Edinburgh carer struck off as bosses uncover 'sustained dishonest behaviour'

A former Edinburgh children’s worker who was convicted of embezzling more than £8000 from her employers has been struck from the social services register due to her “prolonged and sustained period of dishonest behaviour”.

Tessa Douglas was a manager at the Strawberry Hill Nursery on Minto Street in Edinburgh.

Owners of the nursery said they were 'disappointed' to uncover Douglas' dishonesty and assured parents the business operates to the 'highest standards'.

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In March 2024, she was found to have funneled £8,062 over the course of 19 months from January 2016 and August 2017.

A report from the Scottish Social Services Council notes that Douglas denied the allegations prior to her conviction and that her behaviour was “deliberate” and sustained”.

It continued: “This demonstrates that you are capable of a prolonged and sustained period of dishonest behaviour, and you did so by abusing your position of trust as manager of a nursery.

“The behaviour took place over a period of around 19 months which raises concerns about your underlying values and attitude.

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“The behaviour resulted in a criminal conviction and had negative financial implications for the service you were employed to manage.

“We believe there is a risk to both public protection and public interest due to the risk of further harm to vulnerable people and the risk of jeopardising the confidence in both the profession and us as the regulator.

“Due to our concerns about your underlying values and attitude together with the seriousness of your conviction, we believe there is a risk that this behaviour may be repeated.”

Douglas was struck from the social services registry after her behaviour was considered “not capable of remedying”.

A spokesperson for Strawberry Hill Nursery said: “While the matters before Edinburgh Sheriff Court took place some time ago, it was a disappointing situation to uncover. Trust and reliability are essential elements of professional childcare, so the action taken against the former staff member by the Scottish Social Services Council is appropriate and understandable.

"We want to assure parents that our nursery operates to the highest standards of business management, with regular audits of financial systems. Most importantly, we have a caring and skilled team in place, with dedicated, responsible managers looking after children.”

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