Nursery worker held over child sex allegation

A nursery worker from Dorset has been arrested and released on bail after an allegation she sexually assaulted a child under the age of 13, police said.

The offence is alleged to have taken place at a house in Poole and not the Down in the Woods nursery where the woman works, Dorset Police said, but the nursery has been searched.

"Police officers are speaking with witnesses as part of this investigation," a police spokesman said, adding that they were working with Poole council and the local primary care trust.

"Dorset Police and the Borough of Poole are duty bound to safeguard all children and therefore closed the nursery while these urgent enquiries take place," he said.