Daycare accused of abuse indefinitely shuts down after allegedly serving children bleach

MANHATTAN, N.Y. (WKRC) – A daycare previously accused of abuse was indefinitely closed after allegedly accidentally serving children a pitcher full of cleaning solution that included bleach.

A staff member at Bright Horizons Daycare allegedly poured a cleaning solution that contained bleach into a classroom water pitcher and served the substance to students during their snack time on October 27, according to CBS News. The issue was only noticed after a teacher drank from the same pitcher and realized the children were drinking cleaning solution, prompting staff to contact poison control, per the outlet.

The local health department reportedly indefinitely shut down the business after the incident for “[exposing] children to a toxic chemical.” The daycare later told CBS News that the cleaning solution was two gallons of water mixed with a “small amount” of bleach.

Parents claimed that the daycare did not notify them about the incident, and that they learned about it after CBS reached out to them to request an interview.

Bright Horizons Daycare was previously scrutinized in July 2025 when three employees were arrested on charges of child abuse that reportedly occurred in the daycare.

The alleged abuse included dragging children by their hair, taping their mouths closed, and spraying them with bleach.

“One of the most basic structural indicators is that you have things set up in a way that there’s no way a toxic material would be near a water supply for children,” Erin O’Connor, director of the NYU Early Childhood Education program, told CBS. “It gives me pause about how much was done in response to the first incident.”

“It just doesn’t feel like they have child safety in their best interest,” she said. “To me, it sounds like they care more about their appearance, like how they come off in hiding their mistakes.”

Authorities said the daycare’s representatives would have to appear at an administrative hearing to determine whether or not the business would permanently close.