There has been a case in the UK in the past week of a woman nursery worker being charged with several counts of child sexual abuse. I found this comment article in the Guardian very interesting, and I think that it will be of interest to others who post here. I hope that there aren't any triggers in the text for those who are recovering from abuse.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jun/12/vanessa-george-child-abuse-women-paedophiles
One of the points raised in the article is that attitudes change from revulsion to amusement when the victims of female paedophiles reach their teens. I have seen that demonstrated in discusssions on JWD. I suspect that it is because female sexuality is perceived as passive, weak, gentle, somehow smaller than male sexuality.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jun/11/vanessa-george-nursery-sexual-assault-charges-court
Anyone in the UK working with children in an official capacity, be they volunteers or employees, is subject to a Criminal Record check. This case shows that while these checks are useful, they only prove that a candidate has never been caught, it is not positive proof that they are safe for children to be around.
This is a shocking case, and as a mother of a 3 year old and a 5 month old, I can't begin to imagine how sickened and shocked the parents of children in her care feel.