Nursery worker filmed himself sexually abusing children at work

Nursery worker filmed himself sexually abusing children at work

Will Bolton

Wed, December 3, 2025 at 12:44 PM UTC

5 min read

A “calculating and predatory” nursery worker filmed himself sexually assaulting multiple young children in his care.

Vincent Chan, 45, has admitted attacking four victims, the youngest of whom was two years old, and possessing tens of thousands of indecent images.

Detectives at the Metropolitan Police said their investigation into his offending, which spanned a number of years, remained ongoing.

The parents of some of the victims said they were “still trying to process the sickening discovery” that their children had been abused by someone who was supposed to care for them.

Chan, 45, pleaded guilty to all 26 charges against him at Wood Green Crown Court on Wednesday.

Those included five counts of sexual assault of a child by penetration and four counts of sexual assault by touching.

He also admitted 11 counts of taking indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child, and six counts of making indecent photographs or pseudo-photographs of a child.

Around 25 family members attended court for the hearing, many of whom were visibly upset. Others listened remotely via video link.

Dressed in a grey tracksuit, Chan spoke only to confirm his name and enter guilty pleas to each charge.

Chan began working at a Bright Horizons nursery in north London, in 2017 but it was not until May 2024 that concerns about his behaviour were raised.

Staff were provided with iPads to capture photos and videos to monitor the children’s progress so their parents could see how they were getting on at the nursery.

An anonymous caller contacted the local authority claiming Chan, who had no previous criminal convictions, had been filming children in his care using these devices and was making “disturbing” and “humiliating” videos for his own amusement.

He had shared stills of the videos, which were not sexual, with colleagues.

On June 11 2024, Chan, who has Chinese heritage but was born and raised in the UK, was arrested on suspicion of child cruelty.

Det Supt Lewis Basford, who led the investigation, said: “The investigation escalated dramatically when officers seized 25 digital devices from Chan’s home, including hard drives, mobile phones, memory cards and a computer terminal.

“Forensic analysis of these devices revealed deeply disturbing material.”

On Sept 5 this year, officers searching Chan’s devices discovered a “substantial cache” of indecent images and videos of children, including evidence of physical sexual attacks against very young children.

At least 25,000 images of children

In the course of their investigation, police recovered 69 devices used by Chan, including the work iPads.

On the devices they found videos of Chan abusing children at the nursery, on some occasions while they appeared to be asleep.

There were also at least 25,000 images of children, around 2,000 of which were Category A, the most severe child abuse material.

On Sept 8, Chan was rearrested and charged with multiple child sex offences.

He was suspended immediately after his initial arrest. The branch of Bright Horizon’s nursery where the abuse took place has since shut down.

At one stage during his employment, Chan was promoted to “room leader” but voluntarily stepped down from the role so he could continue working as a nurse.

Mr Basford said: “Child sexual abuse is one of the most horrific crimes imaginable, and Chan’s offending spanned years, revealing a calculated and predatory pattern of abuse.

“He infiltrated environments that should have been safe havens for children, exploiting the trust of families and the wider community to conceal his actions and prey on the most vulnerable.

“Our investigation remains ongoing, and we are continuing to review digital devices and assess Chan’s conduct across all relevant settings.

“We recognise the member of staff who raised their concerns, as without that first report of child cruelty Chan’s abuse could have continued unchecked, putting countless more children at risk.”

‘We want answers’

The families of the children who are known to have been abused directly by Chan are receiving specialist support.

A dedicated NSPCC helpline has also been set up for hundreds of families whose children attended the nursery during the time he worked there.

Following the pleas Leigh Day, the law firm representing affected parents, said: “We feel that Bright Horizons has failed us, and we want answers.

“How was someone like Vincent Chan employed? Why did safeguarding systems fail completely? And how were such horrific crimes against children able to continue for so long without the staff responsible for safeguarding at Bright Horizons nursery acting?

“We are concerned that failures in management and supervision at Bright Horizons allowed this abuse to go undetected, and we are committed to securing accountability for our children.”

Alison Millar, head of the abuse team and partner at Leigh Day, described the case as “absolutely shocking”.

She added: “The families we are in contact with feel very strongly that there were major failings of safeguarding at Bright Horizons Finchley Road nursery. We look forward to the findings of the Local Child Safeguarding Practice Review but there are many questions that need to be answered.”

‘Despicable abuse’

In a joint statement issued through Leigh Day, the parents of some of the affected children said Chan had targeted “innocent victims who could not fight back”.

They said: “As parents we are still trying to process the sickening discovery that our children were subjected to despicable abuse by Vincent Chan at the nursery.

“In admitting the charges, we are spared the prospect of hearing Vincent Chan’s crimes at the nursery described in graphic detail in a trial.

“We trust the judge to pass the strongest sentence to fit the crimes Vincent Chan has committed against young children, innocent victims who could not fight back.

“We would like to thank the Metropolitan Police Service for their assistance and support so far, but appreciate that their investigations in this case are not yet complete.”

Chan will be sentenced on Jan 23 at Wood Green Crown Court.

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