A nanny from Roehampton who was caught on film slapping and shaking two toddlers in her care has been jailed for 15 months.

Kelly Lawrence, 24, carried out the physical abuse while she was employed to look after two 14-month-old boys in Mortlake.

Their parents stumbled upon the abuse when they became suspicious about how much time Lawrence was spending on the phone, Kingston Crown Court heard last Friday.

They set up audio recording equipment in the house and were alarmed by a conversation in which Lawrence called one of the boys a brat' and said she dragged the children across the floor because they were too heavy to lift.

Three days later one of the couples installed covert video cameras in the lounge of their home and captured Lawrence on film.

The video, recorded over a 12-hour period on February 12, was passed to the police.

Lawrence, of Stroud Crescent, Putney Vale, broke down as the tape was played in court.

It showed her slapping one child eight times in quick succession, physically shaking the boys and dropping them onto a wooden floor.

In one of the most harrowing scenes, Lawrence slapped one of the boys and then bit him on the face leaving a mark the size of a 50p piece.

Lawrence, who as a nanny did not need to be registered, had been working for the two families for 10 months.

She was employed by Tinies nanny agency in Richmond and had provided a CV and references.

She admitted five charges of child cruelty in September.

Anabel Darlow, defending, said Lawrence devoted five years of her life to her career and had gained two childcare qualifications.

She added Lawrence had been suffering from depression and explained how she felt she was possessed at the time of the abuse.

Judge Martin Binning disqualified Lawrence from working with children for life and said the severity of the case warranted a jail sentence.

He added: "The video makes shocking viewing. The children appeared docile in your company. You appeared without affection, brusque and sometimes violent.

"The court must do what it can to protect those who cannot defend themselves."

Speaking after the hearing, DC Adrian Joly, from Hounslow and Richmond Child Protection Team, said: "I feel it is only through luck that neither of the children were seriously injured.

"The situation these families faced is understandably every parent's nightmare and it should be some reassurance to everyone that Kelly has been imprisoned for her actions."

December 28, 2001 09:30