A mother in Shanghai has filed a civil lawsuit after her 16-month-old son was allegedly restrained by a trainee teacher for 29 minutes on his first day at a nursery, leaving him with multiple head injuries.
According to local media reports, the boy was enrolled at Ivy Nursery in Shanghai’s Minhang District on May 18, 2026.
During his first day, the toddler reportedly cried during naptime. A 22-year-old trainee teacher, identified only by the surname Chen, allegedly held him down for 29 minutes, causing his head to repeatedly strike the bed rail and leaving him with several scalp injuries.
The child’s mother, identified as Ms Guo, said she noticed her son behaving unusually the following day and discovered injuries on his forehead.
On May 20, she requested to review the nursery’s CCTV footage, which she said revealed the alleged abuse. She subsequently reported the incident to the police.
On June 5, the Minhang branch of the Shanghai Public Security Bureau concluded that the trainee teacher had committed the offence of abusing a person under her care and issued her an administrative warning.
Ms Guo expressed dissatisfaction with the punishment, describing it as too lenient. She also said that while the nursery had apologised, the teacher had never personally apologised or met with the family.
The mother has since filed a civil lawsuit seeking legal accountability and is currently awaiting the case to be formally accepted by the court.
