Child from Veurnse crèche at home after incident, parents want to find out the truth

This week it became known that a boy from a nursery in Veurne was injured in hospital. He was brought in with symptoms similar to shaken baby syndrome. That indicates that the baby would have been shaken violently.

Kind en Gezin subsequently decided to temporarily withdraw the childminder’s permit. The court opened an investigation into possible abuses.

“Noa is doing well”

Baby Noa’s parents are now filing civil proceedings against unknown persons. “Noa is doing well in the meantime, he is back home,” says lawyer Luc Arnou. “The child has been in UZ Gent for three weeks. That was a difficult and anxious period for the parents. They are still very worried. They want to know exactly what happened to Noa.”

It is still unclear whether Noa sustained the injuries in the nursery or elsewhere. What is certain is that the childminder was on the list of 54 reception initiatives that have been re-evaluated in recent weeks at the request of Minister Crevits. After such a re-evaluation, the nursery in Veurne was labeled ‘safe’ by the Growing Up Agency.

Error recognized

As a result of the incident, the agency is answering today. Administrator-General Katrien Verhegge admits that she made a mistake. The leading official admits that a search of the relevant file last week was not immediately passed on to Flemish Minister of Welfare Hilde Crevits.

According to Verhegge, during that search, the court asked not to contact the shelter or to take steps yourself. Yet she admits that she should have informed her minister about the search. “I understand that the minister was angry. We have apologized and we will signal house searches in the future.”