. Reuben will not be returning to the nursery ever again.’
Reuben was taken from the nursery to Huddersfield Royal Infirmary by ambulance
She later added today: ‘I’m up and down and waiting to hear more from doctors this afternoon. Reuben has his face washed and cleaned three times a day.’
Annette Dale, Ms Walker’s mother-in-law from Skelmanthorpe, added: ‘Reuben has suffered burns to the left hand side of his face, his left shoulder and behind his ear.
‘Fortunately his injuries are not life-threatening. He will be in hospital for a few days as the doctors try to get the burns under control. He is gorgeous and very intelligent.
‘We don’t know about scars yet. Sarah is very distraught and can’t believe this has happened.’
Nursery director Chris Stoker confirmed representatives of Kirklees Council were at the site this morning.
And worried parents have discussed taking their children out of the nursery following the incident.
Reuben’s mother Sarah Jane Walker (pictured together) was left ‘hysterical and distraught’ after she was phoned by the nursery manager on Tuesday to say he had been injured
One mother, who didn’t want to be named, said: ‘Parents are scared. Everyone is in shock and taking about moving their kids.
‘We had a little meeting outside. Parents were reluctant to leave their kids.’
The nursery management team sent a letter to parents yesterday letting them know what had happened.
The letter reads: ‘We are writing to you all to let you know of an incident that occurred in nursery yesterday.
‘A child in our Under 2s sustained a burn to his face and is currently receiving treatment for this in Pinderfields Hospital. Somehow this child managed to get into the upstairs milk kitchen where the accident took place.
‘We wanted to let you know of this incident, as we wanted to assure you that the member of staff has been suspended whilst we investigate, and we have taken the milk kitchen out of action for the foreseeable future.
Reuben, pictured before the incident, has suffered burns to the left hand side of his face, his left shoulder and behind his ear
‘A full investigation into this incident has been commenced and we have notified the relevant agencies such as Ofsted, the local authority and the Health and Safety Executive.
‘In the nine years we have owned the nursery we have held an impeccable health and safety and safeguarding record and we have never experienced anything like this before.
‘Our thoughts are with the child and his parents and we will feed back any findings to you all as quickly as we can.
‘In the meantime I hope that you will accept the things that we have put in place are to give you peace of mind and assure you of our commitment to you and your child.’
A spokesman for Ofsted said: ‘The nursery told us of this incident and we are looking into it further.’
Earlier, a member of staff at the nursery said: ‘We are co-operating with Ofsted and all agencies to investigate this situation.’
Mr Stoker said he would release a further statement later.