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The Press
December 11 1992.
Concerns over worker 'raised with manager'
Concerns over the suitability of one of its male
creche workers were raised with the manager of the Christchurch Civic
Childcare Centre in February or March last year, the District Court was told
yesterday.
A witness said she had been prompted to act by an incident at her home when
her grandson, after having a bath, had begun touching his penis and flicking
his hand across it.
She said he told her that one of the childcare centre staff, Peter Hugh
McGregor Ellis, had done the same thing to him.
The witness, whose name was suppressed, was giving evidence at a hearing to
decide if five former creche staff accused of sexually abusing some children
in their care will be sent for trial.
Ellis, aged 34, faces 45 indecency charges. The former manager of the creche,
Gaye Jocelyn Davidson, aged 39, Janice Virginia Buckingham, aged 44, and
Marie Keys, aged 44, each face four charges. Deborah Janet Gillespie, faces
three charges.
The witness said she told her grandson to tell his mother what had happened.
When she talked to his parents about the incident they said they had told two
staff at the creche but the witness was unsure if the manager had been told.
She said she thought Davidson should be told and telephoned her anonymously
and said she thought Ellis was an "unsuitable and unsafe" person to
be working with children.
Davidson had wanted specific details about her complaint, including the name
of the child concerned. The witness said she felt such information should
come from the parents and she asked them to contact Davidson. She understood
her daughter had not contacted Davidson because she felt she had done
sufficient by speaking to two other members of staff.
The child's mother told the court that at about the time of his third
birthday her son had told her Ellis had touched his bottom in the main room
at the creche. The witness .said she was horrified at the allegation but did
not make an official complaint. Instead, she raised it at a social occasion
with a member of the childcare centre staff.
She had decided the act may have been inappropriate rather than sexual abuse.
She said she did not raise the matter with Davidson because she did not want
to make such a serious accusation, of which she was uncertain.
During cross-examination by counsel for the four women, Mr Gerald Nation, she
said she had later received a telephone call from Davidson, who was concerned
that the witness's partner had told another person that they had withdrawn
their son from the creche because of concerns about sexual abuse. Davidson
had been "understandably concerned" about the reputation of the
creche. She had assured her that she had not withdrawn her child from the
creche because of concerns about child abuse.
The mother, whose name was suppressed, said when her son was 20 months old he
had once returned from the creche with a piece of string or wool tied around
his penis. It was tied firmly with at least one and possibly two knots
although it had not cut off his blood circulation. She had queried it with a
member of the creche staff and was told that he had probably done it himself.
She did not believe this as he was not capable of tying knots at that age.
The witness said the worst scenario she had imagined at the time was that
another child had been responsible.
Another witness, whose son attended the creche during 1990 and part of 1991,
said her son started telling her last year that he did not like Ellis and on
one' occasion said he did not like the games Ellis played.
(Proceeding)
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