Dunfermline Childminder Admits Leaving 27 Children Unsupervised as Parents Uncovered Screaming Kids in Locked Home

A self-employed childminder from Dunfermline has pleaded guilty to neglecting and abandoning the children in her care after it emerged she had been looking after 27 youngsters at once—far beyond the number she was licensed to supervise.

Amanda Mathewson, 55, admitted the offence at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court. The case has shocked the local community and raised fresh questions about the oversight of childminding services in Scotland. Mathewson had operated as a childminder for three decades, building what many families would have assumed was a trusted and experienced childcare business.

The court heard that her conduct occurred at several addresses, primarily in Dunfermline but also elsewhere in Fife. At the time of her arrest, the number of children in her home dwarfed the maximum permitted under her registration. Prosecutors told the court she had 27 children under her supervision—19 more than she was legally allowed to look after.

The scale of the operation became clear as details of the children's ages emerged. Mathewson was responsible for 15 children aged under 12, 10 who had not yet started primary school, and two infants under the age of one. The mix of very young children, including babies, meant the level of supervision required was particularly high.

The case came to light only because of the vigilance of two parents. Procurator fiscal Vicki Bell told the court the parents grew suspicious after being told their children were not present while Mathewson carried out a school run. Their doubts prompted them to take matters into their own hands.

The parents secretly went to the school and confirmed their children were not with Mathewson, even though they were supposed to be in her care. They then decided to check on the childminder's home. What they found there formed the basis of the prosecution.

Arriving at the property, the parents heard a child screaming and discovered five unattended children in the garden. One of those children told them there were no adults inside the house and that Mathewson had instructed them to wait outside. The unlocked door allowed the parents to enter and investigate further.

Inside, the situation was even more alarming. The witnesses heard another child screaming hysterically and found a young child crying under the kitchen table. Upstairs, in a bedroom, they discovered a further nine children, all under the age of five. Two of those children were strapped into prams.

The children were described in court as distressed but, fortunately, not physically injured. When police arrived and questioned Mathewson, she stated the children had been left alone for at least 30 minutes. However, ring doorbell footage presented to the court showed that this was actually the second occasion that day on which the children had been left inside the property without adult supervision.

Mathewson pleaded guilty to wilfully neglecting, abandoning and exposing children to a manner likely to cause them unnecessary suffering or injury to their health. The court also heard that she had offered childcare places to more children than she could reasonably provide care for at the time. The admissions point to a prolonged pattern of overstretched, unsafe care rather than a single lapse in judgment.

The case sits against a troubling regulatory backdrop. A Care Inspectorate report published in August 2023 stated that Mathewson was registered to provide care for a maximum of eight children at any one time. Her registration conditions also capped the number of children under 12 at six, limited those who had started primary school to three, and allowed only one child under 12 months old.

Yet an unannounced inspection carried out roughly a year before her arrest had rated areas including care, learning and the setting as "very good"—the second-highest level on the quality scale. The same report noted that children were cared for in a comfortable, welcoming and homely environment and were looked after with warmth, kindness and a nurturing approach.

The contrast between that official assessment and the chaotic scenes described in court is likely to prompt scrutiny of how inspections are conducted and how quickly conditions can deteriorate after a positive review. It also highlights the difficulty regulators face in detecting hidden breaches, particularly when they occur in a private home.

Sheriff John MacRitchie deferred sentencing until 6 November to allow background reports to be prepared. Mathewson's bail was continued in the meantime. Those reports will typically examine her personal circumstances, any previous relevant history, and the risk she may pose, all of which will inform the eventual sentence.

For the families involved, the court proceedings may bring some accountability but cannot erase the fear of what might have happened. The parents who took it upon themselves to investigate acted on a suspicion that many caregivers rely on being trusted without question.

The case also raises broader questions about the safeguards surrounding self-employed childminders, who often work alone and without the immediate oversight that a nursery or larger childcare setting provides. Registration limits and inspection regimes exist precisely to prevent the kind of overcrowding and unsupervised care described in court, but enforcement depends on complaints or spot checks.

As Mathewson awaits sentencing, the episode serves as a stark reminder of the responsibilities placed on those entrusted with young children. The fact that infants, toddlers and school-age children were left together without adequate adult supervision has underlined just how serious a breach of that trust can be.