Toowoomba mum says primary school failed to act after multiple sickening assaults

A mum claims her 10-year-old son has weathered horrific and sickening abuse at the hands of bullies. But the best the school could do was isolate the victim ‘for his own safety’ while his attackers roamed free.

A Toowoomba primary school has been accused of failing to take appropriate steps in response to claims a student was assaulted by classmates, with the victim’s concerned mother calling on Queensland Education to take action.

For the past year, a 10-year-old boy has weathered repeated bullying from his peers, according to his mother.

The mum alleged this treatment culminated in an attack on school grounds when another student inserted a stick into her boy’s backside while other students watched.

The mum claimed following the alleged attack in August there were other attempts by the students to insert their fingers into her son’s backside.

The mum, who the Chronicle has chosen not to name in order to protect her son’s privacy, said she reported the assault to the school’s principal the day after it happened and that the offending student was suspended,

But she said this was not good enough.

“The students were back at school a few days later,” she said.

“The school decided to take my son off the playground during lunchtime for his own safety

“He spent his lunchtime in a classroom with a teacher – why was he getting punished for what was done to him”

The Chronicle understands the mum reported the alleged assault to the Queensland Police Service.

The mum said her boy, who has ADHD and Asperger’s syndrome, has suffered ongoing bullying, including having his head pushed into concrete.

She said that while her boy is a big kid who towers over the students, his disability makes him a soft target.

“He is 10-years-old but he has the mental capacity of a 6-year-old,” she said.

She made multiple complaints to the school but claimed the school principal’s response was inadequate.

The final straw came on November 4, when it was alleged several students threw rocks at her boy.

The boy and his brother have transferred to another state school and their mother said the change in their mental health was instant.

“When they came home from school on Monday they were different kids,” she said.

Initially, a spokesman for the Queensland Department of Education said it was only made aware of the alleged stick assault when the Chronicle contacted it for comment.

This is despite the alleged bully’s suspension in August, the mother phoning the school principal after the assault, an email to the department dated from Friday, November 5 and a phone interview that the mother had with the department on Monday, November 8.

“All incidents of bullying that the school was made aware of have been investigated and disciplinary consequences applied where appropriate in line with the school’s Student Code of Conduct,” he said.

“The department takes reports of sexualised behaviours extremely seriously, and has organised with the parent to discuss her concerns and allegations at length on Monday.”