Childcare leader condemns Britain's naughtiest nursery for labelling kids 'naughty'

An early years expert has criticised the negative portrayal of pre-schoolers and labelling of children as ‘naughty’ in the TV show Britain’s Naughtiest Nursery.

Britain’s Naughtiest Nursery was on Channel 5 in early October and showed children described as 'tiny terrors' for swearing and hitting in a nursery.

The show prompted a childcare expert to condemn the language used to describe children including the use of the word ‘naughty’.

Stella Ziolkowski, director of quality and training at the National Day Nurseries Association (NDNA), said: “Children exhibit behaviours for a number of reasons and labelling this as ‘naughty’ is not appropriate.

“This is a time for children to learn how to recognise and deal with strong emotions and their physical responses. Childcare providers, like nurseries, work hard to support children to develop their emotional literacy and self-regulation and use positive behaviour strategies that support and develop a child’s intrinsic motivation.”

The TV show has been promoted as ‘helping the UK’s most challenging children’ or ‘tiny terrors’ with many already excluded from nurseries nearer their homes.

It featured child psychologist Laverne Antrobus, who says in the show “Parents are coming to this nursery at their wits end. They feel as if their lives are being torn apart by their children’s behaviour and that there’s no one to turn to.”

Three-year-old Lottie filmed running across road

Joanne, mother of three-year-old Lottie had been called to collect her daughter from nursery up to three times a week, until she was asked to leave the nursery.

Mum Joanne who says she was forced to give up her job to keep a constant eye on her daughter says she is “a danger to herself and others”. Lottie is filmed by a TV crew running out of the house and crossing a road with her mother in pursuit.

Lottie admitted ‘I say the F-word a lot’ and is caught on camera mouthing the swear word at her mother and is filmed sticking two fingers up at her dad. Another parent Guy, the father of four-year-old Louie told the TV show's child psychologist: “He’s either hitting me, his mum or his little sister every single day.”

The NDNA’s director of quality and training added: “This programme demonstrates that parents need support from early years specialists who are knowledgeable around how children develop personally, socially and emotionally and can use strategies to support children and parents.

“Early years specialists develop these based on the latest research and best practice in child development and have a wealth of experience in working with families to build up a bank of long term strategies to support a child’s individual needs.”

A poll carried out, earlier this year by daynurseries.co.uk revealed 95 per cent of nursery staff are banned from calling children naughty. At the time Good Morning Britain presenter, Piers Morgan, called it 'a pathetic joke' that nurseries have ditched the word naughty.

The survey of 1,000 nursery staff also found three in five staff don’t agree with using a thinking chair or naughty step in their nursery for managing bad behaviour.