A seven-year-old girl drowned in a pond just hours after being dropped off at a Facebook recommended childminder, a family friend has claimed. 

Nyla May Bradshaw was found dead in the water at Owston Hall Golf Course in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, on Monday, after a huge search and rescue operation. 

Witnesses described a large emergency response, with a police helicopter circling overheard, with drones, paramedics and an air ambulance all also at the scene. 

Her mother, Hayley Beardsley, had only left her non-verbal autistic daughter with the specialist SEND childminder for the first time that morning, at 7.45am. 

But within two hours of drop-off, she received a text message to say Nyla was missing. 

Ms Beardsley’s best friend has now revealed the girl was only placed with the new carer because her regular minder was fully booked over the Easter period. 

Charlotte Emma told Metro: ‘A lot of us blame ourselves because Hailey doesn’t usually leave her with anybody, she goes to a special school.

‘But the school holidays have come up and her mum was desperate for a child minder.

Nyla May Bradshaw (pictured) was found dead in the water at Owston Hall Golf Course in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, on Monday, after a huge search and rescue operation 

Her mother, Hayley Beardsley, had only left her non-verbal autistic daughter (pictured) with the specialist SEND childminder for the first time that morning, at 7.45am 

‘She’d asked a Facebook group if anybody knew of any in the area.’ 

Nyla’s devastated parents Ms Beardsley and Kieran Bradshaw paid tribute to their beloved daughter in a post shared to social media. 

She wrote on Facebook: ‘It breaks my heart to write this, but today we lost our beautiful daughter Nyla May Bradshaw at just 7 years old.

‘She was our whole world full of love, laughter, and the brightest smile that could light up any room.

‘She brought so much joy into our lives and into the lives of everyone who knew her.

‘Our sweet little girl will be loved forever and never, ever forgotten.

‘Forever 7 my girl, this isn’t goodbye – it’s an until we meet again. You have family up there who will look after you.’

Mr Bradshaw described the girl as his ‘best friend’ and an ‘amazing daughter’: ‘You were so loved Nyla you touched everyone’s heart that ever met you.

‘I’ll never ever go a moment without you in my thoughts.’

Family friend Ms Emma said: ‘She was my best friend’s daughter – our beloved little girl. She was beautiful.

‘Her mother only wants her memory to live on and for everyone see how happy she really was.’

She called Nyla ‘an escape artist’ and ‘a crafty devil’ – but said she would ‘not go anywhere’ if properly watched. 

Ms Emma explained the council had installed a six-foot fence at the girl’s family home to keep her from escaping the garden. 

Ms Beardsley had even had to go so far as to fit electronic locks on the property as the youngster had repeatedly managed to make her way out. 

A spokesperson for South Yorkshire Police previously said: ‘Yesterday, Monday, March 30, officers responded to the death of a child in Doncaster.

‘At 9.50am, a report was made that a child had gone missing in the Skellow area of the city. 

Witnesses described a large emergency response at the scene (pictured, file photo), with a police helicopter circling overheard, with drones, paramedics and an air ambulance all also present

The golf course (pictured, file photo) where Nyla was found spans around 80 acres and includes water features as part of its design 

Read More

BREAKING NEWS

Girl, 7, found dead in pond at golf course as mother pays tribute to her ‘sweet little girl’

‘Officers and additional resources including police drones and the police aircraft were deployed.

‘Following an extensive search, the child was located in a pond on Owston Hall golf course.

‘Sadly, despite the best efforts of emergency services colleagues, they were pronounced deceased.

‘The child’s family has been informed and is being supported by our officers. The thoughts of everybody at SYP are with them at this devastating time.’

A neighbour, who often looked after Nyla in the school holidays, has donated £1,000 to a GoFundMe page raising money for the girl’s funeral. 

She wrote on the fundraiser webpage she feels heartbroken she was not available to look after the youngster that day.  

The golf course where Nyla was found spans around 80 acres and includes water features as part of its design. 

Anyone with information has been asked to call 101 quoting incident number 198 of March 30.