'The bullying was so bad he'd eat in the toilets'

“My son is crippled with anxiety and trauma as a result of the school. School is supposed to be the safest place for children, yet it was the most unsafe for Jacob.”

Jacob* was just five years old and starting out on his schooling journey when he was kicked in the penis by another boy so hard he was unable to walk for days and required medical treatment.

This was just one of 13 physical attacks that his mother says took place in prep alone and continued for almost four years at Coombabah State Primary School on the Gold Coast in Queensland.

“When he started school, he was a happy, content boy, excited to start his journey. He now has severe PTSD,” Mum, Sarah* opens up to Kidspot.

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“It’s been a nightmare, absolutely horrific.

“I emailed the school principal, and it took him three months to respond to the email and two weeks to meet with us.”

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Jacob's* parents claim he was mercilessly bullied at his Gold Coast school, and claim the school did nothing about it. Picture: Supplied

"My son is crippled with anxiety and trauma"

Sarah said Jacob was punched in the stomach, stalked, subjected to death threats, had his head put down the boy’s toilet and suffered soft tissue damage to his head.

After almost four years with no action from the school, Sarah said she’s been forced to take Jacob out of school and homeschool him to keep him safe.

“My son is crippled with anxiety and trauma as a result of the school,” the single mum said.

“School is supposed to be the safest place for children, yet it was the most unsafe for Jacob.”

She said despite the trauma Jacob faced every single day and getting no support from the school, she desperately wanted to believe it would change its practices but was continually discredited and ignored.

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“When we went to the school to show them the bruising on Jacob’s head, we were told we had two days until school holidays and then we’d get a break from it,” the 46-year-old revealed.

“Jacob was the one that had to play in a different area, while the bullies had free reign of the playground, further socially isolating him.

“Nine times out of ten the assaults were so bad he had to be picked up and taken to the doctor.

“In year one the assaults were so bad he’d eat in the toilet to avoid being bullied.

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Jacob is now being homeschooled after the bullying at Coombabah State Primary School became too bad. Picture: Supplied

"The bullies are protected"

Through year two to three he stopped eating at school, fearing where the bullies were and what they would do to him.”

Between years one and two Sarah emailed the school with complaints 187 times.

Sarah and her mum, who has advocated tirelessly for Jacob, believe the  bullying is widespread among students at Coombabah Primary School.

“We witnessed a child throwing chairs around the classroom, punching the teacher and assaulting other students. Girls were punched in the stomach and had their heads pushed into a tree by the boys,” Sarah revealed.

“No matter where you turn, the bullies are protected. One of the children gets double the reward points if he doesn’t physically assault a child.”

Sarah and her mum have documented every single incident and visit to the GP, they have reported the attacks to Child Safety and the police.

They have met with and written to Queensland Minister for Education, Di Farmer on three occasions, but as yet had no response.

A letter from his GP in July 2022 detailed multiple incidents resulting in injuries, including concussion, just in August and September 2021 alone.

The GP said the clinical psychologist she referred Jacob to believed he was at risk from the main bully at the time, causing him to suffer anxiety and she herself feared Coombabah Primary School was unable to provide a safe environment for Jacob.

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"If I'd known, I wouldn't have sent my son to school"

Having to homeschool will place a financial strain on Sarah, who is also studying and said she’s been running on three hours sleep due to the stress.

“We don’t just have to homeschool, we have to navigate Jacob’s mental health. He is being seen by a clinical child psychiatrist for his anxiety and PTSD,” she said.

“The first visit is $720. He is also being seen by a child psychologist at $150 a visit.

“Had I known the seedy, disgusting things that happened in the school there is no way I would have put my son into it.”

A spokesperson for the Department of Education said they could not provide specific information on individual students due to privacy reasons.

They said they understand bullying is an immense challenge for students and their families and all schools, including Coombabah work hard to ensure students are safe.

“All Queensland state schools, including Coombabah State School, are required to have a Student Code of Conduct which explicitly details how the school will work to prevent and respond to bullying,” the spokesperson said.

Minister Di Farmer did not respond to a request for comment.

*Names have been changed.

Originally published as 'The bullying was so bad he'd eat in the toilets'