A nursery worker lifted a two-year-old boy by his wrists and pushed him on to a bench "with force".

Daryn May was also found to have pointed and shouted at the child in an "intimidating" manner by a professional watchdog.

The Scottish Social Services Council censured the support worker, who is based at a childcare centre in Midlothian.

It found May had breached its professional code during the incident involving the child in May 2016.

The nursery worker lifted the boy "off the ground by his wrists" before pushing him "on to a bench with force" and shouting "you don't hit your friends" at the toddler.

The watchdog stated: "Service users have the right to expect that they will be treated with dignity and respect and protected from harm by social service workers in whom they and the public have placed their trust and confidence.

"Picking up a young child by the wrists, pushing them down forcibly and pointing and shouting demonstrated a breach of this trust and confidence."

It added: "This behaviour was intimidating and was also physically and verbally abusive in that it was behaviour which would have been likely to cause injury, distress and fear to a young child; placing them at risk of physical and emotional harm.

"It was also behaviour which demonstrated a misuse of your power and position."

In its decision, the council stated the incident "brings into question your ability to practice reliably, safely and effectively" while it also found there were "potential serious consequences" for the child involved.

May was given a 12-month warning by the council as a result of the rule breach, during which time he has to gain further Scottish Vocational Qualification units and write a reflective account over the episode.